Celtic music is a tradition-rich art that originated more than 300 years ago in the Highlands of Scotland.
And for members of this community’s Grand Celtic Pipe Band, the tradition threads forward with children following in the footsteps of their parents and parents following in the footsteps of their father or mother – and even extending back to grandparents and great grandparents.
Pipe major and pipe instructor Calum MacDonald comes from a long line of pipers, stretching back to his grandfather and father.
Now his son Liam is also involved, and at age 12 is considered one of the best Grade 2 pipers in North America, his father said. MacDonald’s other son Kieran, 10, is just about ready to compete.
Competitions are judged on grades going from five to a top ranking of Grade 1, for those ranked as amateurs.
Grand Celtic Pipe Band, which officially formed in 2000, is divided into two groups: a Grade 4 and a Grade 5 band.
“Our Grade 5 band was the overall Champion Supreme pipe band in 2012,” MacDonald said.
“At a recent Georgetown competition, the bands placed second in the Grade 4 category and fourth in the Grade 5 band competition; a good start to the season, but we can do better.”
Members also compete individually under the same system.
“We have many solo players from last year that dominated their specific categories in both piping and drumming,” MacDonald noted. “So the pressure and stakes are high for our group.”
Kathy Johnson, band secretary and bass drummer, said at last year’s Georgetown competition the top three individual drummers who competed in Grade 5 “were Grand Celtic members.”
In addition, Piper Aidan Maher won in two Grade 2 categories, Liam MacDonald was in the top three for Grade 3, Jack Reeves was second overall for Grade 5 and Calum MacDonald won Champion Supreme in the professional over-45 class.
The 45-member Grand Celtic Pipe Band regularly holds three-hour practices at Centre Wellington District High School, working on tunes for upcoming events and competitions.
Johnson joined the band 12 years ago and recalls her recruitment was rather unexpected. She had worked as a public school music teacher, but that didn’t give her an opportunity to play an instrument.
It was at an event in Orillia where Calum MacDonald asked if she could play the bass drum, just the one time. It was a bit intimidating, she said, but she went ahead.
“I just watched the rest of the basses so I knew what to do,” she said with a smile.
She was following the footsteps of two sons who played snare drums and a daughter who was a piper and dancer.
Other obligations have taken Johnson’s children away from Fergus and the band, but they have committed to rejoining the band in the future, she said.
Johnson remembers the time when members didn’t even have matching tartans. That changed in 2002 with a $25,000 Ontario Trillium grant that allowed the band to purchase matching kilts.
“That original grant was the first time we had matching kilts,” she said. “It gave us an identity.”
The band wears the ancient MacDonald of Glenaladale tartan, which is said to have belonged to Alexander MacDonald of Glenaladale at the time of the Battle of Culloden and shipped out to Canada when he emigrated in 1772.
Band treasurer and piper Scott Farlinger said it costs about $12,000 annually to keep the band going.
“If you win there is a little bit of money,” he said. “Most of it (the band) is funded out of our own pockets.”
The band welcomes donations to offset its costs, said piper and band president Neil MacBeth.
“We’re a competition band and most of the focus is on our competition pieces,” MacBeth said.
MacDonald added, “A sponsor would be nice to have, but with sponsorship comes obligations. That can be time consuming, but the band would consider any such support.”
MacBeth’s daughter plays snare drum in the Grade 4 band and he heralds from a rich music history, with his grandfather and several grand uncles who were pipers.
MacDonald chooses the tunes for the band’s various engagements. The band plays a wide repertoire of traditional Celtic music, although band members refer to the selections as “tunes” because they don’t involve any written words and were only translated into sheet music about 100 years ago.
“Before the tunes were transposed to sheet music all tunes were passed down by singing,” MacDonald said. “A language was created to represent all embellishments played. The singing language was called ‘Canntaireachd.’”
The band also plays “family favourites” and a nice collection of modern and competition-oriented tunes.
“You play a simple tune and you add embellishments,” Farlinger, who came from a background in jazz, said of upping the complexity of the tunes played in competition.
He finds the music riveting and, if played well, “it’s uplifting.”
“It takes you to another world,” Farlinger added.
“Competing takes it up another notch,” Johnson noted.
MacDonald agreed, saying the effort will be to get the Grade 4 band ready for competitions aimed at moving it up a class.
“We’re planning with the Grade 4 group that we want to go into (Grade) 3 next season.”
There are 19 members in the Grade 4 band, but competition in the class can be against smaller bands or larger ones.
“There is no cap,” he said of band size, noting size is determined by the pipe major and can bring with it some difficulties.
“The more you get in (the band) the more distortion there would be,” MacDonald said.
Johnson said there is a distinctive difference with Celtic tunes when trying to describe it.
“It’s more like pop music versus classical music,” she said of the comparison.
Recruitment of new members is ongoing and for that reason several band members come from the same family. Johnson said often parents who come to watch their children practice eventually are persuaded to join.
“We’ve got a lot of parents with their children,” she said. “It does take a special person to put it on the line as a group.”
Over its 13-year history the band has competed and been invited to play at a number of different events. They have appeared on the Breakfast Television show on City TV, played at halftime at a Toronto Argonauts game and regularly played at Ontario Place and the British Isles Show at the CNE.
The band regularly performs with its Highland Dance team and is trained by MacDonald’s wife, Sandra Cooper.
“All our lovely girls have trained with Sandra, a former Canadian champion and teacher and owner of the MacDonald School of Scottish Arts,” her husband said.
The band is preparing to compete at the Embro Highland Games west of Woodstock on July 1. It is considered one of the oldest venues of its kind.
During the summer events come around every two weeks.
And, of course, they will be participating in the upcoming Fergus Scottish Festival and Highland Games, Aug. 9 to 11.
For more information on the band go to grandcelticpipeband.com.
