Vale of Atholl Pipe Band

Vale of Atholl Pipe Band
Established 1906
Location Perthshire, Scotland
Grade 1
Pipe Major Adrian Cramb
Drum Sergeant Alistair McNab
Tartan Muted Macnaughton
Notable Honours 3rd place, World Pipe Band Championships: 1989, 1990
Website www.thevale.org

The Vale of Atholl Pipe Band is a competitive grade one pipe band. The band has placed highly in the Major Scottish competitions and the World Pipe Band Championships since at least the late 1980s.

History

The band was founded in 1906 as the Vale of Atholl Pipers Association, with the Marquess of Tullibardine as patron and led by pipe major Mitchell Pirnie.[1] The band started in competing in competition in 1931 under the leadership of Robert Pirnie, and played at the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.[1]

Ian Duncan, brother of Gordon Duncan, joined the band in 1965 and took over as pipe major in 1973.[1] The band first entered competitions organised by the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association in 1977, starting in Grade 4, but by 1983 the band had been promoted to Grade 1.[1] The band came second in the Champion of Champions table during the 1980s, and won the European and British Championship titles in 1988 and 1989 respectively.[1] In 1993, the band reached a sponsorship agreement with Macnaughtons of Pitlochry, and changed its tartan from traditional Murray of Atholl tartan to the Muted Macnaughton.[1]

Andy Renwick succeeded Ian Duncan as pipe major at the end of 2000, and in 2002 the band secured a sponsorship deal with Robert Wiseman Dairies, changing its name to Robert Wiseman Dairies-Vale of Atholl Pipe Band.[2]

Adrian Cramb took over the role of pipe major in 2008.[1][3] Alastair McNab took over the role of lead drummer in 2013, replacing Crawford Allan.[4]

Discography

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vale of Atholl Pipe Band.
  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 "About Us". thevale.org. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
  2. "Vale of Atholl Pipe Band". scotiapipers.co.uk. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  3. "Adrian Cramb new Vale of Atholl Pipe-Major". pipesdrums.com. 30 September 2008. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  4. "Bongo takes leading role in Vale of Atholl drum section". pipesdrums.com. 17 December 2013. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
  5. "Live 'n Well: The Motherwell Concert". allmusic.com. Retrieved 6 February 2015.