End of pipe dream for Fort William’s Glen Mor band
The assets of one of Lochaber’s most successful pipe bands have now been disbursed among local charities and organisations after it was wound up due to dwindling numbers.
Despite boasting a string of major competition successes in just 12 years since being founded in 2006, the Fort William-based Glen Mor Pipe Band said it had to call it a day due to a declining membership.
Back in 2006, with Lochaber not represented on the world piping stage, the decision was taken to form a new pipe band.
Organisers said they did not want to set up a rival to the already well-established Lochaber Pipe Band, but wanted to find a way of giving local pipers and drummers more opportunity to enhance their skills and test their ability in competition against other bands.
And so the Fort Williambased Glen Mor Pipe Band was born to compete in the five major pipe band championships run by the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association (RSPBA). Due to its new band status, Glen Mor started in the lowest RSPBA ranking of Grade 4B. Seven years later and 2013 saw Glen Mor Pipe Band crowned Scottish champions of Grade 4B, as well as taking second spot in the British Championships and eighth in the World Championships, both in Grade 4B.
With less than six years of competing behind them this was no mean feat and the band was subsequently promoted the following year to compete in Grade 3B.
But that glory was shortlived and after only one year in Grade 3B numbers in the band started to dwindle, and without the more experienced and accomplished players, maintaining this higher standard proved difficult.
The band took a year out from competing in 2015 and the following year requested a drop down to Grade 4A.
However, things still proved difficult, with members struggling to make practises and the meteoric fall from grace was confirmed when it became apparent that the band would never be able to compete again due to lack of numbers.
In August this year, just little more than a decade after it was founded, Glen Mor Pipe Band officially withdrew its membership of the RSPBA and dissolved its status with the Office of Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR).
The band’s pipe major, Willie Evans, said the decision to wind things up was a sad day, adding: ‘Hopefully the experiences in the good times and bad have benefited our members then and now, and I look forward to Lochaber having a proper competition band once more.’
Among the other reasons put forward for the band’s dwindling numbers were long travel distances to practise sessions for members, the financial costs for some and younger members leaving the area for university and work-related reasons.
And one local piping worthy claims there is a plethora of pipers and drummers within Lochaber, all of varying degrees of ability, now currently sat on their hands with historical loyalty to one band or another preventing them from joining anyone else regardless of personal circumstances.
‘That is how it will stay until a solution is found to ‘unify the clans’ and put Lochaber back on the map with the world-class pipe band it deserves,’ he told the Lochaber Times.
The assets of Glen Mor Pipe Band have now been distributed, with Lochaber Schools Pipe Band, Isle of Skye Pipe Band and Fèisean nan Gàidheal all receiving equipment. More than £3,000 in monetary assets was also split between the Salvation Army (for the use of their hall) and The Buzz Project, Lochaber Music School and Cothroman Ceol Beul Aithriseach.