My Bagpiping Story ...
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The Beginning
My piping story begins back in 1965 in Calgary, Alberta Canada. I was in grade 3 and had a friend who was starting to take bagpipe lessons. He would bring his chanter to school and practice. He was really into it. I'm not sure what his family background was, but he is now a professional piper.
I wanted to learn the bagpipes as well, but it never happened. In hindsight it was probably a good thing I didn't start back then. I remember taking piano lessons and I absolutely hated it - it might have been the same for bagpipes which might have spelled the end of the story.
Years went by. I moved to the United States and from time to time would still hear the pipes and would be stirred to think about taking lessons once again. As often is the case, other priorities seemed to temper the desire to learn the pipes and it would get put off.
About 12 to 15 years ago my wife and I were visiting a local park in Murray, Utah. I heard the sound of the bagpipes and was drawn to it. The Utah Scottish Festival was taking place in the park and the sound of the bagpipes was everywhere. We hung around and listed to the various competitions taking place. Towards the end of the afternoon all the pipers and drummers massed on the field. A lone piper began to play on a nearby hillside and then suddenly the massed bands struck in. WOW!!! I was blown away!
After that experience I was totally hooked on the idea of learning to play the bagpipes. I knew then it was just a matter of time.
A few years after that I heard a concert in the park by the Salt Lake Scots Pipe Band. I approached the Drum Major and spoke to him about learning to play. He gave me some information, but I didn't follow through.
About six years ago I started into my midlife crisis. My kids were older and starting to leave home, I was firmly in my career and we were established and settled into a nice neighborhood. I think I just felt the need for something new. I had heard a few pipe bands in a parade and decided that I was going to pursue lessons. I called around and found a place that taught the bagpipes. I signed up for lessons.
The Goals
At the time I started lessons I was about 44 years old. I wasn't sure I would be able to gain any level of competence on the pipes, but I was going to give it my best shot. I had a difficult time, up until then, sticking with one thing for very long. I was concerned that if I became frustrated I might quit and I really wanted to learn so I decided I needed to set some goals.
In hindsight, these goals seem a bit simplistic, but at the time they seemed like a stretch.
Goal #1. Play the bagpipes at the graveside of my father-in-law and grandparents on Memorial Day.
This would be a private performance, so not as much pressure to play to perfection. I figured that I would at least be able to accomplish this after a year or two.
Goal #2. March and play in a parade with a bagpipe band.
This was a bit more ambitious for me at the time because I'd have to get good enough to be voted into the band before I would be able to march in a parade with them.
Goal #3. Become a grade 2 solo bagpiper.
This is the most ambitious goal of all. Pipers compete in different grades. Generally speaking the higher the grade number the lower the skill level. For example in most associations grade 4 is the beginner level for competition and grade 1 is the highest level of amature competition.
The Struggle
After a few months of lessons, I was feeling pretty confident. I had been learning on the practice chanter and had been advancing at a fairly good pace. There were some embellishments (movements) that were a bit harder, but I was slowly getting them down.
My family wasn't patient at all with me during this time and I would often practice in my truck outside so I didn't have to hear the complaining.
After several months the time came when my instructor asked me if I felt ready to start on the bagpipes. I was extremely excited about it and he gave me a loaner set of pipes with a hide bag and a chanter with lots of tape on it. I could hardly wait to give it a go. He plugged all the drones off and told me to go ahead and play through the scale. I filled the bag and tried to play through the scale, but the sounds that escaped the chanter didn't come close to resembling a scale.
I took the pipes home with me and suffered through an incredibly discouraging week. The week turned into a month and the month turned into several months and I was getting more and more depressed about being able to play the pipes. My goals seemed very far off during this time and I felt like quiting.
My family didn't tolerate any practice with my pipes in the house when they were home and so I would have to go to the shed in my back yard to play. I would blow my guts out for 5 minutes and then try to recover for the next 10 minutes and blow again.
Small Successes
I finally told my instructor that I wasn't getting anywhere with the pipes and that I was thinking of quiting. He encouraged me to keep trying and then he carved the cane chanter reed a bit to make it easier to blow.
Finally after a lot of struggle I was able to get a tune or two out of the pipes. I then progressed to one drone, then two and finally all three drones. It was hard work to get a tune out, but they were starting to come and I thought I actually might be able to reach my first goal.
Around the time I started on the actual bagpipes, my son started taking drumming lessons for the Scottish snare drums. The place we were taking lessons from started doing recitals and had scheduled the first one in January of 2005. My son and I were asked to play Scotland the Brave for the recital.
We were both a bit nervous about the performance, but we made it through.
