RCMP Pipes, Drums and Dancers, National Capital Region

The Band History series continues for the year 2003. This was the first year the band truly stood on its own two feet, independent of the Ottawa Police Pipe Band and it was a busy one. Band members piped at over 30 events, from Regimental medals parades to telethons and fund raisers for charity events, to Celtic Festivals and Highland games.

The cover photo, above, has the dancers posing with then Prime Minister Jean Chretien. The notes don’t say where the picture was taken, but the participants are obviously thrilled at the chance to be together in the shot.

In 2003, the RCMP Regimental March was arranged for bagpipes by PM Graeme Ogilvie and added to the band’s repertoire. It has been an important part of band performances since then. Read the whole story of 2003 in the full article here.

The year 2002 was a significant one! The RCMP Pipes and Drums successfully transitioned from an Ottawa Police based pipe band to a fully independent band in our own right. This included the appointment of a new Pipe Major and Pipe Sergeant to lead the way forward. Also in 2002, we were joined by a group of highland dancers from the Loch Murray Dance School, who became a highly valued part of many of our performances.

In October, the band had the honour of performing for Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II at the Canadian Police College as part of Her Golden Jubilee celebrations.  This was a great way to begin our path forward.

Click this link for the rest of the story.

The Band History Series continues with the second year of operation – 2001. The RCMP Pipe Band continued to grow in 2001 and participated in more and more events. Their partnership with the Ottawa Police Pipe Band helped this along considerably. They were a busy bunch, playing at the first Sunset Ceremony in Ottawa, the Glengarry Highland Games and the Kingston Heritage Tattoo. Read the summary of that year, prepared by the Pipe Major in this document.

This is the first weekly article describing the history of the RCMP National Division Pipe Band. The wheels were put in motion in 1998 to form a local pipe band for the RCMP in Ottawa. The band would be comprised of serving and retired members of the Force, employees, and citizen volunteers. In the spring of 2000, the RCMP Pipes & Drums of the National Capital Region (NCR) were formed.

To read the full article by Pipe Major Graeme Ogilvie describing the background and events of the year 2000, click this link

The RCMP Pipes and Drums National Division band is 20 years old this year! Something we will celebrate with a series of historical articles, presented on this blog page.

From our Pipe Major, Graeme Ogilvie: Our first formal event as the RCMP Pipes and Drums (National Capital Region) occurred 06 September 2000, the Change of Command parade for Commissioner Zaccardelli. So this, being the year of our 20th anniversary (vice the 20th anniversary of the National Program and the RCMP tartan which we recognized two years ago), is an appropriate time to celebrate. Unfortunately the current pandemic has put a halt to much of what we would have liked to have done, both now and potentially in the foreseeable future.

Continue reading “20th Anniversary History Review”