Monmouth pipers celebrate International Bagpipe Day
On Tuesday, March 10, bagpipers here in Monmouth and around the world celebrated International Bagpipe Day. The holiday founded by The Bagpipe Society in 2012, aims to highlight the diverse history of the instrument and its significance to music today, as well as encourage new players. The day is most known for its tradition of the Great Bagpipe Convergence, where bagpipers around the world record themselves playing their bagpipes at noon and post their performances online.
The origins of the bagpipes trace back to approximately 1000 BC, with the earliest evidence of their existence displayed on Hittite slabs in Anatolia, present-day Turkey. The instrument would not reach Europe until approximately 100 CE and is said to have spread across the continent thanks to the Roman Empire. The bagpipes were not associated with Scotland until the 14th or 15th century CE.
The Monmouth College Pipe Band has been both a college and community staple since 1967. Known for playing “Scotland the Brave”, the pipe band leads the processions at both matriculation and commencement ceremonies, in addition to leading the Fighting Scots football team out to April Zorn Memorial Stadium for home games. A bagpiper also leads the incoming freshman class during the Freshman Walkout, where first years tour the town and get acquainted with local businesses.
“Scots Spirit”statue outside Hewes Library. Photo by Monmouth College
Tyce Alumbaugh, a first-year member of the Monmouth Pipe Band, who credits pipe sergeant Orin Weiss for his involvement said, “I originally wasn’t going to be in the pipe band because my schedule was so busy, and I thought that it would just take up too much time. But then Orin had asked me to join, and I loved it from the start…we’re training to start competitions either this year or next year, which is pretty cool.”
Alumbaugh also notes the significance of being involved, not just for himself, but for the entire campus community. “You join a community and a family that is unlike any other. Obviously, we are the Fighting Scots, so it gives a sense of tradition that we get to honor our predecessors and honor the title of being a Fighting Scot by being in the band”, said Alumbaugh.
For veteran piper Imogen Schmitz, bagpipes span farther than just her time here at Monmouth.
“I was 18 months old when my uncle got married, and he had a bagpiper at his wedding. I asked my mom what they were, and after she told me, I replied that I wanted to play them,” said Schmitz. “Then I never stopped asking. When I was seven, we found an instructor near my hometown, and the rest is history. For me, bagpipes are a way to preserve tradition here at Monmouth. I’m generally a very lighthearted and humorous person, but once I’m in regalia, ready to march the incoming class in at matriculation, it’s all decorum and duty. I love it that way, it’s a wonderful thing to be part of a formal practice of classes past that’s surrounded by the community I live in the present.”
The Monmouth College Pipe Band will celebrate its 60th anniversary in 2027.