Victoria Branch

Welcome to Pipe Bands Victoria,

Pipe Bands Victoria (PBV) is Victoria’s peak body responsible for pipe band activities, including pipe band contests, solo piping and drumming contests, piping and drumming workshops, and other public pipe band performances.

Supporting Scottish Highland piping and drumming across Victoria, PBV welcomes enquiries from individuals and organisations interested “all things pipes and drums”, whether it is hosting a pipe band contest, looking for a piper or drummer for an event, or seeking to learn one of the instruments.

Victoria is home to about 40 pipe bands, almost half of whom are currently active in competition. At the 2022 Australian Pipe Band Championships, held at Warriewood NSW, all six pipe band grades were won by a Victorian pipe band. If you’re looking to join a pipe band n Victoria please get in touch.

Victoria is also home to the world’s oldest pipe band association, the Victorian Highland Pipe Band Association (VHPBA). Following discussions at the Maryborough Highland Gathering in January 1924, the Association was formed at a meeting in Geelong in April that year. Maryborough, Victoria was also the site of the very first Australian Pipe Band Championships on New Years Day 1961. PBV is delighted that 2024 will see the centenary of the VHPBA and the return of the Australian Championships to Maryborough for the first time in over 60 years.