Dunoon Argyll Pipe Band

On September 18th 1965, Dunoon’s local paper featured a letter from a Mr John McDonald inviting people interested in setting up a competing band in the town to contact him.

A meeting was held soon after this, and Iain Henderson was appointed the new band’s first Pipe Major. President of the Band was to be the then Provost of Dunoon, T. Gordon Trapp.

On the 4th December 1965, an official notification was carried in the local paper that the Dunoon Argyll Pipe Band was now up and running,with sufficient players to constitute a competing band. The princely sum of £1,000.00 had to be raised so that the band could purchase instruments and uniforms.

The original members of the DAPB came largely from the Cowal Highland Pipe Band, which had existed in the town a few years earlier, but had disbanded due to lack of numbers.The DHPB had also been unable to compete whilst in existence. It was decided to combine them with several members of the recently disbanded local regiment, the 8th Argylls, who made up most, if not all of the original drum corps.

There have been some notable families involved with the band over the past 40 years.

In drumming, there were the families Lauder, Matthews, Black, McKay, Lamont, Currie, McPhee, Stark and currently Davie.

In piping, names such as Henderson, MacDonald, McKay, McCowan, Cairney, Tait, Waddell, Weatherspoon, Rae, Brown and currently Prentice spring to mind as having made an impact on the Band.

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