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 ...

John MacDonald (26 July 1865 - 6 June 1953) was a Scottish

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.

Personal life

John MacDonald was born on 26 July 1865 at Glentruim, near

Kingussie Kingussie ( ; gd, Ceann a' Ghiùthsaich ) is a small town in the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of the Highland council area of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically in Inverness-shire, it lies beside the A9 road (Great Britain), A9 road, ...

in Scotland, to Alexander Macdonald and Jane Lamond, who had married in 1861. He was the third of nine or possibly ten children. John was first taught by his father, who was an accomplished player and Piper to MacPherson of Glentruim, and his uncles William and Duncan. Later he was taught by Malcolm Macpherson. After leaving school he was employed as a

gamekeeper A gamekeeper (often abbreviated to keeper), or in case of those dealing with deer (deer-)stalker, is a person who manages an area of countryside (e.g. areas of woodland, moorland, waterway or farmland) to make sure there is enough game for s ...

, until in 1899 he joined the 1st Volunteer Battalion of the Cameron Highlanders as a

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 ...

in a part-time role, and moved to Inverness. He gave lessons around Scotland arranged by the Piobaireachd Society, and in from 1910 became involved in formal Army teaching with the

Army School of Bagpipe Music and Highland Drumming 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. History Founded in 1910 as the Army School of Piping (later ...

. For much of his life he worked as a travelling

whisky Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden ca ...

salesman, a job he held at various intervals until 1947. When the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

broke out he volunteered for active service but was not accepted. On 9 January 1917 he married Christina Dick Todd, but she died in August 1919, and in 1923 he married Helen Gibb, who was a widow. Helen died in 1932, and they had no children. Macdonald received an MBE in the

1932 New Year Honours The 1932 New Year Honours were appointments by King George V to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of the United Kingdom and British Empire. They were announced on 29 December 1931. The recipients of honour ...

. He died on 6 June 1953 in Inverness, and was buried in

Forres Forres (; gd, Farrais) is a town and former royal burgh in the north of Scotland on the Moray coast, approximately northeast of Inverness and west of Elgin. Forres has been a winner of the Scotland in Bloom award on several occasions. There a ...

Musical career

In 1890 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 Inverness, playing the ''King's Taxes''. In 1897 he 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" ...

in Oban. Having won both Gold Medals he was eligible to compete in the Clasp competition at Inverness, which he won in 1903, 1908. 1924, 1927, 1929, 1933, and 1934. He also won the Senior Piobaireachd at Oban nine times. He taught many top pipers including Donald Macleod, who he gave weekly lessons to for 27 years, and Robert Nicol.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:MacDonald of Inverness, John Great Highland bagpipe players 1865 births 1953 deaths Scottish bagpipe players