st. brendan the navigator pipes and drums

They had only been under the instruction of George Watts and Bob McCourt for a year when six fledgling pipers, clad in black slacks and white shirts, made their piping debut at a Jersey Shore Irish American Club Dance in May, 1985. The entertainment was a success and the performance became the cornerstone of the ambitious and ever-growing pipe band. Within a year the newly formed band numbered fifteen talented and eager-to-learn musicians.

In June, 1987, pipers and drummers, wearing kilts donated and formerly worn by the West Point Cadet Pipe and Drum Band, demonstrated their proficiency at the Garden State Arts Center Irish Festival for the first time.

Throughout the following year, the pipers and drummers entertained enthusiastic spectators at parades, festivals and weddings. Their goal was to raise funds for the purchase of their own uniforms. In 1988, the musicians decided that forever more their band would be known as St. Brendan the Navigator Pipes and Drums. The pipers and drummers had a lot to be proud of. They had met their goal and were donned in full dress Lindsay tartans when they made their second appearance at the Garden State Arts Center Irish Festival that year.

The members of St. Brendan the Navigator Pipes and Drums pride themselves in their promotion of the music and culture of their celtic heritage and in the band’s past, present and future goals and achievements.