Bruce Gandy (born August 10, 1962) is a Canadian
bagpipe
Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, ...
player and composer.
Life
He was born on 10 August 1962 in
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of the Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Greater Victoria area has a population of 397,237. The ...
, to Frances and Ray Gandy, and was the last of their eight children.
[
In 1982, Gandy met his wife Beverley Rollo, a piper in the 78th Fraser Highlanders, with whom he has had two sons, Alex and Fraser.][ Alex Gandy is the current pipe major of the 78th Highlanders (Halifax Citadel) Pipe Band, and has previously played with ]Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band
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 ...
.
Career
Gandy joined the City of Victoria Pipe Band
The City of Victoria Pipe Band was a grade 1 pipe band based in Victoria, British Columbia.
History
James Troy was pipe major of a youth band under Ian Duncan of Victoria, until he turned sixteen and aged out. In 1961, he joined the Royal Canadi ...
under pipe major
The pipe major is the leading musician of a pipe band, whether military or civilian. Like the appointment of drum major, the position is derived from British Army traditions. During the early twentieth century, the term sergeant piper was used ...
James Troy at the age of 12 in 1974, and played with the band for eight years.World Championship
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
win in 1987, when the 78th Fraser Highlanders became the first band based outside Scotland to win the title.Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
to Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...
, where he was an instructor at the College of Piping, and then three years later he moved to Halifax, and played with the 78th Highlanders (Halifax Citadel) Pipe Band.[
He won the gold medal at the ]Northern Meeting
The Northern Meeting is a gathering held in Inverness, Scotland, best known for its solo bagpiping competition in September.
History
The Northern Meeting was set up in 1798 "for the purpose of promoting a Social Intercourse", and early editions ...
in 2002, and in 2003 won the gold medal at the Argyllshire Gathering
The Argyllshire Gathering is a Highland games held in Oban, Scotland.
History
A meeting on 23 August 1871 held at the Argyll Arms Hotel led to a resolution to have an "Annual Gathering of the Gentry of the County of Argyll for social purposes" ...
as well as the Bratach Gorm that year.[
]
Compositions
Gandy is also a prolific composer of tunes, and has published four collections of music.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gandy, Bruce
Great Highland bagpipe players
1962 births
Living people
Musicians from Victoria, British Columbia
Gold Medal winners (bagpipes)
Canadian bagpipe players