A little about Seumas Brendan Coyne . . . 

EDUCATION

B.A. Electrical Engineering (Recording), UCLA, 1989

Certificate in Sound Engineering and Disc Mastering, Sound Masters, 1989

PIPING CAREER

Piping Background

·      Started playing bagpipes at the age of 3 ½ years

·      Started competing at the age of 7 years

·      Became professional at the age of 12 years (youngest in the world to turn professional)

·      Won the West Coast and Canadian Piobaireachd Championship at the age of 17 (still hold this record)

·      Lived in Australia for 2 years and played in Grade 1 bands there; successful in solo competitions

·      Iona College Professor of Music from 1998-2001. Taught classes for Highland Bagpipe & Drumming

·      Director and Chief Instructor for the James J. Coyne Memorial School of Piping and Drumming in 5 cities nationwide from 1996-2002; in Los Angeles from 2003 to present

·      Taught by James J. Coyne, Angus MacKay, Duncan Johnstone, PM Angus MacDonald, Jimmy McIntosh, Murray Henderson, Donald MacLeod, Captain John MacLellan, and Jack Lee

·      Pipe band tuition by Tom McAllister, Jr., Terry Lee, and J. K. McAllister

Awards

Western United States

1975                Silver Chanter and Gold Medal: Santa Monica, California Championship (16 years and under)

1976-78           1st Place in MSR, Jigs, and Piobaireachd: San Diego Highland Games

1979                1st Place in Amateur Piobaireachd: Santa Rosa Highland Gathering (still hold record as the youngest to win this award at age 12)

1983                1st Place in Professional Piobaireachd: Santa Rosa Highland Gathering (still hold record as the youngest to win this award at age 17)

1983-84           1st Place in MSR, Jigs, and Piobaireachd: Costa Mesa Highland Games

1985-88           1st Place in MSR, Jigs, and Piobaireachd: Costa Mesa Highland Games

1989                2nd Place in MSR, Jigs, and Piobaireachd: Costa Mesa Highland Games

1990-94           1st Place in MSR, Jigs, and Piobaireachd: Costa Mesa Highland Games

1992-94           1st Place MSR: Costa Mesa Highland Games

1992-93           1st Place Piobaireachd: Costa Mesa Highland Games

1994                1st Place Piobaireachd: Costa Mesa Highland Games

1994-95           1st Place: Queen Mary Invitation

2018-19           Seattle Highland Games Piping Championship (Piobaireachd)

Eastern United States

1988-91           1st Place in MSR and Hornpipe/Jigs: U.S. East Coast Piping Championship (4 years in a row)

1988                3rd Place in Piobaireachd: U.S. East Coast Piping Championship

1989                3rd Place in Invitational Piobaireachd: U.S. East Coast Piping Championship

1994-97           Winner: “You Be the Judge” contest (Babylon, NY)

1995                U.S. East Coast Piping Championship Aggregate Winner

1995                1st Place Overall: Metro Cup (Newark, NJ)

1995                1st Place in MSR and Piobaireachd Aggregate Winner: U.S. Piping Foundation Competition (represented U.S. against top competitors at Glennfidich Championship in Scotland)

1996                Aggregate Winner: Capitol District Games (Schenectady, NY)

1997                2nd Place Overall: Metro Cup (Newark, NJ)

1998                2nd Overall: U.S. East Coast Piping Championship

Eastern Canada

1988                3rd & 4th Place in MSR: Barrie Championship (Ontario)

1989                2nd Place in MSR: Barrie Championship (Ontario)

1989                3rd Place in Piobaireachd: Cambridge Gold Medal (Ontario)

1998                1st Place in Strathspey/Reel: North American Championships (Ontario)

Western Canada

1989                2nd Place in Jigs and March: B.C. Highland Championship (British Columbia)

1991                1st Place in MSR, Jigs, and Piobaireachd: B.C. Highland Championship (British Columbia)

1991                Aggregate Winner, B.C. Piper of the Year: (British Columbia)

1994                1st Place in MSR, Hornpipe/Jig, and Piobaireachd: Western U.S./Canadian Championship

Scotland

1990                2nd Place in “B” Marches and “B” Strathspey/Reels: (first time at event); Northern Meeting,  Inverness

1991                5th Place in “A” Marches, “A” Strathspey/Reels, and Jig Event: (out of 48 top competitors); second time at event; Northern Meeting,  Inverness