Within a couple of months of the recital, my son was voted into the Salt Lake Scots Pipe Band before me. I was still struggling, but getting better.
The Big Turning Point
I was getting an annual bonus at work, and had discussed with my wife the possibility of using this bonus to purchase my own set of bagpipes. She agreed as long as she would be able to use the next bonus for whatever she wanted - I agreed.
By now I was feeling that I might actually learn how to play this stubborn instrument and felt that the next step for me was to get my own pipes. I did extensive research on the types of bags available and various pipes and the costs.
Bagpipes are not cheap and a decent set will run upwards of $1,500.
I discussed my purchase with my instructor and he encouraged me to purchase a set of the pipes he makes himself. I felt a lot of pressure to buy his pipes, and I finally gave in and bought a set from him. I did insist that he put a Ross Canister Bag on the pipes with the filter system and zipper. He tried to talk me into a Ross bag without the zipper, but I would not budge. The set cost me $2,300.
I took my pipes home and started to play them. What a difference! The old hide bag I had been using must have had a million leaks in it because I was now finding no difficulty in playing tunes I had been struggling with before. It was like night and day!
Much to the displeasure of my wife, I played my pipes a lot. I loved them. They were so much fun now and not such a burden as the old ones. It was a real turning point.
Knocking off the first Goal
When Memorial Day rolled around that year I was ready to accomplish my first goal. I had learned Amazing Grace specifically for this occasion and now it was here.
I didn't have a kilt, but I really didn't care if I looked the part, I just wanted to play.
We went by my father-in-law's gravesite and I played through the tune. It wasn't great, but it was passable. I couldn't tell you now if I was even in tune or not - I doubt it, but I did get some positive comments from people around the area and felt encouraged to play Amazing Grace a second and third time.
From there we went up to my Cahoon Grandparent's graves and I played for them. I had met my first goal, but more than that I had gained a lot of confidence and actually had the appreciation of my family who had given me so much grief through the learning process.
Joining the Band
My next goal would involve more than just a decision to march in a parade. I would have to become a member of a Pipe and Drum band.
Ihad been taking lessons from a former Pipe Major of the Salt Lake Scots Pipe and Drum Band. He encouraged me early on to go to band practices. I actually made the attempt once and was totally blown away - almost literally. I had been playing tunes at a fairly slow pace, but the band played much faster than I was used to and I couldn't keep up at all.
I was bitterly discouraged and felt that this would be a huge obsticle for me to overcome. I was very self-conscious.
I quite going to band practices after that first experience for several months.
Teagan was progressing well and started to attend band practices. His instructor was pushing him to be ready to participate in the band's concert in March. As mentioned above, he was voted into the band before the concert and this motivated me to work harder.
I attended band practices with Teagan and eventually started to play with the band - I was terrible and could only play a few tunes.
I slowly got better and by June of 2006 I was able to play a few sets with the band and was voted in just in time to play my first performance with the band at the Tooele Arts Festival.
This wasn't a parade, but we did a bit of marching around and I was able to hang in there okay. My parade marching goal was about to be realized in a very big way.
July 4th means a lot of parades for the band. The weekend before the 4th I marched in the West Bountiful Parade with the band and met my goal. It was a small parade, but fun all the same. The next weekend removed any doubt about whether or not my goal was met.
On July 4th we started the day Marching in the Centerville Parade. It was a well attended parade with lots of enteries and lots of people. Right after that we went up to Park City and marched in their parade. This was far and away my favorite parade. We marched down historic Main Street. It's a fairly narrow street so the sound of the pipes is amazing and the crowds are rowdy. It was a blast.
That evening we marched in the Sandy Parade and thus my second goal was met several times over.
It's interesting the way prespectives can change in a short period of time. It wasn't that long ago that I thought playing the bagpipes was going to be nearly an impossibility for me and though my first two goals were fairly simple in hindsight, they were, in actuality, more complex and harder than an experience piper might first consider. They were only reached after a lot of work, discouragement, determination and money.
They may seem like simple goals, but they were challenging and worthwhile.
The Great and Final Goal
My last goal of becoming a grade 2 piper will likely take me a while to reach and is a challenging goal even to someone who has been piping for years. Let me explain.
I'll start by giving a litte information about each grade so you'll understand what the grading system is. This information was taken from Andrew Lenz's Bagpipe Journey website.
Grade V (five): This is the lowest grade (sometimes not recognized or offered) and is the rank beginner level. At this grade, in some associations, performers are merely competing using a practice chanter. In other associations, performers can be on a full set of pipes. Grade V pipers may or may not be required to belong to their association to compete as these events may or may not be sanctioned. Competitors typically try to get through the tune without any glaring errors. Tunes are played very slowly. Many pipers skip any "chanter only" grade.
