New Zealand & South Pacific Pipe Band Championships shaping up with strong Australian entry

Some 47 bands from across Australasia have so far entered for the biannual 2023 New Zealand & South Pacific Pipe Band Championships to be held on March 10-11 in Christchurch, including an eight-band Juvenile competition, five in Grade 1 and a five-band Grade 2 contest that will include 2022 Australian champions Hawthorn of Melbourne.

“This shows the Australasian pipe band community is in full flight again and ready to showcase the best of what Down Under has to offer,” Iain Blakeley, Royal New Zealand Pipe Bands’ Association president said in a statement. “With strong entries across all six grades, including Juvenile, we are absolutely delighted to be putting on such a top-quality event. With top bands from Australia coming across, the quintessential trans-tasman rivalry will be on full display.”

A promising portent for the future of piping and drumming in the antipodes: the lower grades are rich with feeder bands from Grade 1 and Grade 2 organizations. ILT City of Invercargill Highland on its own has five bands in the event.

Entries to-date:

Grade 1

• Auckland & District
• Canterbury Caledonian Society
• ILT City of Invercargill Highland
• Manawatu Scottish
• New Zealand Police

Grade 2

• Celtic
• Hawthorn
• Metro Scottish
• St. Andrew’s
• St. Andrews College
• Wellington Red Hackle

Grade 3

• Auckland & District
• Auckland Police
• Canterbury Caledonian Society
• City of Tauranga
• Hawkes Bay Caledonian
• ILT City of Invercargill Highland
• Manawatu Scottish
• Northland Caledonian

Grade 4A

• Canterbury Caledonian Society
• Celtic
• City of Rotorua
• Hamilton Caledonian
• Hokonui Celtic
• Metro Scottish
• Papakura
• Scotch College
• St. Andrews College
• Waimatuku Southern Scenic Highland
• Wellington Red Hackle

Grade 4B

• Ashburton
• Blenheim & Districts Highland
• City of Dunedin
• City of Sails
• Hokonui Celtic
• ILT City of Invercargill Highland
• John McGlashan College
• McAlpines North Canterbury
• South Canterbury

Juvenile

• Canterbury Caledonian Society
• ILT City of Invercargill Highland A
• ILT City of Invercargill Highland B
• John McGlashan College
• Lewis Turrell Memorial
• Scotch College (Melbourne)
• St. Andrews College A
• St. Andrews College B

Canterbury Caledonian Society are the reigning New Zealand Champions, winning the event in 2021 in one of the few significant pipe band contests held during the pandemic. The competition managed to squeeze in just before significant lockdown measures were instated in New Zealand.

The name of the event was expanded to be more descriptively accurate and inclusive of and attractive to non-Kiwi pipe bands.

Blakely was elected president of the Royal New Zealand Pipe Bands’ Association in 2019 with a platform of encouraging change. While pandemic restrictions have eased, the move to a national championship with a more international appeal appears to have worked. The 2021 event attracted 35 bands.