SRPF marches in,this time as Pied Pipers of Maharashtra

The pipe band of about 30 pipers and 10 percussionists,which last performed at the All India Police Firing Competition (Sports) in October,was organised in December 2012 with assistant sub-inspector Navnath Mahipati Ugalmugale being appointed as the officer-in-charge of the band. “There are two types of bands — marching band and the pipe band. They are distinct from each other. The latter has a Scottish history. The piper blows air into a bag held under the armpit,which acts as a reservoir. The air is released through four ducts,which includes a chanter and three drones,” explains Ramanand,adding that the chanter works a little like the flute while the drones maintain a humming sound in the background.

Ugalmugale,who retired from the Army in 2012 and was then recruited by the SRPF,says when he was taken on board he was given the target of readying the pipe band between December 1 and January 25. “Mastering the instrument takes about four years but we managed to start from scratch and build a full-fledged band within a month. Since our first performance in January 26,we have been regularly appreciated,” he says.

Ugalmugale,who first heard of the bagpiper when he was ordered to learn it in the Army back in 1989,says after his initial training in playing the instrument,he would play by the ear. “Eventually,I learnt the notations etc. What interested me most in it is that the instrument is not played in civil circles; it gives us an exclusivity,” he says.

The trainer explains that the pieces that the band plays are classified as quick march and slow march. “We play a Nepali composition called the Gorkha brigade,which is a quick march. Then we have Sky bird song,India Gate and Scotland among several others,” he says.

Playing the instrument is no mean deal. “We need to be in control of the air we blow in. It also takes a lot of coordination and lung power. In a very short span,the SRPF band members have learnt the art of playing it,” says Ugalmugale,who has received appreciation from all quarters.

With the success of the band,Ramanand says,they are also in the process of setting up a band school on the lines of the military school of music at Pachmarhi,Madhya Pradesh. “We already have the sanction to set up the school in Daund where officers of other states too can train. We have also approached schools to collaborate so that students can also learn to play the bagpiper,” he says.