Angus MacDonald (piper)

During his service, MacDonald rose through the ranks to become Pipe Major and, in 1965, Household Piper to Elizabeth II.^[2] He performed around the world, taught at the Guards Depot piping school at Pirbright, and later became senior instructor at the Army School of Bagpipe Music and Highland Drumming and piper to the governor of Edinburgh Castle. In recognition of his contributions, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1983, the year of his retirement.^[2]

MacDonald won many major piping awards, including the Clasp and Gold Medal of the Highland Society of London, and the Grant’s Scotch Whisky Championship at Blair Castle.^[2] His compositions and recordings, including the first album in Lismor Records’ World’s Greatest Pipers series, influenced both traditional and contemporary piping.^[1]

Following his retirement from the army, MacDonald taught and performed internationally, including in Oman, Malaysia, and the United States, and served as senior instructor at the National Piping Centre in Glasgow.^[2][1][3] He also edited and published several collections of pipe music and contributed to the Scots Guards tune books.^[1]

MacDonald died of pancreatic cancer in Edinburgh on 25 June 1999, aged 60. He was survived by his daughter and other family members.^[2][1]