Quick March

It’s been a while since our last post so here we go. Since the last post we have been working hard on learning new tunes and improving our marching. We have added some new members and they are jumping right in and even learning the marching right away. We even added a couple of members to the Regimental Band part. It’s been a while since we’ve had other instruments with us so it should prove interesting. In addition to the personal growth we also managed to perform at two of our more important events.

Last Monday we played at the Virginia War Memorial to help honor those that have paid the ultimate price for our freedom. I swear the crowd gets bigger each year. Next year the event will be held in the new amphitheater they are currently constructing so hopefully there will be even more people. I am always blown away by the people who attend this event. It is really great to meet some of the men and women who have served our county. They are always grateful for our efforts on the day but I tell them thank you for having us. I know I am constantly saying it’s an honor and privilege here but it truly is just that. I don’t know what I can say that hasn’t been said or I’ve even said before but this part bears repeating. THANK YOU.

This was followed by the Virginia Fallen Firefighters ceremony this past Saturday. Members from our sister band, The Old Dominion Emerald Society, were there as well and led us in with all the pomp and circumstance you’d expect at this type of event. Again it is an honor and privileged to participate in this event. The ceremony is always nice and pays great honor to those who gave their lives in protecting us. We were joined by a member of Tidewater Pipes and Drums who played with us last year as well. You could see and hear our hard work paying off and we we all in lock step and sounded very good.

The one thing that most people ask about this event is, “What do bagpipes have to do with firefighters/police?” This actually comes from the migration of Irish and Scottish to the states and the fact that no one would hire them for any jobs. During this time NINA (No Irish Need Apply) signs were everywhere. The only jobs they could get were the ones people didn’t want which were the firefighters and police. The custom of mourning the dead with the pipes came with them and as the department grew the pipes were carried forward. So there is the link to bagpipes for police and fire.

You should see a couple of rapid fire posts coming as I have some things to put up. July is pretty quiet for the band as we only have two gigs. Port Royal on July 3rd and the Brand Station parade on July 29th. Rest assured we’ll be hard at work trying to improve what we love doing. Just because we don’t play as much in the summer doesn’t mean the blog will be neglected I hope to post at least every other week. I hope everyone has a safe and happy summer and I hope we’ll see you soon. One last thing a big thank you to David Ramsey. He’s our resident camera guru who has the impossible task of trying to make us look good in photos and videos. In addition to blogs you should see some more of David’s hard work posted on our site and on youtube very soon. Thanks again.

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