Pipe Major Scott Bell

At the age of five, Scott’s fingers were too short to play the chanter, so he was signed up for Highland dancing lesson. He started taking piping lessons in Kingston the following year and his first instructor was a piper in the band named Don Blair. Over the years Scott has had many instructors including Jim Sutherland, Hugh Goldie, Peter Barbier, and Peter Richards. All of them have contributed in some way to Scott being the piper/teacher/leader/person that he is today. Scott got a big boost in his piping through his attendance at “The Seaway School of Piping” in Kingston. Here he met such great instructors as Captain John MacLellan, Colin MacLellan and Bill Livingstone. He has also been to the “Timmins Piping School” with instructors Seamus McNeil, James MacIntosh and Harry McNulty.

As a solo competitor Scott won Champion Supreme Grade 2 in both light music and piobaireachd and played Grade 1 solos until he took on the role of Pipe Major for Rob Roy. Scott became Pipe Major of Rob Roy in 1984 at the age of eighteen and has been Pipe Major for most of the ensuing thirty-six years. Being the Pipe Major of any band is demanding, but Scott has also enjoyed stints with two other organizations over the years. He competed with the Grade 2 Niagara Regional Police Pipe Band for three years under Pipe Majors Al Ash, Tom Anderson and Dave Goodall. Scott played with Niagara at the World Championships at which they placed sixth. More recently, Scott was a member of the Peel Regional Police Pipe Band under John Cairns for several years, along with his brother Chris and son Iain. With Peel, Scott realized a dream of winning the North American Championships in Grade 1 and qualifying for a Grade 1 final at the World Championships.

Scott is fortunate to have had his entire family involved in the organization over the years. His wife Carol-Anne was the Dance Director for Rob Roy for over 30 years and this led to many terrific performances in memorable venues. His two children have followed their parents in upholding the Scottish tradition. Lindsay is a Premier Highland dancer and an accomplished piper and Iain is a Professional snare drummer. Scott’s brother Chris has been leading drummer for most of Scott’s tenure as Pipe Major. It has been a great partnership over the years that has produced some great music. Scott’s sister Heather is also a Highland Dancer and the current Dance Director of the Rob Roy Highland Dancers.

Scott is an accredited solo and band adjudicator for the PPBSO. He also served on the organization’s Music Board for several years.

As Pipe Major Scott has taken on many projects for the organization. He ran the “Kingston School of Scottish Music and Dance” for ten years, along with his wife (and former Dance Director) Carol-Anne. Wanting to offer a spring outdoor event, Scott and Carol-Anne were also instrumental in organizing the very successful Kingston Scottish Festival, which has now operated in Kingston for the past fifteen years.

Over the years there have been many highlights and special memories. He has played in Scotland with the band many times. Each of those trips have involved a combination of competitions and performances with the Rob Roy Highland Dancers. The ability to entertain an audience at some of these prestigious venues has always been a thrill for him. The band has won the North American Championships in various grades over the years and has been Champion Supreme winners on a number of occasions. Scott particularly remembers the 2016 season as a highlight. The band went undefeated in Grade 3 that summer. It was without a doubt the strongest group of Rob Roy musicians that Scott has ever been privileged to lead. That competition season is something that he will never forget.