The MacDonald Brothers are pipers and folk musicians from

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The three brothers, Angus, Allan (born 1956) and Iain grew up in Glenuig, a small

Gaelic Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to: Languages * Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...

-speaking community in the west

Highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Africa * Highlands, Johannesburg, South Africa * Highlands, Harare, Zimbab ...

of Scotland. They have an older sister, Alexandra. Their father, Ronald, was known as "The Whaler," (after spending years whaling) and now the three brothers are often referred to as "The Whaler Brothers". The three brothers are all involved in the Scottish music scene. All three brothers studied under Pipe Major John M. MacKenzie at Queen Victoria School,

Dunblane Dunblane (, ) is a town in the council area of Stirling in central Scotland, and inside the historic boundaries of the county of Perthshire. It is a commuter town, with many residents making use of good transport links to much of the Central Be ...

. Iain was later taught by Duncan Johnstone and Roderick MacDonald in

South Uist South Uist (, ; ) is the second-largest island of the Outer Hebrides in Scotland. At the 2011 census, it had a usually resident population of 1,754: a decrease of 64 since 2001. The island, in common with the rest of the Hebrides, is one of the ...

, and at one time was musician in residence at

Sabhal Mòr Ostaig Sabhal Mòr Ostaig (; ) is a public higher education college situated in the Sleat peninsula in the south of the Isle of Skye, Scotland with an associate campus at Bowmore on the island of Islay. Sabhal Mòr is an independent Academic Part ...

. He currently tutors at Lews Castle College UHI, Benbecula and is Ceolas's artistic director. Allan has worked in the

School of Scottish Studies A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of ...

and taught piping at the

Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (), formerly the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama () is a conservatoire of dance, drama, music, production, and film in Glasgow, Scotland. It is a member of the Federation of Drama Schools. Founde ...

. He also taught at the

National Piping Centre The National Piping Centre is an institution in Glasgow, Scotland, dedicated to the playing of the bagpipes, to include not only the Great Highland Bagpipes, but also the Scottish smallpipes and Irish uileann pipes, as well as other tradition ...

in Glasgow. Angus has practised as a doctor in

Cape Breton Cape Breton Island (, formerly '; or '; ) is a rugged and irregularly shaped island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18.7% of Nova Scotia's total area. Although ...

and in

Skye The Isle of Skye, or simply Skye, is the largest and northernmost of the major islands in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. The island's peninsulas radiate from a mountainous hub dominated by the Cuillin, the rocky slopes of which provide some o ...

, and is involved with the Donald MacDonald Quaich and the John MacFadyen Memorial Piping Trust. The MacDonald brothers are known as activists for the Gaelic language. They were involved in the Ceartas protest in 1981.Roger Hutchinson, ''A Waxing Moon: The Modern Gaelic Revival'', 2005. ''Ceòl mo Bhràthair (My Brother's Music)'', a television programme celebrating the music and lives of the three brothers, was broadcast by

BBC Scotland BBC Scotland is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. Its headquarters are in Glasgow, employing approximately 1,250 staff as of 2017, to produce 15,000 hours of television and radio programming per year. BBC Scotla ...

in January 2007. Angus's son, Allan, was the piper and multi-instrumentalist in Niteworks.

References

External links

Personal website of Allan MacDonald
Great Highland bagpipe players People from Lochaber People educated at Queen Victoria School, Dunblane Scottish bagpipe players {{Scotland-musician-stub