The NYC Department Pipe Band plays a dirge after requiem mass for past Correction Captains Association president Alfred Mandanici as the hearse prepares to move slowly away from in front of St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, Smithtown, LI, March 22, 2002. Among those in the image above is Jimmy Noone, left, former ADW now retired, and Tony Burke, former Captain now retired.

New York
Correction
Department
Pipe Band
historical
notes

The Band traces its beginnings to the dream of a few NYC Correction Department members and friends to express their common Celtic heritage and at the same time represent the agency which those members proudly served. They chose music as their venue -- music in a time-honored tradition: a law enforcement civil service pipe band.

Over twenty years ago the band began to practice its craft. Moving from practice hall to practice hall (a variety of places including the visit area of the Manhattan Detention Center, a room at Bell Telephone in Tribeca, its current practice halls in Queens and Brooklyn), the band kept one thing in focus all the time: Have fun, but play well!

The band visited the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, during a June, 1998 trip for the Correctional Peace Officers Foundation Memorial Service.

Throughout its 21years, the band has won numerous prizes and honors in various travels including to Florida, California, Texas, Montreal, Colorado, Washington D.C. and Glasgow, Scotland.

Finishing regularly among the top ten of its grade in competitions and winning its grade twice, it recently became the first NYC Civil Service Band to advance to Grade Three.

The band's secret to success is simply the philosophy of founding Pipe Major Bob Hanley: Make music and treat every performance as the most important!

NYC DOC Pipe Band in San Antonio June, 1998. Their participation is noted in an HTML version of an article from the Correctional Peace Officers Foundation magazine that appears elsewhere on this NYCHS web site.

First drum major Peter Ledwith.

The band has "picked the minds" of some of the greatest pipe band musicians in the world, including Angus McDonald, Dixie Ingram, Roddy McLeod, Alistair Fletcher, Andy White and John Wassman. Talented musicians throughout the metropolitan area have come to play with the band; membership is not limited to NYC DOCers.

Founding Pipe Major, Bob Hanley, retired from DOC after 28 years of service, also retired as pipe major after 21 years. Pipe Sgt. Joe Korber took over as PM, with Paul McGrath and Jarod Brogan as the new pipe sergeants.

Led by base drummer Kevin Shannon and a couple of the band wee'ns, the NYC DOC Pipe Band marches off the 1997 Nassau Feis field, having won first prize.

Roger Slattery took over as drum sergeant; Tom Hayes remained drum major.

The band began the new millennium looking forward to the coming competition circles and events throughout the northeast, thanking supporters for the last 21 years and sounding an upbeat note: "Let’s do another 21!!!"

[NOTE: The Pipe Band was founded in 1980. The main text above, taken from material written in 2001, was posted on the NYCHS site during the band's 23rd year. It now goes by the name New York Correction Department Pipe Band or NYCD Pipe Band.]


The above main text and two of the images (the Alamo and the Nassau Feis) were excerpted, abridged and edited from the NYCD Pipe Band web site with its permission. For more text, larger and other images, visit the Pipe Band web site: http://nycdpipeband.com/ NYCHS appreciates the Pipe Band web site granting us permission to excerpt, abridge and edit its text and images in this presentation. The NYCD Pipe Band continues to retain and reserve all rights to its text and images used here.

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