The Judges

Donald McPhee – Scotland

Donald is a member of the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association (RSPBA) adjudicators panel and the piping representative on the APMB . After a successful career in pipe bands, Donald retired from competition at the end of 2104. Across his contest career, playing with Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe band he has won 34 major championships, 8 Champion of Champions titles, 6 world championships and 2 Grand Slams. Donald holds a Graduate and Senior Teachers Certificate from the Institute of Piping, and an Advanced Certificate and Teachers Certificate from the RSPBA. Donald teaches for the Argyll and Bute Council at Hermitage Academy in Helensburgh, where he is also a successful reed maker

Mick O’Neill – Scotland

Mick is a member of the RSPBA adjudicators panel and a PDQB Assessor, holding RSPBA Advanced and Instructors Certificates. Mick is Head of the Pipe Band at George Watson’s College in Edinburgh. Under Mick’s leadership and tutelage, the school’s bands have won more than 50 major band championships and over 130 major drumming championship titles. Mick also plays with Police Scotland Fife whose Drum Corps has also achieved great success, including a 2nd place at the Scottish Championships, a 2nd place in the MSR final at the World Championships. In 2022, the corps were placed in the top 3 at the British, the UK, the European and the Scottish Championships.

Brian Switalla – New Zealand

Brian is a Senior Judge on the New Zealand Panel for pipe bands and solo piping and, in 2016 became the first New Zealander to be elected a RSPBA Piping Adjudicator. He has adjudicated in New Zealand, Australia, Scotland, Canada and America. He holds the Advanced Certificate in Piping with the Royal New Zealand Pipe Band Association and is an Associate Principle of the NZ College of Piping. Brian has won 9 New Zealand Solo Piping Championships. Brian has played with the Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band when they won the World Championships in 2000 and 2002, and with the Canterbury Caledonian Society Pipe Band in 2013 to 2016, winning the NZ Championships for each of those years.

Tony Coen – Tasmania

is a Life Member of Pipe Bands Australia and the National Principal for Drill and Dress. He holds an Advanced Certificate in Drill and Dress, and in Rules and Administration, and an Instructor Certificate in Drill and Dress. He has extensive experience in designing and leading pipe band displays and parades, including for the Tasmania Police Academy graduations, many ANZAC Day marches and Christmas parades, and the Armistice Battles O’er 2018 commemorative ceremony on Hobart’s waterfront. He has participated in many tattoos locally in Tasmania, in Victoria and in the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

In the competition field, Tony has won many Drum Major solo contests and has won the Champion Drum Major trophy in Tasmania several times. He led the Tasmanian Irish and Hobart Highland pipe bands in full quickstep competitions as winning bands for over two decades until the late 1980s.

Chris Hosking – Victoria

has been a member of the Australian National Adjudicators Panel for Drill and Dress since 2012 and is a regular adjudicator across the Victorian contest seasons, including many Victorian Pipe Band Championships. He also judged the RSL ANZAC Day parade in Melbourne for eight consecutive years.

Chris started learning the bagpipes in 1963 under the tuition of Duncan Munro MacLennan MBE, becoming Pipe Major in the Haileybury Cadet Corps in 1969. After a 20 year hiatus, he then played with several bands in Victoria including Moorabbin City Pipe Band, City of Nunawading Pipe Band, and the City of Melbourne Highland Pipe Band. Chris was also Pipe Sergeant and then Drum Major with Frankston RSL Pipes and Drums. In 2015 he joined Ambulance Victoria Pipes & Drums. He has been the Pipe Major there since 2017. Chris has had a keen interest in all matters Drill and Dress for more than 60 years.

Stevie Stanley – Queensland

is a member of the Australian National Adjudicators Panel for Drill and Dress and is the Vice Principal for Drill and Dress in Queensland.

Born in Scotland, Stevie emigrated to Australia in 1999. He is currently the Director of Brisbane Boys’ College Pipe Band, where he is responsible for coordinating the Pipe Band program and for tutoring drumming and drum major. Under Stevie’s guidance and leadership, Brisbane Boys’ College Pipe Band has won the Australian Championships, and placed at the Scottish Championships, European Championships and World Championships. The band has grown in membership from one to three competitive bands, winning many State titles in their respective grades.

Stevie was a successful Drum Major in his younger years in Scotland being placed in all major championships. He is now passing on his knowledge, guiding his Drum Major students to State and National successes.