Grade IV (four): Pipers are playing on a full set of pipes. At any given time, about 60%-70% of competing pipers that you run into are going to be in this grade (or in Grade V). Slow tunes are played, and quick tunes are played at a reduced tempo. Competitors may not be able to tune their own drones perfectly. Only partial piobaireachd tunes are played in competition. Occasional minor embellishment mistakes. Competitors who don't make technical errors, but don't have particularly good expression might win. Drones not always steady throughout the tune. An attempt at musicality and expression is made and sometimes achieved. Most associations don't offer MSRs (March, Strathspey, Reel) at this level.
Grade III (three): Competitors can tune their own drones pretty accurately. Complete piobaireachd tunes are played in competition. Good execution of fingering. MSRs, sometimes only SRs, are played slowly at this grade. Only about 25%-30% of pipers ever advance to this grade. Drones are steady.
Grade II (two): Command of many tunes, judges can select from several submitted. Drones are steady and tuned very well, if not perfect. MSRs just about at tempo. Very good embellishments, musicality and expression.
Grade I (one): Excellent playing, everything just about perfect. Performance is just shy of professional quality.
Professional: All aspects of performance are consistently outstanding: drones stay steady and tuned for long periods of playing, lovely expression, crisp and clear embellishments, very fast tempo on demand.
I did a little research on the WUSPBA website to see what percentage of pipers there are in the various grades.
As you can see from the chart above, less than 10% of the pipers at a competition are in Grade 2 and there are fewer than 5% in Grade 1 and Professional. That means that my goal is to be in the top 15% of pipers.
This will not be an easy goal to reach, but I've found that I actually enjoy competition and have done fairly well at it so far.
I have now competed for two years and have 3 first place wins, 1 second place, 3 third place, 4 fifth place and 1 sixth place finishes. I have not been very consistent, and it is largely due to a lack of consisten practicing.
I have taken this year off of competing but plan on hitting it hard in Grade 4 next year. If I can be consistent in placing next year I plan on moving up to Grade 3. One step closer to my goal.
I will consider that my goal has been reached when I am able to place (1st, 2nd or 3rd) above another Grade 2 piper.
You can find my solo results here.
(return to main blog)
The Beginning
My piping story begins back in 1965 in Calgary, Alberta Canada. I was in grade 3 and had a friend who was starting to take bagpipe lessons. He would bring his chanter to school and practice. He was really into it. I'm not sure what his family background was, but he is now a professional piper.
I wanted to learn the bagpipes as well, but it never happened. In hindsight it was probably a good thing I didn't start back then. I remember taking piano lessons and I absolutely hated it - it might have been the same for bagpipes which might have spelled the end of the story.
Years went by. I moved to the United States and from time to time would still hear the pipes and would be stirred to think about taking lessons once again. As often is the case, other priorities seemed to temper the desire to learn the pipes and it would get put off.
About 12 to 15 years ago my wife and I were visiting a local park in Murray, Utah. I heard the sound of the bagpipes and was drawn to it. The Utah Scottish Festival was taking place in the park and the sound of the bagpipes was everywhere. We hung around and listed to the various competitions taking place. Towards the end of the afternoon all the pipers and drummers massed on the field. A lone piper began to play on a nearby hillside and then suddenly the massed bands struck in. WOW!!! I was blown away!
After that experience I was totally hooked on the idea of learning to play the bagpipes. I knew then it was just a matter of time.
A few years after that I heard a concert in the park by the Salt Lake Scots Pipe Band. I approached the Drum Major and spoke to him about learning to play. He gave me some information, but I didn't follow through.
About six years ago I started into my midlife crisis. My kids were older and starting to leave home, I was firmly in my career and we were established and settled into a nice neighborhood. I think I just felt the need for something new. I had heard a few pipe bands in a parade and decided that I was going to pursue lessons. I called around and found a place that taught the bagpipes. I signed up for lessons.
The Goals
At the time I started lessons I was about 44 years old. I wasn't sure I would be able to gain any level of competence on the pipes, but I was going to give it my best shot. I had a difficult time, up until then, sticking with one thing for very long. I was concerned that if I became frustrated I might quit and I really wanted to learn so I decided I needed to set some goals.
In hindsight, these goals seem a bit simplistic, but at the time they seemed like a stretch.
Goal #1. Play the bagpipes at the graveside of my father-in-law and grandparents on Memorial Day.
This would be a private performance, so not as much pressure to play to perfection. I figured that I would at least be able to accomplish this after a year or two.
