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Permalink Reply by Scott Thompson on March 14, 2008 at 4:43pm

Bill:

Welcome aboard. How long have you guys been playing as a unit?

Permalink Reply by Bill Spiegel on March 14, 2008 at 7:00pm

here is how we started.......our web site is www.theemeraldsociety.com

History of the Band

Slow beginnings in Milford

In 1990 a group of Firefighters from Milford bought chanters and started taking lessons. Before long this group was down to one, Jim Coubrough. By 1992 Jim was up and playing his pipes. Jim piped for the Milford Fire Department at its dedication of fire HQ in 1993. After this a small group from Milford again started taking lessons


A Band begins to Form

By late 1994 more Milford Firefighter pipers were up and playing their pipes. With the addition of a bass drum, the Milford Fire Department Pipes & Drum Band was born. They played as a band for the first time in 1994 at the Fire Dept. Sick Benefit breakfast in Milford.


The Bands Tartan

The band picked the Modern Mackenzie tartan as its kilt. Unlike other Fire Fighter Band’s tartans, which bear some significance or are red, this band’s tartan was chosen because "we wanted to be different". Boy are we different.


All Pipes and no Drums
The small amount of money the band made from donations went towards the purchase of a snare drum, and a local High school donated an old bass drum. By 1996 we added a snare, and two tenor drums.


The outsiders

In 1997 the New Haven Fire Department Emerald Society opened up to career firefighters countywide and our band members joined up. The Milford Fire Department Pipes and Drums led the Society in New Haven’s St. Patrick’s Day parade that year. By 1998 two firefighters from New Haven joined our band as pipers. By the end of the year we added another Milford firefighter on bass drum. This allowed for a Drum Major.

New name, same old faces

The Emerald Society officially changed its name to the New Haven County Firefighters Emerald Society in 1998. The band also changed to the same name later that year, and all of the band members joined the Emerald Society. The 1999 St. Patrick’s Day Parade in New Haven was our first parade as the Emerald Society band. By parade day a third New Haven Firefighter joined the group. That year also saw the addition of another tenor drum and a snare.


The Band continues to grow.

The band has appeared in parades throughout Connecticut as well as The St. Patrick Day Parades in Southie, (Boston), Savannah, Georgia and recently in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Band has also played at the Tattoo at West Point and The Fallen Firefighter Ceremony in Washington, D.C. and PipeFest 2002 in N.Y.C.


The band is made up of 100% career Firefighters from all over the State.


The band continues to practice weekly as it anticipates adding the new members who are currently taking lessons. The band continues to perform at firefighter’s funerals and selected fund raisers. Check out the "Performance Schedule" page to find out where we're playing next.