Gilnahirk Pipe Band

Burns Night 2012

The Willowfield Burns Night has become a fixture in the East Belfast cultural calendar and this year was as successful an event as ever. The Church was packed with enthusiastic souls who gleefully demolished the Haggis Neeps and Tatties which form the centrepiece of any good Burns Night.

Sadly, the Band was warming up when the vittels were being dished out - but the playing was its own reward tonight. Gilnahirk took the stage with 8 pipers, 5 side drummers, 1 tenor drummers and the bass. We had début performances from Leanne on the Tenor and Colin on the Pipes. Along with the rest of the team, they played brilliantly and we hope that they will be fixtures on the Gilnahirk Roster for many years to come!

The Band will now be concentrating on the Contest sets for the 2012 season - but it's not too late to come and join us! If you fancy giving it a go, contact us by email on join@gilnahirkpipeband.com or through Facebook.

Video footage of the night is live on YouTube but here is a taster....

Happy New Year - and Roll on 2012!

The Band would like to wish all our friends and supporters a very Happy New Year - and we hope that you all had a great Christmas break.

2011 was a good year for Gilnahirk, although not without its challenges. The Band made it back to the competition arena and we have a firm foundation on which to build for next year. Indeed, we should have a few exciting developments to announce over the coming months and hope that you will all keep checking back with us here or on Facebook for news.

Provided that we can all still fit into our kilts after the Christmas indulgence, the next outing for the Band will be at the Willowfield Parish Church Burns Night, which is to be held in the Church on My Lady's Road on Friday 27 January 2012. This is always a very well attended and enjoyable event - so why not come along and see us?

As the Band continues to build, we are still on the lookout for new members. If you already follow us on Facebook, you may have noticed that a few people have contacted us through there with enquiries about joining and/or learning. That is just one of the ways to get in touch - if you want to make direct contact, just drop us a line over there or email us at join[AT]gilnahirkpipeband.com. The more the merrier!

Annual General Meeting 2011

Members and friends were welcomed by the Chairman, Stephen Jackson, and business was conducted in a friendly and enthusiastic manner. The Band would like to record its thanks to friend and bass-section guru, Greg McClean, who assisted ably with the election of officers.

The Pipe Major, Mervyn Mayes, was re-elected and seems undaunted by the task of steering the Band back up through the placings at next year's competitions!

As usual, discussions were lively and (mostly!) well-informed. Plans for next year include some revisions to the uniform andwe should also be seeing some interesting developments in terms of the "branding" of the Band which should give us a whole new look!

One of the most positive features of the past year or so has been the injection of new blood into the Band. Even at the AGM itself, new members were being welcomed into the ranks - a trend which we would be delighted to see continue. If you fancy learning or re-igniting your passion for the pipes or drums, contact us on Facebook, Twitter, or drop us an email to join@gilnahirkpipeband.com.

Although the meeting itself is always enjoyable - it would be easy to be suspicious that the attendance is more because of the cup of tea afterwards - at least it is nice to see the Chairman mucking in!