1993                3rd Place in Piobaireachd, 2nd Place “A” Marches: Argyllshire Gathering, Oban

1996                2nd Place in “A” Marches: Argyllshire Gathering, Oban

1998                2nd Place in “A” Strathspey/Reels: Argyllshire Gathering, Oban

1998                4th Place in Silver Medal Piobaireachd: Argyllshire Gathering, Oban

2017                3rd Place London Medallion (Former Winner) in MSR

2018                2nd Place in “A” MSR; Inverness

2019                1s Place London Premiere in Hornpipe/Jig

Australia

1980                First American to win the Australian Piping Championship: West and East Coast and New Zealand solo competition

1981                1st Place, East Coast Australian Championship

Band Accomplishments

•    Structuring and building a pipe band, the James J. Coyne Memorial Pipe Band (JJCMPB) in honor of my father from 2002-2011

•    Played with Shotts & Dykehead Caledonian (Elite Grade 1 Scottish pipe band) at the age of 13, when they win the World Pipe Band Championships in 1980. (Youngest player ever in Shotts’ 100+ year history)

•    Played with St. Mary’s District Pipe Band (Australia) from 1979-80 when they were Australian Pipe Band Champions

·    Played with Simon Fraser University Pipe Band (six-time world champions, Grade 1 Pipe Band) from 1984-91 and 1994

·      Pipe Major of the Los Angeles Highlanders Pipe Band in 1985 when they won 1st Place in Grade 4 at the Costa Mesa Highland Games and the Santa Rosa Highland Gathering. We also won 1st Place in Grade 3 at the Costa Mesa Highland Games in 1987 and 1988

·      Pipe Major of the City of Glendale Pipe Band in 1991 when we won 1st Place in Grade 2 at the B.C. Indoor Championship (British Columbia, Canada)

·      Played with the City of Washington D.C. Pipe Band in 1996 when they placed 2nd in the World Pipe Band Championships in Grade 2

·    ·Taught/coached Chicago Caledonian Pipe Band (CCAL) from 1999-2002. Built band to over 85 members and three grades of bands: 2, 3, and 4.

·      Played in the Los Angeles Scots Pipe Band (Grade 1) from 1999-2001

·      Current member of SFUPB 2013-present

RECORDINGS

·      Played the pipes and was a contestant on the Hollywood Squares game show, 1977

·      Played on soundtrack for Scoobie Doo Goes to Scotland, 1978

·      Played on soundtrack for the movie The Onion Field, 1979

·      Solo track on Simon Fraser University Pipe Band’s 25th anniversary album, 1991

·      Recorded first solo album, The Art of Piping, Volume 1, 1986

·      Two soundtracks for the Tracey Ullman Show, 1987

·      Soundtrack for Belvedere 1987

·      Soundtrack for The Charmings, 1987

·      Do Mho Chara album by Simon Fraser University Pipe Band, 1994

·      Iona College Pipers, Passions, and Pleasures solo tracks, 1997

·      Los Angeles Scots Pipe Band At the Beach CD and solo tracks, 1999

·      Other recordings available at www.seumascoyne.com

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES

·      Played on the George Putnam Show, 1978

·      Played for Mayor Tom Bradley and Lord Lillanin (Olympic Committee President), 1977

·  Played for Governor George Deukmajian campaign, 1982

·      Played for Suzanne Somers’ birthday party, 1987 and 1988

·      Led a guest band (The O’Denny Boyz) on the Dennis Miller Show for St. Patrick’s Day, 1992

·      SFU World Concert, Royal Concert Music Hall, Glasgow, 2015

·      Debut of Books 2 and 3 at the Piping Center in Glasgow, 13 Aug 2019

PUBLISHED TUNES

·      “City of Glendale Pipe Band” and “Jack McGee”: Rob MacNeill’s Collection, 1991

·      “The Beaker”: Bob Worall, Book 1, 1992

·      Book 1: Seumas Coyne’s Collection of Music, 2008

·      Book 2: Seumas Coyne’s Collection of Music, 2019

·      Book 3: Seumas Coyne’s Collection of Music, 2019

·      Book 4: Seumas Coyne’s Collection of Music, 2021

·     Book 5: Seumas Coyne’s Collection of Music, 2021