Beverley Gandy: after 36 years away, an inspirational story of resolve to get back at it (Part 2)

“If you want to do it, I say go for it, because but you do need assistance. You need people willing to help you out, because you can’t do it by yourself.”

So says Beverley Gandy of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, about her nine-month quest to return to competition pipe band form after more than 36 years away from the craft.

In Part 1, she and her eldest son, Alex, discussed how she rekindled her interest in rejoining the ranks of intensely focused pipers and drummers as she worked to become a playing member of her local Grade 3 Dartmouth & District.

In Part 2 of their conversation, she talks more directly about the changes and challenges she discovered more directly after nearly 40 years away.

The piping technology gizmos and gubbins that had evolved over that time took learning and adaptation, but she also found that, whereas she and the late snare drummer, Maggie McIvor, were the only female members of the 78th Fraser Highlanders in the early 1980s, she was pleased to see so many women and girls in the ranks.

“I liked that there are as many women as men in these bands. It’s not just a male-only. There are still not as many women in Grade 1 bands, but in Grade 3 bands, it seemed like there are equal amounts.”

At age 64, she not only got back into it, but found herself in the front rank of the band for the 2024 competition season, highlighted by a sixth prize at the European Championships and a second at the World’s.

Please enjoy Part 2 of “Beverley Gandy: resolve to get back at it after 36 years away”

We thank Beverley Gandy, Alex Gandy, Blaise Theriault, and Gillian Blaney for helping with this exclusive feature.

If don’t already subscribe, and you enjoyed this and others in the thousands of free articles and videos made especially for you, why not get a $14.99 subscription ($24.99 for two years) to pipes|drums? For the price of less than two pints of watery lager, you can not only get access to everything, but you can help to ensure we have the funds to sustain our nonprofit endeavour. If you can’t spare $14.99 for a subscription, we welcome donations of any amount. Many thanks.