City of Dunedin Pipe Band usually refers to the band based in Dunedin, Florida, founded in 1964 as an outlet for young pipers and drummers coming through the city’s school piping programmes. Dunedin itself has strong Scottish roots, with the city name derived from the Gaelic name for Edinburgh. The pipe band became the senior continuation of a local Scottish arts pathway running from Dunedin Middle School through Dunedin High School and into adult competition.

The band grew significantly under long-serving Pipe Major Sandy Keith, who took charge in 1982 and helped build a strong teaching and competition system. In 2011, Iain Donaldson became Band Director, later joined by Eric MacNeill as Drumming Director and Drum Sergeant. The band was promoted to Grade 2 in 2014 and made history in 2018 by winning the Grade 2 World Pipe Band Championship in Glasgow.

Following that success, City of Dunedin was promoted to Grade 1, becoming one of the leading pipe bands in the United States. It went on to win the Grade 1 North American Championship in 2019. A proper Florida skirl machine: sunshine, school tuition, world titles, and enough pipe-band ambition to make the palm trees stand to attention.