The RCMP E Division Pipe Band returns to the Okanagan Military Tattoo July 29-30 at Kal Tire Place.
Based in Greater Vancouver, the RCMP E Division Pipe Band was formed in April 2006 and is one of eight RCMP pipe bands currently active in Canada.
“The band is comprised of both police and civilian volunteers from throughout B.C. who have come together to share and showcase their musical talent and to bring the community closer to its national police force,” said Derek Hall with the Okanagan Military Tattoo.
The organization was the brainchild of drum major Rob Smith, a 30-year veteran of the RCMP who has played in various pipe bands throughout his career.
Smith had been trying to start the E Division Pipe Band since 1998 when there was a nucleus of regular and retired RCMP members playing at various force functions.
The band made its debut appearance in October 2006 at the Scottish Cultural Centre in Vancouver, where they played to a sold-out crowd of more than 300 enthusiastic supporters.
“The 2011 release of the band’s first CD Live in Langley, which was recorded in concert with the Vancouver Welsh Men’s Choir, and the 2016 overseas trip to Beijing, China are major milestones for the band,” Hall said.
The band participates in numerous local events in B.C. from community parades to corporate events to RCMP ceremonial functions.
“Band members have also participated in RCMP combined band events including the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo, the presentation of the RCMP Service Horse George to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the 2014 Okanagan Military Tattoo, and the Beijing International Tourism Festival,” Hall said.
The Okanagan Military Tattoo plays July 29 at 7 p.m. and July 30 at 2 p.m. at Kal Tire Place. Tickets range in price from $35-50 for adults, $30-45 for students, seniors, and veterans, and $25-40 for individuals in a family of four from the Ticket Seller, www.ticketseller.ca, 250-549-7469.