Goal #2. March and play in a parade with a bagpipe band.
This was a bit more ambitious for me at the time because I'd have to get good enough to be voted into the band before I would be able to march in a parade with them.
Goal #3. Become a grade 2 solo bagpiper.
This is the most ambitious goal of all. Pipers compete in different grades. Generally speaking the higher the grade number the lower the skill level. For example in most associations grade 4 is the beginner level for competition and grade 1 is the highest level of amature competition.
The Struggle
After a few months of lessons, I was feeling pretty confident. I had been learning on the practice chanter and had been advancing at a fairly good pace. There were some embellishments (movements) that were a bit harder, but I was slowly getting them down.
My family wasn't patient at all with me during this time and I would often practice in my truck outside so I didn't have to hear the complaining.
After several months the time came when my instructor asked me if I felt ready to start on the bagpipes. I was extremely excited about it and he gave me a loaner set of pipes with a hide bag and a chanter with lots of tape on it. I could hardly wait to give it a go. He plugged all the drones off and told me to go ahead and play through the scale. I filled the bag and tried to play through the scale, but the sounds that escaped the chanter didn't come close to resembling a scale.
I took the pipes home with me and suffered through an incredibly discouraging week. The week turned into a month and the month turned into several months and I was getting more and more depressed about being able to play the pipes. My goals seemed very far off during this time and I felt like quiting.
My family didn't tolerate any practice with my pipes in the house when they were home and so I would have to go to the shed in my back yard to play. I would blow my guts out for 5 minutes and then try to recover for the next 10 minutes and blow again.
Small Successes
I finally told my instructor that I wasn't getting anywhere with the pipes and that I was thinking of quiting. He encouraged me to keep trying and then he carved the cane chanter reed a bit to make it easier to blow.
Finally after a lot of struggle I was able to get a tune or two out of the pipes. I then progressed to one drone, then two and finally all three drones. It was hard work to get a tune out, but they were starting to come and I thought I actually might be able to reach my first goal.
Around the time I started on the actual bagpipes, my son started taking drumming lessons for the Scottish snare drums. The place we were taking lessons from started doing recitals and had scheduled the first one in January of 2005. My son and I were asked to play Scotland the Brave for the recital.
We were both a bit nervous about the performance, but we made it through.
Within a couple of months of the recital, my son was voted into the Salt Lake Scots Pipe Band before me. I was still struggling, but getting better.
The Big Turning Point
I was getting an annual bonus at work, and had discussed with my wife the possibility of using this bonus to purchase my own set of bagpipes. She agreed as long as she would be able to use the next bonus for whatever she wanted - I agreed.
By now I was feeling that I might actually learn how to play this stubborn instrument and felt that the next step for me was to get my own pipes. I did extensive research on the types of bags available and various pipes and the costs.
Bagpipes are not cheap and a decent set will run upwards of $1,500.
I discussed my purchase with my instructor and he encouraged me to purchase a set of the pipes he makes himself. I felt a lot of pressure to buy his pipes, and I finally gave in and bought a set from him. I did insist that he put a Ross Canister Bag on the pipes with the filter system and zipper. He tried to talk me into a Ross bag without the zipper, but I would not budge. The set cost me $2,300.
I took my pipes home and started to play them. What a difference! The old hide bag I had been using must have had a million leaks in it because I was now finding no difficulty in playing tunes I had been struggling with before. It was like night and day!
Much to the displeasure of my wife, I played my pipes a lot. I loved them. They were so much fun now and not such a burden as the old ones. It was a real turning point.
Knocking off the first Goal
When Memorial Day rolled around that year I was ready to accomplish my first goal. I had learned Amazing Grace specifically for this occasion and now it was here.
I didn't have a kilt, but I really didn't care if I looked the part, I just wanted to play.
We went by my father-in-law's gravesite and I played through the tune. It wasn't great, but it was passable. I couldn't tell you now if I was even in tune or not - I doubt it, but I did get some positive comments from people around the area and felt encouraged to play Amazing Grace a second and third time.
From there we went up to my Cahoon Grandparent's graves and I played for them. I had met my first goal, but more than that I had gained a lot of confidence and actually had the appreciation of my family who had given me so much grief through the learning process.
Joining the Band
My next goal would involve more than just a decision to march in a parade. I would have to become a member of a Pipe and Drum band.
Ihad been taking lessons from a former Pipe Major of the Salt Lake Scots Pipe and Drum Band. He encouraged me early on to go to band practices. I actually made the attempt once and was totally blown away - almost literally. I had been playing tunes at a fairly slow pace, but the band played much faster than I was used to and I couldn't keep up at all.
