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The Heatherbell Pipe Band is an all girls band
from Pictou, Nova Scotia currently with members between the ages of 12-16 however the minimum age for the senior band is roughly
10 and girls may stay until they are 18 (or until they have graduated high school). You can usually find the band at the local
events in Pictou such as concerts at the DeCoste Entertainment Centre or in parades around Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.
The band can also be found at highland games throughout the summer such as The Antigonish Highland Games and The New Brunswick
Highland Games in Fredericton. Additionally the band usually takes one larger trip outside of the maritimes in the summer
to travel to places such as Maine, Ottawa, Mexico, Flordia, Calagary, etc... . For the past two years the band has gone to
Maine, USA for the Fourth of July celebrations.
Summer 2005 brought the band to places including,
Gold Cup and Saucer (PEI), Digby, Fredericton, Antigonish, Halifax & Dartmouth, Maine, Pictou Lobster Carnival, New Scotland
Days (pipe and drum concert feat. SQUID) and more.
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One of the most widely known pipe bands from Nova Scotia is the Heatherbell Girls
Pipe & Drum Band. Formed in 1964 by the late Pipe Major Harold Sutherland, it consists of girls between the ages of 11-17.
Although the girls and their instructors have come and gone, the band continues to wear the ancient Sutherland tartan as a
tribute to it's founder.
Over the past 34 years, the Heatherbells have represented
Pictou and the Province of Nova Scotia very admirably. They pride themselves in their roles as goodwill ambassadors for both
the community and the province. They have represented Nova Scotia as far away as Mexico; Calgary, Alberta; and as part of
the Canadian Pavilion at Disney World, Florida. They regularly visit the Northern United States and are a crowd pleaser in
Thomastown, Maine. In Canada, they represented Nova Scotia as official ambassadors at the Canada 125 Celebrations (1992) and
in Newfoundland at the Cabot 500 Celebrations (1997). In addition, they have been honoured to entertain Her Majesty Queen
Elizabeth on two separate occasions as well as Princess Anne during her last visit to Nova Scotia.
The Heatherbells have won many trophies and awards in the competions and parades in which they participate. They are former
Junior North American Champions and returned to competion in 1996. In the summer of 1998, they won top awards in every
single parade in which they participated. During the past two years they have graduated from junior, through grade 5 and now
compete as a grade 4 competition band. This is an outstanding accomplishment for a group that now competes against adult bands
on an even basis.
Known for their deportment, the Heatherbells
send a positive and wholesome image to those who see them play. Once in the Band, they are expected to set a good example
to other youth. Pride, dedication, commitment, and overall attitude are just a few attributes of a "Heatherbell." Despite
this high level of expetatation, hundreds of young girls have taken lessons and spent countless hours practising so that they
too could become a "Heatherbell". Several of the girls today are daughters of former Heatherbells, and there is even a third
generation girl in this year's band.
The Heatherbells
own their own "blue" bus which takes them to the vast majority of their activities. The Heatherbells are a self-supporting
group, doing regular fundraisers throughout the year. Our founder believed that the cost of uniforms, instruments, travel,
etc. should be borne by the band so that money would not be a barrier for those girls with the talent and dedication to become
Heatherbells. We are proud to say this is still true today. |
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