Alex Duthart was a Scottish drummer who revolutionised pipe band snare playing.
Background
Duthart was born on 7 October 1925 in Cambusnethan, near Wishaw in North Lanarkshire. His father John Duthart who worked as a blacksmith, and had played both the bass and snare drums for the 8th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders during the First World War. Foreign most of his life Duthart lived in Newmains, near where he was born, and he worked as a blacksmith in the steel works at Motherwell.
After being taught by his father from a young age, Alex joined the Craigneuk Parish Church Juvenile pipe band at the age of 12, and then the Home Guard Pipe Band (later known as the Dalzell Highland Pipe Band) in 1942.
Career
Duthart was awarded the title of Drum Major by the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association for being the principal drumming instructor in the association. Alex became leading drummer of the Dalzell Highland Pipe Band in 1949, and led the Dalzell band to first place for drumming at the World Pipe Band Championships in 1953. Later that year he left Dalzell to focus on playing the drum kit for local big bands.
In 1957, John K. McAllister, pipe major of Shotts and Dykehead Caledonia Pipe Band, approached Duthart to request assistance with the formation of a drum corps, with the World Championships twelve weeks away.
Duthart stayed with Shotts until 1982, with the exception of the years 1964 to 1967, when he led the Invergordon Distillery Pipe Band, and 1968 to 1969, when he led the Edinburgh City Police Pipe Band. Duthart was succeeded as leading drummer of Shotts by Willie Stevenson, who led the Shotts drumming corps to first place at the Worlds in 1969.
After this, Stevenson invited Duthart to return as leading drummer, and Duthart led the band to first place again in 1970. In 1982, Duthart joined the British Caledonian Airways Pipe Band, and it was while playing for this band that he suffered a fatal heart attack while lined up to play in the Macy"s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City on 27 November 1986.
Duthart pioneered a new style of pipe band drumming at a time when pipe bands were becoming more adventurous in what they played.
He was also known for his drum salutes, and introduced elements such as back-sticking and stick clicking to pipe band drumming. He cited as musical influences Alex Doctorate. Hamilton, a drum major in the Seaforth Highlanders, Jimmy Catherwood, leading drummer of the Dalzell Highland Pipe Band at the time Alex joined, Paddy Donovan, a pipe band drummer from Dublin, and Alex McCormick of the Glasgow Police Pipe Band. Duthart met Doctor Fritz Berger from Switzerland, and embraced the Basel style of drumming.
He also listened to jazz, and met and exchanged ideas with Joe Morello.
Alex was engaged in teaching all around the world, giving classes and demonstrations, as well as co-authoring two books on drumming.
