Clan Thompson Pipe Band
Cèol Ar Cridhe
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Clan Thompson Pipe Band
Welcome to our website!
Thank you for visiting!
About Us
The Clan Thompson Pipe Band is a group of dedicated individuals from the Pictou and Antigonish counties of Nova Scotia operating as a marching and performance band who attend various events throughout Nova Scotia.
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In addition to parades and concerts as a full band, we have soloists available for events such as weddings, funerals, or parties.
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We gather for practices on Sunday afternoons from 2-4 pm. We are currently offering beginner classes from 1-2 pm. If you or someone you know is interested in learning how to play either the bagpipes or drums, contact us! We'd love to hear from you!
Meet Our Past & Present
Pipe Majors
Scott Williams
Kurtis Bryden
Aaron Dunsiger
Scott Williams began learning to play the bagpipes in 1966. He worked his way through the amateur grades in solo piping, winning Grade 1 Piper of the Day at the Antigonish Highland Games in 1972. By 1973, he was competing in the open professional class, winning the Maritime Championship in 1978. He taught piping for most of his years, and also led bands - on a couple of occasions, two at a time. In 1984, Scott assembled a 100-member massed pipe band to lead His Holiness Pope John Paul II onto the Commons in Halifax. After that event, a number of experienced players approached him to teach a class for experienced players and before long, the Clan Thompson Pipe Band was formed. He led the Clan Thompson Pipe Band to the Grade 3 North American Championship in 1989. He returned to teaching young pipers in Antigonish in 1988. He started with three students the first year, he gained more to total eleven students the second year and by the third year had twenty-two students. With this, the Antigonish Highland Society Pipe Band was formed in 1991. He led the fledgling band to the Grade 4 North American Championships in 1995. Serious health issues caused him to drop out of these activities in 1998, but he returned to it in 2006. Scott continued leading the Clan Thompson Pipe Band. When it was decided retirement was his next adventure, Scott handed the reins over to Kurtis Bryden in November, 2019. Scott is a retired school teacher but was still active teaching piping and working with the Clan Thompson Pipe Band as it's Pipe Sergeant. When Covid hit in 2020, he had to give up his classes, intending to start up again when the pandemic had run it’s course, but that did not happen. He continued to play for wedding and funerals, and various banquets and social gatherings. He met regularly with some other retired pipers for weekly small pipes sessions, and played in many concerts with small pipes, fiddles and piano.
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Kurtis started playing bagpipes at the age of 12 as a piper in the Army Cadet Program. Darren Knox was Kurtis’ first piping instructor in army cadets, and he also took private lessons from Sandra MacIsaac of Giants Lake.  At age 16 he left the Army Cadets and joined the Army Reserves as a bagpiper for the The Nova Scotia Highlanders. He competed with the Antigonish Highland Society under the direction of Pipe Major Robyn Whitty in grade 3 band competitions at this time as well. At age 19, Kurtis joined the Navy and started playing with the 12 Wing Shearwater Pipe Band under the direction of Pipe Major Danny Smith, competing with the band in grade 3 and grade 4 band competitions. After serving for a decade, he left to work in Alberta where he played for a brief time with the Viscount Park Pipe Band. Kurtis moved home to Nova Scotia in November 2018.  After returning to Nova Scotia in 2019, he joined the Clan Thompson Pipe Band. Pipe Major Scott Williams, who had founded the band and led it for twenty-two years, was ready to retire. Kurtis expressed his interest & offered his services. In November 2019 Kurtis was appointed to the position of Pipe Major. He led the band at performances & parades. Kurtis felt he needed to step back from being Pipe Major due to his commitment to family & time serving at the College of Piping & Drumming in PEI. He handed the reins over to Aaron Dunsiger who took the position of Pipe Major in 2022. Kurtis currently plays with The College of Piping (Summerside). He competed at the World Pipe Band Championships with the College of Piping in 2023 and the North American Championships in 2024. Kurtis also has had some success recently in solo contests winning the Grade 2 Champion Supreme Award in 2024 as well as placing 3rd in the grade 2 strathspey/reel contest at the North American Solo Championships at the Glengarry Highland Games. Kurtis’ 2 sons (Tomas and Rory) have recently started drumming lessons with the Clan Thompson Pipe Band and he looks forward to watching them grow as musicians.
Aaron Dunsiger started piping at the age of 11 with the 219 Army Cadet Corps of New Glasgow. He worked with numerous teachers through the cadet program, but the majority of his instruction was done by Alan Lamont of New Glasgow. As a member of the Atlantic Region Cadet Pipes & Drums program, Aaron took advantage of various advanced training opportunities, and participated in the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo for three years, acting as Pipe Sergeant for the amalgamated cadet band in 2002. He also participated in various piping competitions throughout Atlantic Canada, moving up to grade 3. In 2004, he was awarded the Sandy MacLean Memorial Trophy. After leaving the cadet program at 18, he joined the Dartmouth & District grade 4 pipe band under P/M Scott Long for a year before joining the Clan Thompson pipe band in 2006 under the direction of P/M Scott Williams. After graduating from the business program at StFX in 2011, Aaron moved to New Brunswick for work, where he joined the Simonds Lions Club Caledonia grade 4 pipe band in Saint John under the direction of P/M Liam Friell. In 2015, Aaron moved back to New Glasgow and rejoined the Clan Thompson band, serving as the band’s treasurer from 2017 to 2021. He returned to the cadet program as an instructor for the 219 Army & 374 Air Cadet bands, and was the head piping instructor at Argonaut Summer Training Centre in 2018 and 2019. He succeeded Kurtis Bryden as Pipe Major in 2022.
Watch Us Play
Antigonish Highland Games Parade
