Wedding Piper Steven Dewar – Biography

Competitive Career

Steven Dewar has been playing the bagpipes since 1984, he started playing when he was only 8 years old with the Bowhill and Seafield Pipe Band. He was with the band for 13 years honing his skills including winning the World Pipe Band Championships in Grade 4.

He also emerged on the solo scene as a juvenile.  He placed in many junior tournaments, including winning the Fife Under 19 Championship at the age of 15. The following year finishing 2nd in the adult event. As well as many minor victories he also boasts two Bronze Medals from the Pibroch competition at the very prestigious Cowal Highland Gathering and a 2nd place at the World-renowned MacGregor Memorial Pibroch contest in Oban.

After 13 years establishing himself with the band and through the solos he made the jump straight from Grade 3 to Grade 1 with the World Famous Vale of Atholl Pipe Band, under the leadership of Pipe Major Ian Duncan. He enjoyed many successes with the band winning prizes in every major championship in the premier grade. He has played throughout the World with the ‘Vale’ in festivals and concerts. He has played on numerous recordings including the famous Millennium Concert album, the band’s ‘Live from Frankfurt’ and ‘Back to the Future’, recorded live at the Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow, 2006,  which is available on CD and DVD. He has played on countless World Championship releases.

H left Vale of Atholl in winter of 2007 to join the new Fife Constabulary Pipe Band. This band has become the first band in history to go straight in at the premier level.

H joined Peel Police Pipe Band from Mississauga, Ontario as a guest player for their 2012 season winning the North American Championships (Grade 1) and the PPBSO 2012 Band Champion Supreme Winners

H re-joined Bowhill Pipe band in 2015 to help the next generation of pipers coming through. The band have now won again prizes in every major championship in the lower grades minus the World Championships.

In 2019 Steven joined Bagad Bourbriac from Brittany. A bagad is best described as a Celtic Orchestra featuring pipes, drums and bombards as well as other instruments. Steven so far has played at Festival Interceltique – Lorient, and the Bagad Championships in Brest with the band.  An entirely different challenge to Scottish Pipe Band music, the band took 3^rdplace for piping in Grade 1 in Lorient.

Professional Career

Steven has built a career for himself as one of Scotland’s foremost performing pipers. He has over 20 years of experience playing at an array of different events.

The highlights include:

• Playing to 80,000 people in the Stade De France, Paris,
• The Champions League Final at Hampden
• The Olympic games in Athens
• Commonwealth Baton parade Scotland
• The opening of the Scottish Parliament
• The Dunhill Cup in St Andrews
• Tartan day and St Patrick’s day parades in New York City and Boston.
• Playing the main stage at T in The Park Music Festival
• J K Rowling’s Birthday Party
• Lorraine Kelly’s Birthday Party
• Launch of Matisse Whisky – Beijing
• Various Cruise Liner Tours with SAGA Holidays, Seven Seas Regent, Hebridean Cruises
• Piper for Dewar’s Whisky
• Chanel Fashion Show – Scotland
• Private party for the cast of Top Gear
• Promoting Great Britain and Qatar Airways in Kuwait
• Numerous TV and Radio appearances
• Resident Piper to the Royal Yacht Britannia
• Resident Piper to Dan and Sally Pena – Guthrie Castle

Steven has travelled all over the World with his bagpipes, pretty much every country in Europe, China, USA, Canada, Taiwan, Kuwait

Since 2011 he has headed up the Scottish Music Parade, this is an international Scottish Show touring Europe and the USA to 5star acclaim wherever it goes. The idea is Scottish music and dance is presented from the traditional to the contemporary. Steven manages and directs the cast of the show. The show attracts 1000s of visitors every night. As part of this he is also the front man of the show’s inhouse band Aceltica. Aceltica have three CD releases to their name: ‘Aceltica’, ‘Devil in the Kitchen’, and ‘A man’s a man’.

Back home Steven runs his award-winning piping agency Scotia Pipers, and Corporate Company, Alba Entertainments. Alba also has a spin off company called Lit Up Events, which provide event product hire for Weddings and Events.

Through his businesses, he has been responsible for managing 1000s of events throughout the world. He has performed to hundreds of thousands of people.

As well us Piping, Steven has also become a competent DJ using his entertaining skills to host many parties. He now has some disco residencies in local hotels.

Find out about the Bagpipes History