The Lothian and Borders Police Pipe Band was a grade one
pipe band
A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of Bagpipes, pipers and drummers. The term pipes and drums, used by military pipe bands is also common.
The most common form of pipe band consists of a section of pipers playing the Great Highland b ...
based in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
.
History
The band can trace its origins back to 1882, after the Lord Provost's Committee suggested in February of the same year that a police band be formed.
The band was not a pipe band at this time, but did however contain pipers.
The earliest known performance by the band was held on 2 June 1883 when the "Edinburgh City Police Pipers" played a number of sets at Waverly Market.
The police band was deemed too expensive for the force to run due to the large number of musicians and became a town band instead.
Around 1900, the Edinburgh City Police Pipe Band was formed, led by
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 ...
Norman Graham.
When Graham died in 1910, Pipe Sergeant Hugh Calder took over the leadership of the band. It was under Calder that the band was to win its first major competition. In 1919 the band won the Argyle shield at the
Cowal Games, equivalent to the
World Pipe Band Championships
The World Pipe Band Championships is a pipe band competition held in Glasgow, Scotland. The World Pipe Band Championships as we currently know them have been staged since 1947 although the Grade 1 Pipe Band Competition winners at the annual Cowal ...
as they are known today.
After the retiral of Pipe-Major John Burgess, Iain McLeod, already a successful solo piper, took over the mantle of Pipe Major from 1959 until his retiral from the police in 1976. Under his leader-ship, the band was extremely successful competitively and won 5 World Pipe-Band Championship titles in 1963 (Dumfries), 1964 (Ayr), 1971 (Lanark), 1972 (Hawick) and in 1975 (Corby) as the renamed Lothian and Borders Police Pipe-Band. Not only was the band successful competitively during this period, but represented the Police, the city of Edinburgh, Scotland and the U.K. performing at events throughout the UK and Europe, Canada and the USA, Japan, South Africa, Russia and even in Guam. The trip to Russia took place at the height of the Cold War period in 1966, to promote British trade and industry alongside British Prime Minister Harold Wilson.
The music was enjoyed by piping enthusiasts all over the world and the band released 5 albums, as well as making cameo appearances in several Hollywood films including the original Casino Royale, Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Battle of the Sexes and Let's be Happy. During the International Edinburgh Festival, they were a regular feature, marching in a daily parade along Princes Street enjoyed by locals and tourists alike; one of the film sequences featured
Vera Ellen as the "Drum Major".
On 30 November 2012, the decision to disband the pipe band was taken, due to a lack of members. It was dissolved on 31 March 2013, to coincide with the formation of a
new single police force in Scotland.
Pipe Majors
as Edinburgh City Police Pipers
*''Constable A. Findlay'' (1883–1890)
*''Constable Alexander Hamilton'' (1890–?)
as Edinburgh City Police Pipe Band
*''Norman Graham'' (1900–1910)
*''Hugh Calder'' (1910–1920)
*''Alexander Henderson'' (1920–1923)
*''Alexander Henry'' (1923–?)
*''William Sunderland'' (?–1930)
*''Hance T. Gates'' (1930–1941)
*''Duncan R. Cameron'' (1941–1949)
*''
Donald Shaw Ramsay BEM'' (1949–1957)
*''
John D. Burgess MBE'' (1957–1958)
*''Iain McLeod'' (1959–1975)
as Lothian & Borders Police Pipe Band
*''Iain McLeod'' (1975–1976)
*''Harry McNulty'' (1976–1982)
*''Colin Forbes'' (1982–1984)
*''George Lumsden'' (1984–1988)
*''Duncan Smith'' (1988–?)
*''Constable Les Watson''
*''Constable Kenny McBride'' (?–1999)
*''Colin MacLellan'' (1999–2004)
*''Keith Dawes'' (2004–2006)
*''David Barnes'' (2007–2009)
*''Ian Duncan'' (2009–2011)
*''Neil Hall'' (2011–2012)
*''Constable John Fraser'' (2013)
Leading Drummers
as Edinburgh City Police Pipe Band
*''Alex McGregor''
*''James Catherwood'' (1941–1951)
*''George (Geordie) Pryde'' (1951–1957)
*''Robert (Bob) Montgomery'' (1958–1969)
*''Alex Duthart'' (1969–1970)
*''Robert (Bob) Montgomery'' (1970–1974)
as Lothian & Borders Police Pipe Band
*''Ian Watt'' (1975)
*''Michael Dow'' (1976–1977)
*''Robert (Bob) Montgomery'' (1977–1985)
*''Bryn Butler'' (1985–1987)
*''Alan Kenny'' (1987–1988)
*''Arthur Cook'' (1988–1995)
*''Constable Stewart Gardiner'' (1995–1999)
*''Arthur Cook'' (1999–2011)
*''Jake Jørgensen'' (2011–2013)
Discography
as Edinburgh City Police Pipe Band
*''Princes Street Parade'' (1956)
*''Pipes and Drums of the Edinburgh City Police Pipe Band'' (1957)
*''The Pipes and Drums of Scotland, No. 2'' (1959)
*''March of The Pipers'' (1962)
*''The Edinburgh City Police Pipe-Band'' (1965)
*''The Piper's Parade'' (1967)
*''Champions of The World'' (1971)
*''Capital Parade'' (1975)
*''Pride of Princes Street'' (2012)
*''Here Come the Champions: Great Marches and Reels'' (2014)
*''Edinburgh City Police Pipe-Band Revisited - Pipe Major Iain McLeod's Selection'' (2016)
as Lothian & Borders Police Pipe Band
*''The Piper's Salute'' (1979)
*''Centennial'' (1990)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lothian and Borders Police Pipe Band
Grade 1 pipe bands
Scottish pipe bands
Musical groups established in 1882
1882 establishments in Scotland
World Pipe Band Championships winners