Full-time piping/drumming teaching jobs available in New Zealand

Although New Zealand’s geography and population are relatively small, with its five actively competing Grade 1 bands, the country is eclipsed only by Scotland and Northern Ireland regarding depth of piping and drumming talent per capita, largely due to a strong commitment to teaching.

The six-band City of Invercargill organization is one of the country’s greatest instructional success stories. Invercargill bands currently compete in Grade 1, Grade 3, Grade 4B, and three across each of the Juvenile grades.

The program is supported by the Southland Piping & Drumming Development Trust. In 2009, Alasdair “Big Ali” MacKenzie was recruited from Scotland, where he was a member of Grade 1 ScottishPower and an instructor at the National Piping Centre. At that time, there was only one City of Invercargill band, in Grade 3.

With approximately 80 students, the Invercargill organization has grown to the point where another full-time piping instructor is needed, as well as a new full-time drumming instructor to replace Adam McCollum, who is moving back to his native Northern Ireland.

Invercargill_Instructors_posting_2025 Both roles will work with MacKenzie in his capacity as Piping Director of the Southland Piping & Drumming Development Trust and Pipe Band Director of the ILT City of Invercargill Highland Organization.

According to the jobs posting, the Southland Piping and Drumming Trust will tailor a salary package to match the successful applicant’s experience.

The application closing date sent directly by email to Alasdair MacKenzie is April 30, 2025.

With only a population of 5.3 million and five actively competing world-standard Grade 1 bands, New Zealand is the world’s third-strongest piping and drumming scene per capita. Northern Ireland, with three active Grade 1 bands and a population of 1.9 million, eclipses the tiny South Pacific nation. Scotland, with its 5.5 million population and six active Grade 1 bands after Police Scotland & Federation announced it will not compete in 2025, comes in second per capita.