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The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association (RSPBA) is an association aiming to oversee pipe band competition, and to promote and encourage the development of pipe band culture worldwide. It was founded in 1930.
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The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association (RSPBA) is an association aiming to oversee pipe band competition, and to promote and encourage the development of pipe band culture worldwide. It was founded in 1930.
The RSPBA sets the rules and guidelines for pipe band contests in the United Kingdom, administers the events including coordinating adjudication, logistics, and evaluation, and holds Annual General Meetings to ensure that the rules and regulations are up to date.
The RSPBA also administers and coordinates the World Pipe Band Championships, held every August in Glasgow. In addition to "The World's", there are four other Major Contests - Scottish, British, European, and UK Championships. At Branch level, there are numerous contests held at Highland Games and any venue which raises the fund to hold a contest. Bands are placed in a Grade system - from Grade 4 up to Grade 1. Competitive standards are set and maintained by the Music Board, and each branch of the RSPBA may appoint two National Council members to represent their Branch Members at the national level.
The RSPBA has many sister organizations throughout the world. Some of these organizations include:
A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of pipers and drummers. The term pipes and drums, used by military pipe bands is also common.
The Army School of Bagpipe Music and Highland Drumming is a British Army training establishment that provides instruction on Scottish pipe band music to military pipers and drummers.
The Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band is a competitive grade one pipe band from Lisburn, Northern Ireland named in honour of Field Marshal Viscount Montgomery of Alamein. The band has won the World Pipe Band Championships 13 times, making it the third most successful competing pipe band in history behind the Strathclyde Police Pipe Band and the Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band.
The City of Washington Pipe Band was a grade two pipe band located in Washington, D.C.
The City of Whitehorse (CoWPB) was a competition pipe band, based in Nunawading, Victoria, Australia. The band's previous incarnations had been successful on the Australian Pipe Band competition circuit for numerous years, and was placed 11th in the final tables of the World Pipe Band Championships in 2006. The band reformed in 2014 and was led by Pipe Major George Shepherd and Drum Sergeant Olav Goud. The band ceased operations in 2016 following the decision of Pipe Bands Australia to suspend five members and later, terminate the band's membership following a protracted period of behaviour deemed unacceptable by the association.
The Robert Malcolm Memorial Pipe Band is an organization of four bands affiliated with the Simon Fraser University Pipe Band. Though one primary purpose of the bands is to act as a feeder for the Grade I SFU pipe band, the bands have proven themselves in their own right as highly competitive forces. The RMM bands are no longer classified as juvenile bands as of this year they lifted the age limit, people of all ages are now allowed to join the RMM Pipebands.
The 78th Highlanders Pipe Band is a grade one pipe band formed in 1983 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. They work in conjunction with a re-enactor troop for the 78th (Highlanders) Regiment of Foot, the regiment that spent almost three years stationed at Citadel Hill (1869-1871).
Denny and Dunipace Pipe Band is a Grade 3A pipe band based in Denny, near Falkirk, Scotland.
The World Pipe Band Championships is a pipe band competition held in Glasgow, Scotland.
The Dowco Triumph Street Pipe Band was a Grade 1 competitive and concert pipe band based in Greater Vancouver, B.C., Canada, established in 1971 by former pupils of Pipe Major Malcolm Nicholson, C.M. of the Vancouver Police Pipe Band. The band was dissolved on September 16, 2018 by Pipe Major David Hilder.
Inveraray and District Pipe Band is a Grade 1 pipe band based in Inveraray, Scotland.
The Scottish tenor drum is a musical instrument used within Scottish pipe bands. It is a double-headed membranophone that is held vertically with one head up, one head down, and played with soft mallets on the top head only. Common sizes of drums are 15, 16, 18, or 20 inch in diameter, with 12, 14, or 16 inch depth. The playing style of the Scottish tenor drum has varied throughout the years, but there is typically a variation of the combination of swings and rhythmic accompaniment to the Scottish snare drum and the Great Highland Bagpipes. It is similar to the more common marching band style tenor drum.
Steven McWhirter is a pipe band drummer from Northern Ireland. He has won multiple World Championship titles as a solo performer and as part of band. He is the lead drummer for the Inveraray & District Pipe Band.
Red Hackle Pipe & Drums, sometimes known as the Hackle, was a grade 1 pipe band based in Glasgow, Scotland.
The Pipe Band Club is a competitive pipe band located in Sydney, Australia. The band was formed in 2008 and attended The World Pipe Band Championships in 2009 and 2010, competing in Grade 1. The band was led by Scott Nicolson until 2010 at which point Angus Roberts was elected Pipe Major. The band was the winner of the Australian Championship in 2010, and has also consistently held the New South Wales state title since inauguration. In 2012 the band requested to be relegated to Grade 2 and this was approved by the Australian Pipe Band Association. The band won the 2014 Australian Championship in Grade 2, and went on to host the NSW Championships in November 2014, marking the first time the band had acted as a contest promoter.
John Reid Maxwell is a pipe band drummer and current leading drummer of the Simon Fraser University Pipe Band. Maxwell is the first person in history to have led the drum corps of two different bands to victory at the World Pipe Band Championships.
The Spirit of Scotland Pipe Band is a pipe band formed from top-class solo players.
The City of Dunedin Pipe Band is a Grade 1 pipe band out of Dunedin, Florida. It is led by pipe major Iain Donaldson and drum sergeant Eric MacNeill.
The Worcester Kiltie Pipe Band is a Grade 2 pipe band from Worcester, Massachusetts. It is led by pipe major Davy Methven and lead drummer Colum Lundt. They compete in the United States, Canada and the UK and wear the Modern Scott tartan. They were the first band from the United States to rise to prominence in Grade 1, and in 1964 became the first US band to compete at the World Pipe Band Championships.