Sam Young – New South Wales

Sam is a past Vice Principle of Piping of the Australian Pipe Band College, and is a member of the Australian National Adjudicators Panels for Piping and Ensemble. In 2005 he was appointed to the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association’s International Adjudicators Panel as a Piping Adjudicator. His adjudication career has encompassed various solo and pipe band competitions at all levels, in Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand and the USA for over a thirty-five years. His recent adjudication appointments have included the Cowal Gathering in 2013, Grade 1 Scottish Championships in 2015, Grade 1 Qualifier at the World Pipe Band Championships in 2013 and 2016, and the Grade1 Final at the World Pipe Band Championships in 2017, 2022 (MSR) and 2023 (MSR).

Sam began his piping in 1960 under his father, Ian Young, in Queensland. In 1974 he had the privilege of becoming a pupil under the Queen’s Piper, P/M RB Nicol of Balmoral, being tutored in both Piobaireachd and Light Music. For over 40 years Sam has competed successfully in Solo events and with Pipe Bands. Throughout the 1980s he was piper in the Grade 1 Queensland Irish Association Pipe Band under P/M Sandy Campbell. In more recent years Sam was central to the reformation of the NSW Police Pipe Band, where he was Pipe Major for 17 years, leading the band to successes throughout the 1990s.

Hazel Osborne – Queensland

Hazel is a member of the Australian National Adjudicators Panels for Piping and Ensemble, holding the Advanced Certificate in both. She has been a respected tutor and adjudicator in both Australia and Canada for many years.

Hazel began her music studies and piping career in Vancouver, Canada. She completed a Bachelor of Music at the University of Victoria, after which she was appointed a professional singer with the prestigious Vancouver Chamber Choir. Since arriving in Australia in 1993, Hazel has competed successfully in both Solo Piping and Pipe Band contests including events in WA, QLD, VIC, and NSW. She was employed as a Piper with the Queensland Police Pipes and Drums for over 10 years, travelling and performing extensively in Queensland and overseas, including to Scotland. Whilst living in London from 2007-2010, Hazel was a member of the RAF Halton Pipes and Drums competing at the World Pipe band Championships.

Andrew Womersley – Victoria

Andrew is a member of the Australian National Adjudicators Panel for Drumming and Ensemble. He has been an educator, mentor, and drumming and ensemble adjudicator for over 25 years. As well as regularly adjudicating at Victorian Solo and Pipe Band competitions, Andrew travels frequently to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur to adjudicate at competitions and to teach and mentor bands there. He is the recipient of the Peter Clohesy Award for services to pipe band drumming.

At the age of seven, Andrew started drumming in 1970 with the Mitcham Pipe Band (Grade 3), under the tuition of Cyril Bell. He remained there until 1980 when he joined the City of Melbourne Pipe Band (Grade 1) where he became Lead Drummer and holding the prize as Victorian Grade 1 Drum Corp Champions. In 1987 Andrew joined the Victoria Police Pipe Band. During this time, Andrew played under Lead Drummers Andrew Scullion, Paul Turner and Harold Gillespie. In 1996, Andrew was employed as the Senior Drumming Instructor at Scotch College Melbourne and then, in 2002, as Teacher in Charge of Pipes and Drums at Melbourne’s Presbyterian Ladies’ College where he remained for 14 years establishing the School’s first competitive Pipe Band. He is currently employed as a professional drummer with the Victoria Police Pipe Band.

Andrew Womersley – Victoria

Harold is a member of the Australian National Adjudicators Panels for Drumming and Ensemble, and the Pipe Bands Victoria Grading Committee. He has been a drumming educator and adjudicator for 35 years and served 14 years as Vice Principal of Drumming in Victoria. He has adjudicated at State, National, New Zealand, British, and World Championships.

He competed at the World Championships as the Lead Drummer for the Victoria Police Pipe Band over 10 years, gaining nine top six places, including the band’s Grade 1 win in 1998. As a player and tutor he has won 16 Australian, 48 Victorian, and 3 New Zealand championships, and attained first places in major contests in Northern Ireland and the USA.

Harold taught and directed Haileybury Pipes & Drums for 19 years until his
retirement in 2019, leading them to numerous Juvenile, State and National championships. He is a recipient of
several awards, including the Sir Rupert Hamer Award for significant service to pipe bands in Victoria, and is an inductee of the PBA inaugural Hall of Fame in the highest categories; Legend, Performance, Education & Training.

Yvonne Coustley – Victoria

Yvonne is a member of the Australian National Adjudicators Panel for Drumming. An experienced adjudicator, she regularly officiates at Queensland competitions and has adjudicated at two previous Australian Championships, the Western Australia State Championships and at contests in New Zealand and Singapore.

Yvonne is a professional musician and the Drum Sergeant of the Queensland Police Pipes and Drums. She is also the senior drumming tutor of the Queensland Police Juvenile Pipes and Drums. At the age of 20, Yvonne was the Drum Sergeant of the Grade 1 Queensland Irish Association Pipe Band from 1994, a role she held until early 2000s. Between 2003-2009, she competed with Grade 1 Manawatu Scottish Pipe Band, including at several New Zealand National Championships, with many wins, and at five World Pipe Band Championships.

