BRISBANE’S PIPE BAND SINCE 1950
Pipe Major • Matt Hardy
Drum Sergeant • David Spotswood
President • Camille Layt
Vice-President • Carlie Scott-Hunter
Secretary • Carlie Scott-Hunter
Treasurer • Maureen Gibson
Quartermaster • DJ Vaughan
Brisbane Pipe Band is a band of bagpipers and drummers based in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
We play regularly for public and private events in Brisbane and surrounding regions.
We’re also an active part of Queensland’s pipe band community, competing in Grade 4A at competitions up and down Australia’s east coast every year.
We teach new pipers and drummers how to play, helping the South East Queensland pipe band community to grow – and ultimately, welcoming more people to play great music with.
Brisbane Pipe Band’s patron is The Right Honourable, the Lord Mayor of Brisbane, Councillor Adrian Schrinner.
playing good music, and playing it well, is at the heart of everything we do.
Tartan, crests and symbolism
The band wears McNeill of Barra tartan.
We wore Anderson tartan until 1986, but adopted McNeill of Barra to honour the important role the McNeill family played in the life of the band, especially long-serving Pipe Major Ian McNeill.
We maintain that family connection today – Ian’s daughter is still a current player and valued life member of our band.
We also adopt the McNeill clan crest and its motto Buaidh No Bas (which is Gaelic for ‘victory or death’). We try not to take the motto too seriously when we compete.
Every player is a student of music, and every time we Play is an opportunity to learn.
Competition
The band has competed in Australian and international pipe band competitions since 1958.
We’re currently registered as a Grade 4A competitor band with Pipe Bands Australia and Pipe Bands Queensland, and compete annually in the Queensland pipe band competition season. We were delighted to win the State Championships for Grade 4A in 2023 (pictured)!
We also travel to compete – we competed in the 2022 Australian Pipe Band Championships in Sydney, and aim to travel to play at contests and festivals interstate or internationally every two years.
we compete to improve our playing, and we’re always looking for fun new ways to entertain the community.
Performance
The band performs regularly for events and festivals in and around our beautiful city.
We play for Brisbane’s major annual parades – St Patrick’s Day, Anzac Day, and Labour Day – and community parades.
We also perform for events, weddings, funerals, and at venues and festivals in Brisbane and surrounding regions.
If you’re interested in booking the band for your upcoming event, please get in touch with us for a quote.
We enjoy socialising as much as we enjoy creating music together.
SOCIAL
We’re musicians who love playing great music, but we also enjoy each others’ company and the community we’re fortunate to be a part of.
The band socialises after performances and organises trips away to places like Warwick, Grafton, and Maclean for workshops and events. We recently went to Sydney to compete at the Australian Pipe Band Championships.
We have regular social gatherings as well, and we’re not averse to a beverage or two after band practice – one of the perks of rehearsing in a licensed venue!
we honour more than 70 years of the band’s history and service to Brisbane City and surrounding regions.
Past leaders and Patrons
The band was founded in Brisbane in 1950, and its inaugural leadership comprised Sir John Chandler (Patron), Sir Thomas Hiley (Vice Patron), David McNeill (Pipe Major and Secretary), Sir William Glasgow (President Elect), JS McNeill (Chairman), and D Gillespie (Treasurer).
The band’s pipe majors and musical directors have included, among others, David McNeill (1950-61), Ian McNeill (1961-90), Donald Mackinnon (former Pipe Major of the Scottish Regiment the “King’s Own Scottish Borderers”), Don Mackie, Harry Treeby, Hugh McLean, Charles Elliott, Rod Smith (2009-11), Rod Richardson (2012-14), Peter Hurwood (2014-19), Camille Layt (2019), and Owen Sulistio (2019-2022).
Our drum sergeants have included Kevin Rookas, Stewart Nelson, Jeff Chandler, Barry Marshman and David Spotswood (current).
The band has also been fortunate to have had many eminent Brisbane figures serve as the band’s Patron, including Sir John Chandler, Frank Roberts, Clem Jones, Frank Sleeman, Graham Quirk, and Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner (current).
The band’s historic records were maintained until the early 1990s by Keith Beakey (piper 1969–1993), author of City of Brisbane Pipe Band: an Anecdotal History 1950–1993 [click the link to download the PDF – 5.5MB].
Brisbane Pipe Band is proudly supported by Brisbane City Council. Our patron is The Right Honourable, the Lord Mayor of Brisbane, Councillor Adrian Schrinner.