Band History

Troon BlackRock Pipe Band (TBR) was formed in 1994 as part of the 1st Troon Company of the Boys' Brigade's 75th Anniversary Celebrations. At this time the band was known as the "1st Troon BB ex-members" Pipe Band and consisted of ex-members of the Troon BB Pipe Band under the leadership of Stephen Ross as Pipe Major and Raymond Bruce as Leading Drummer.

The band competed for the first time under this name in 1995 in grade 4 as part of the Ayrshire, Dumfries & Galloway Branch of the R.S.P.B.A. For this season the band wore a selection of Tartans, with the kilts all being the members own. The band won their first trophy in 1995 with a 3rd place at the Ardrossan Highland Games.

For the 1996 season the decision was taken to rename the band, basically because the band was starting to attract members from outwith Troon who were not ex BB members. After a lot of names were tossed about the band finally decided on Troon BlackRock. The Blackrock is a natural rock outcrop at the south end of Troon's shoreline, which is steeped in local history. At the same time as the name change a tartan was selected for the new kilts that the band was about to purchase. The tartan chosen was the Modern Davidson which the band still wears proudly to this day.

On the competition field the band has done very well over the years having played in grade 4 up to the end of the 2000 season when they were promoted to grade 3. The band played in grade 3 for four seasons before requesting a down grading for the 2005 season because of a lack of experienced players. The band were re-graded to 4B and the process of rebuilding the band was started which culminated in a promotion at the end of the 2006 season to grade 4A, and a subsequent promotion to Grade 3B at the end of the 2007 season under the leadership of Pipe Major Iain Cox and Leading Drummer Janet Campbell.

The band has won numerous prizes over the years in both Grade 4 and Grade 3. Some of the notable results are:

  • Grade 4 Ayrshire, Dumfries & Galloway Branch Champions twice
  • Grade 3 Ayrshire, Dumfries & Galloway Branch Champions twice
  • Ayrshire, Dumfries & Galloway Branch Champion of Champions twice
  • Grade 4B Scottish Champions
  • Grade 4B British Champions
  • Grade 4B 2nd place Cowal Games twice
  • Grade 4A 2nd place British Championships
  • Grade 4A 3rd place European Championships
  • Grade 3B 3rd place Scottish Championships and Cowal Games
  • Grade 3B 2nd place British Championship.

The band has also been consistently in the top half of the Champion of Champions tables in Grade 4 and Grade 3 over the years.

As well as competing, the band has played at many gala days and functions over the years. Some of these have involved a lot of travel. The most notable being the bands trip to Troon's twin town of Villeneuve-Sur-Lot in 1997 and the Marie Curie Millennium Pipes event in Edinburgh in 2000.

Over the years the band has been very fortunate to have had three Drum Majors at the head of the band often at the same time. Oluf Olufsen, Sharon Smith and Greg Boyle have all enjoyed success on the competition field. At the moment the band has Sharon Smith as the sole Drum Major.