78th Highlanders (Halifax) Win 2003 North American Championship in Upset

Maxville, Ontario – August 1-2, 2003 – In an electric competition atmosphere, the 78th Highlanders (Halifax) Pipe Band were announced North American Pipe Band Champions here today at the Glengarry Highland Games at the tiny eastern Ontario town of Maxville, in overcast but rain-free conditions. The 78th Highlanders won convincingly, taking both the Medley and MSR sections.

The 78th Fraser Highlanders Pipe Band of Toronto finished second, while the Windsor Police Pipe Band won the Grade 2 event.

The 78th Highlanders (Halifax), under Pipe-Major Roderick MacLean, won earlier in the Ontario season by taking the Canadian Championships at Fort Erie in June. The band’s win at Maxville marked the first time that a Grade 1 band from the Canadian Maritimes gained the North American Championship.

The event was the first competition of 2003 for the 78th Fraser Highlanders, after passing on the first four events of the year due to the band’s new look drum corps, under new lead drummer John Fisher, not being ready due to personal circumstances.

The two-day contest was packed with spectators, probably setting new attendance records. A record number of solo and band entries made this year’s Maxville by a wide margin the largest single event, in terms of competition entrants, in the world.

In the professional solo piping, Bruce Gandy of Halifax won the aggregate title, enjoying consistent placings against of field of more than 25 of North America’s best pipers.

In the Piobaireachd Society (Canada) Gold Medal competitions held on Friday, Andrew Hayes of Ottawa gained the big prize, with 18 others competing in the contest. Against a small field, Iain Macey of Michigan won the Bar to the Medal contest reserved for former winners of the Gold Medal.

Bands
Grade 1 (aggregate, five bands competed)
1st 78th Highlanders (Halifax)
2nd 78th Fraser Highlanders
3rd Toronto Police
4th Peel Regional Police
5th City of Washington
Drumming: Toronto Police

MSR
1st 78th Highlanders (Halifax)
2nd 78th Fraser Highlanders
3rd Toronto Police
4th City of Washington
5th Peel Regional Police
Judges: Gail Brown, Jim McGillivray (piping); Ed Neigh (ensemble); Bert Barr (drumming)

Medley
1st 78th Highlanders (Halifax)
2nd 78th Fraser Highlanders
3rd Peel Regional Police
4th Toronto Police
5th City of Washington
Drumming: 78th Highlanders (Halifax)
Judges: Andrew Berthoff, Geoff Neigh (piping); Willie Connell (ensemble); Larry Willis (drumming)

Grade 2 (aggregate, 13 bands competed)
1st Windsor Police
2nd North Coast
3rd Niagara Police
4th St. Andrew’s Society of Fredericton
5th Maple Ridge
6th Oran Mor
Drumming: Tulach Ard

MSR
1st St. Andrew’s Society of Fredericton
2nd Niagara Police
3rd North Coast

Medley
1st Windsor Police
2nd Oran Mor
3rd Maple Ridge

Grade 3
1st St. Thomas School
2nd Grandfather Mountain Highlanders
3rd Mohawk Valley Frasers

Grade 4
1st 8 Wing
2nd Colorado Skye
3rd Fredericton Junior

Grade 5
1st Syracuse Scottish
2nd Guilford & Glencoe District
3rd Fergus

Professional Solo Piping (27 competed)
Piobaireachd
1st Glenn Brown, Milton, Ontario, “Battle of Aldearn #2”
2nd Michael Grey, Dundas, Ontario
3rd Bruce Gandy, Halifax
4th Andrew Hayes, Ottawa
5th Colin Clansey
Judge: Iain Macey

March
1st Andrew Rogers, Halifax
2nd Andrew Berthoff, Toronto
3rd Ian K. MacDonald
4th Bruce Gandy
5th Colin Clansey
Judge: Jim McGillivray

Strathspey & Reel
1st Bruce Gandy
2nd Ian K. MacDonald
3rd Andrew Rogers
4th Glenn Brown
5th Colin Clansey
Judge: Willie Connell

Jig
1st Ian K. MacDonald
2nd Bruce Gandy
3rd Andrew Hayes
4th Andrew Rogers
5th Robert Crabtree
Judge: Ed Neigh

Professional Solo Drumming
MSR
1st Harvey Dawson
2nd Graham Brown
3rd Tom Foote
4th Ian Madeiros
5th Alex Kuldell
Judge: Brian McCue

Hornpipe & Jig
1st Graham Brown
2nd Alex Kuldell
3rd Harvey Dawson
4th Ian Madeiros
5th Jason Hoffert
Judge: Bert Barr

Gold Medal (19 competed)
1st Andrew Hayes, Ottawa, “The Blue Ribbon”
2nd Roderick MacLean, Halifax
3rd Rob Crabtree
Judge: Willie Connell

Bar (for former winners of the Gold Medal, three competed)
1st Iain Macey, Michigan
2nd Andrew Hayes
3rd James MacHattie, Toronto
Judge: Willie Connell

Former Winners MSR
1st Andrew Hayes
2nd Robert Crabtree
3rd James MacHattie
Judge: Jake Watson

Open MSR
1st Lionel Tupman
Judge: Jake Watson

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