I was bitterly discouraged and felt that this would be a huge obsticle for me to overcome. I was very self-conscious.
I quite going to band practices after that first experience for several months.
Teagan was progressing well and started to attend band practices. His instructor was pushing him to be ready to participate in the band's concert in March. As mentioned above, he was voted into the band before the concert and this motivated me to work harder.
I attended band practices with Teagan and eventually started to play with the band - I was terrible and could only play a few tunes.
I slowly got better and by June of 2006 I was able to play a few sets with the band and was voted in just in time to play my first performance with the band at the Tooele Arts Festival.
This wasn't a parade, but we did a bit of marching around and I was able to hang in there okay. My parade marching goal was about to be realized in a very big way.
July 4th means a lot of parades for the band. The weekend before the 4th I marched in the West Bountiful Parade with the band and met my goal. It was a small parade, but fun all the same. The next weekend removed any doubt about whether or not my goal was met.
On July 4th we started the day Marching in the Centerville Parade. It was a well attended parade with lots of enteries and lots of people. Right after that we went up to Park City and marched in their parade. This was far and away my favorite parade. We marched down historic Main Street. It's a fairly narrow street so the sound of the pipes is amazing and the crowds are rowdy. It was a blast.
That evening we marched in the Sandy Parade and thus my second goal was met several times over.
It's interesting the way prespectives can change in a short period of time. It wasn't that long ago that I thought playing the bagpipes was going to be nearly an impossibility for me and though my first two goals were fairly simple in hindsight, they were, in actuality, more complex and harder than an experience piper might first consider. They were only reached after a lot of work, discouragement, determination and money.
They may seem like simple goals, but they were challenging and worthwhile.
The Great and Final Goal
My last goal of becoming a grade 2 piper will likely take me a while to reach and is a challenging goal even to someone who has been piping for years. Let me explain.
I'll start by giving a litte information about each grade so you'll understand what the grading system is. This information was taken from Andrew Lenz's Bagpipe Journey website.
Grade V (five): This is the lowest grade (sometimes not recognized or offered) and is the rank beginner level. At this grade, in some associations, performers are merely competing using a practice chanter. In other associations, performers can be on a full set of pipes. Grade V pipers may or may not be required to belong to their association to compete as these events may or may not be sanctioned. Competitors typically try to get through the tune without any glaring errors. Tunes are played very slowly. Many pipers skip any "chanter only" grade.
Grade IV (four): Pipers are playing on a full set of pipes. At any given time, about 60%-70% of competing pipers that you run into are going to be in this grade (or in Grade V). Slow tunes are played, and quick tunes are played at a reduced tempo. Competitors may not be able to tune their own drones perfectly. Only partial piobaireachd tunes are played in competition. Occasional minor embellishment mistakes. Competitors who don't make technical errors, but don't have particularly good expression might win. Drones not always steady throughout the tune. An attempt at musicality and expression is made and sometimes achieved. Most associations don't offer MSRs (March, Strathspey, Reel) at this level.
Grade III (three): Competitors can tune their own drones pretty accurately. Complete piobaireachd tunes are played in competition. Good execution of fingering. MSRs, sometimes only SRs, are played slowly at this grade. Only about 25%-30% of pipers ever advance to this grade. Drones are steady.
Grade II (two): Command of many tunes, judges can select from several submitted. Drones are steady and tuned very well, if not perfect. MSRs just about at tempo. Very good embellishments, musicality and expression.
Grade I (one): Excellent playing, everything just about perfect. Performance is just shy of professional quality.
Professional: All aspects of performance are consistently outstanding: drones stay steady and tuned for long periods of playing, lovely expression, crisp and clear embellishments, very fast tempo on demand.
I did a little research on the WUSPBA website to see what percentage of pipers there are in the various grades.
As you can see from the chart above, less than 10% of the pipers at a competition are in Grade 2 and there are fewer than 5% in Grade 1 and Professional. That means that my goal is to be in the top 15% of pipers.
This will not be an easy goal to reach, but I've found that I actually enjoy competition and have done fairly well at it so far.
I have now competed for two years and have 3 first place wins, 1 second place, 3 third place, 4 fifth place and 1 sixth place finishes. I have not been very consistent, and it is largely due to a lack of consisten practicing.
I have taken this year off of competing but plan on hitting it hard in Grade 4 next year. If I can be consistent in placing next year I plan on moving up to Grade 3. One step closer to my goal.
I will consider that my goal has been reached when I am able to place (1st, 2nd or 3rd) above another Grade 2 piper.
You can find my solo results here.
(return to main blog)