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St Laurence O’Toole at
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Ireland's Call Sounds Success
The Piping Portal speaks to Dublin band, St Laurence O’Toole about their rise…
The past four years have marked a period of sustained success for the St. Laurence O'Toole Pipe Band of Dublin.
A fifth place in the World Pipe Band Championships in Glasgow in August this year followed a runners-up spot in the European Championships in 2004 to continue a run of high placings which began with a sixth in the Europeans held in Belfast in 2001.
“That day in Belfast was a turning point for the band,” says Pipe Major Terry Tully. “For three or four years we'd been hovering around seventh and eighth place and when the heavens opened, we thought we might miss our chance to go up a notch. But we were quite lucky in that we managed to keep our instruments from getting too wet and we went on to put in a fine performance. We also made fifth place in the British Championships that year, which took us up a place there too and the band's gone from strength to strength from there.”
Colourful history
The St. Laurence O'Toole has been a Grade 1 competing band since 1989 - the only Grade 1 band in Eire's twenty-six counties - but it has quite a colourful history dating back to its formation in 1910. Among the founders was the playwright Sean O'Casey, who didn't actually play in the band but served as its first secretary, and Douglas Hyde, who went on to become the first President of Ireland in 1938.
Terry became pipe major in 1984, taking over from his father who passed away that year, and has slowly but surely developed an identity that's instantly recognisable as the band's own.
“We're not alone in that, I know, but I also don't think there are too many other bands that you can say that about. We feel that, coming from Ireland, we want to play as many Irish tunes as possible. We always include - and always will include - one or two strathspeys so that Scottish people don't complain too much,” he says with a mischievous tone to his voice. “But the jigs and reels and slow airs we play especially tend to be Irish.”
Much of the band's repertoire comes from traditional Irish groups and musicians, including Altan, the Chieftains, the Bothy Band and uilleann piper Paddy Keenan, all of whom Terry listens to enthusiastically. Terry also composes for the band, but increasingly members have been bringing their own compositions to him and he tries to use as many of these as possible.
“We have several talented pipers who are good composers and I know that if they're playing their own tunes, they get a great buzz, especially if the band's having a successful competing season,” he says. “I remember my dad getting the band to play one of my own tunes and how good that felt. But it's even better now with so many others involved.”
All Ireland
| The band draws pipers and drummers from all over Ireland - Galway, County Wicklow, Limerick, Belfast and further afield - and it's a measure of the dedication and enthusiasm they have for the band that some of them drive a sixhour round trip to Dublin for the weekly practice sessions. “That means it's an eight-hour commitment, at least, for some of them,” says Terry. | 
SLOT on another long haul trip |
“But we have a great bunch of lads - and lasses; we're happy to welcome women who are up to standard. In fact, with twenty-five pipers and thirteen drummers, we've almost enough players to start a second band at the moment. Younger players especially want to be involved with us. They seem to enjoy the music that we're playing and, of course, the success we've been having over the past three or four years has stirred up a bit of interest in us.”
All the band members finance their own participation in the various competitions, although Terry tries to arrange concerts to act as fundraisers so that the band can help in some way with accommodation on these trips.
“Competing from Dublin definitely puts the band at a disadvantage financially,” says Terry. “But it's very important for us now to be seen at all the major competitions and that means five trips to Scotland next year. Also, being the only Grade 1 band in the south of Ireland, we see ourselves as representing the country as a whole rather than just Dublin, where there isn't a big pipe band scene anyway - there are only five competing bands here.”
The band has just released its first CD, taken from its concert at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall during Piping Live in August, and Terry is looking forward to another successful season in 2006.
“Our intention is just to keep doing what we've been doing,” says Terry. “But it's all about practising. If we can get the sound right, get the unison playing together and the ensemble working properly, we'll be well on our way. I feel that we've been doing that and that our performances are getting more consistent because this version of the band has been together for quite a long time now. We just have to work hard and hope that we get the rewards. Of course, we have huge interest in the Worlds but our ultimate aim would be to win the All-Ireland Championships.”
Challenging
Standing in the way of that achievement - but also setting the standard to aim for - are the mighty Field Marshall Montgomery Pipe Band from Belfast, whose success, Terry feels, has been good for the whole pipe band scene.
“Every time we compete we're well aware that we'll be playing against a current or previous World Champion, so we know we have to be at our best to stand any chance of a good placing,” he says. “But rather than making us feel depressed by disappearing over the horizon, the Field Marshall Montgomery band are actually great to play against. I know for a fact that we wouldn't be as good as we are now without them - and I think there's a few bands who would say the same thing. They really make you work because they've raised the level required for everyone. I'd still like to beat them but I know we'd have to put in one heck of a performance to do that.”
But no-one should count against a future World Champion pipe band coming from the Emerald Isle in the near future.