Brett Tidswell – South Australia

Brett is a member of the Australian National Adjudicators Panel for Piping. For two decades he was the National Principal of Piping at Pipe Bands Australia.

He has competed with the Strathclyde Police Pipe Band and was the inaugural Pipe Major of the City of Adelaide Pipe Band. During his 25 years as Pipe Major, he led the City of Adelaide Pipe Band to many championship wins, including the 1998 Australian Grade 1 Championship. Brett is also one of Australia’s foremost solo pipers. He holds the record of being a 12-time winner of the R U Brown Gold Medal for Ceol Mor, the Clasp for former winners, a 10-time winner of the aggregate Ceol Beag, and an 8-time winner of the Silver Chanter.

Brett holds the Advanced Certificate for Piping, the Teachers Diploma, and has been an examiner with the PDQB (Scotland). He has authored several books on piping education and is the Director of the School of Piping in Adelaide and the Director of Education at Gracenotes Academy of Piping and Drumming in South Australia.

June McLeish – New South Wales

June is a member of the Australian National Adjudicators Panel for Piping. She gained her Advanced Piping Certificate in 1979 and has adjudicated locally in NSW and nationally for over 45 years.

June began piping at age 13, under the tuition of Don McLeish, quickly advancing through the Solo Piping grades to Open (A Grade) in her late teens. She received additional tuition from Duncan Johnstone and Donald MacLeod during trips to Scotland. Being an accomplished dancer herself, one of June’s regular activities during her early career was playing for Highland Dancing, something she enjoyed immensely.

June has played competitively with many award-winning bands, including Rooty Hill RSL, City of Blacktown, Sydney Thistle, St Marys Band Club, NSW Police, Blue Mountains, and the Canberra Burns Club. She has travelled extensively with these bands to New Zealand, Hawaii, Scotland, and Indonesia. She still plays competitively with St Marys Band Club, and socially with both her local Canobolas HPB, and Blue Mountains PB. Though currently June prefers to take a mentoring role, responsible for tuning, music writing and musicianship/ensemble.

Scott Nicolson – Victoria

Scott is a member of Australian National Adjudicators Panels for Piping and Ensemble. He is the National Principal and Victorian Vice Principal of Piping, and a member of the Victorian Grading Committee.

Originally from New Zealand, Scott was taught by P.M. John Downie of the City of Auckland Pipe Band. After completing university, Scott moved to Edinburgh and played with the Drambuie Kirkliston Pipe Band for a season. In 1998, Scott returned down under, to Perth, to take up a full-time position with the Western Australian Police Pipe Band, being a member of the 1998 Grade 2 World Championship band. In 2001 he relocated to Sydney, becoming Pipe Major with the St Mary’s District Band Club Pipes and Drums and, later, The Pipeband Club. Under his leadership the band returned to Grade 1, winning the Australian Championships Grade 2 (2006), Grade 1 (2008 and 2010) and two third places in Grade 2 at the 2006 and 2007 World Pipe Band Championships.

In 2013, Scott started as the Pipe Band Coordinator at The Scots School Albury. He has toured the band internationally to Kuala Lumpur, New Zealand, Singapore, Indonesia, Ireland, and Scotland including participation in the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in 2017 and 2023. Under Scott’s leadership, competing in Grade 4B, the band won the 2023 Scottish Championships, the 2023 World Pipe Band Championships and were crowned 2023 the Australian National Adjudicator Panel for Rules and Administration Champion of Champions.

Ainsley Hart – New South Wales

Ainsley is the National President of Pipe Bands Australia. He is a member of the Australian National Adjudicator Panel for Piping.

Ainsley’s involvement with Pipe Bands dates back to 1978 when he started practice chanter instruction at school. An active pipe band career spanning more than forty years has seen him play with several New Zealand, Scottish and Australian bands, culminating in appointments as Pipe Major of two Grade 1 bands.

Ainsley was involved for many years with the New South Wales branch of Pipe Band Australia. In this role he championed grassroots piping and drumming initiatives nationally, across a variety of issues and activities. Now, as National President, Ainsley is putting his years of piping to good use in managing the affairs of the Association.

Ainsley took up an appointment to the Knox Grammar School Pipes and Drums in 2010. It’s a position that he still holds and one in which he has met with considerable success, taking the band to a Grade 4 win at the 2016 Australian Pipe Band Championships. Still an active solo piping competitor, Ainsley competes regularly at most Australian benchmark competitions.