by Skye Richendrfer-

The Pacific Northwest of the United States and Lower Mainland of the Canadian province of British Columbia have long been a hotbed of Highland piping and drumming.  Due mostly to the historic immigrations of Scots to the greater Vancouver, BC, Seattle, Washington and Portland, Oregon communities—this region in North America has produced World Champion pipe bands, and multiple gold medalists in the most prestigious solo competitions in Scotland.

So against that backdrop it is perhaps even more amazing to learn of the rapidly growing Scottish smallpipe scene and session community, complete with regular workshops and innovative performance events—some even occurring at Highland Games (gasp!).  It’s almost as though the entire geographic region discovered their bellow’s elbow all at once!

My own story is no different from countless other pipers—getting a start in Highland piping at a young age, doing solo and pipe band competitions…and then what?  Judged some, kept the pipes going with the odd wedding and funeral, but for all the love of the music, keeping the big pipes singing with competing demands on time was all but impossible.  Fortunately, in the early 1990s a set of Scottish smallpipes had been acquired and slowly over the next several years, I developed an adequate bellows technique and a totally new path for my musical enthusiasm.

It is accurate to say that several strong bellow-pipe players have been around the area for years.  However, things really took off in this region in February of 2010, the first year of the Celtic Arts Foundation’s Winter School that featured a smallpipe session in conjunction with its existing fiddle workshop.

The incomparable Fred Morrison of Bishopton, Scotland was the guest instructor, and to say he inspired many players to embrace the bellows tradition would be a huge understatement.  From a humble start of half a dozen students in 2010, in February of 2013 more than 20 attended, and enjoyed instruction from Fred Morrison, and Gary West of Edinburgh, Scotland.  What’s more, because of the growing popularity of the Winter School’s fiddle workshop (held at the same time), fiddlers and pipers participated in joint sessions and, dare we say, the results appear to be learning to play nicely together!

Along the way, in 2011 an October smallpipe session was created in Bellingham, WA, featuring Fred Morrison and well-known American smallpipe player/maker, EJ Jones.  This October, we’ll welcome back EJ and Fred for our third workshop, and have also added a fiddling component with noted Cape Breton fiddler, Andrea Beaton.  Plans are afoot to add accompaniment options for guitars, bouzoukis, mandolins, etc., once again under the umbrella of learning to play nicely together—enhancing the understanding and appreciation of our music.

Perhaps most shocking of all, was the addition at our Skagit Valley Highland Games in Mount Vernon, WA in 2011 of a solo and duet smallpipe critique event.  Decidedly NOT a competition, around ten smallpipe players had the opportunity to play a tune for Fred Morrison and wife Deirdre (a noted Scottish fiddler) on their own, and optionally in another event, be accompanied by an instrumentalist of their choice.  Showcasing bellows-blown pipes (whether reel or small) generated interest and raised an eyebrow or two amongst the Highland piping crowd for sure.

While it’s important for bellows-pipe players to have workshop and learning opportunities such as those we provide, it’s arguably even more important to have practice and performance opportunities.  The region’s growing number of players of all skill levels and abilities can count on regular monthly sessions in Seattle, Everett and Mount Vernon, Washington currently, with plans afoot for a kickoff session in Portland planned for this April.  Standardized session sets are emerging, and perhaps most important, bellows-pipers have venues to continue developing their musical skills in the fun social setting that is so indicative of this style of piping.

There is little question that this geographic region has caught the smallpipe bug in a huge way, with exciting opportunities to learn and perform in diverse venues.

Skye Richendrfer is the founder and Executive Director of the Celtic Arts Foundation, based in Mount Vernon, WA.  For more information, please visit their website www.CelticArts.org

Happy participants in the 2009 class. Barry Shears, center.

In 2013, The Florida Smallpipe School will be celebrating its tenth year of promoting the Scottish Smallpipes by offering the finest teachers of the art. It is held in Hudson, Florida at the end of February, providing a break from the long winter weather of the northern areas as well as a great learning experience.

The school is held at the log home of Al and Maeve DeHetre which is in a semi-rural setting. There is 1 1/2 acres of land which also houses 2 horses, 2 Bearded Collies and 2 cats. For those with allergies, please be forewarned. The property offers tent or small camper camping for those who wish to say at the school (recommended).  Because of its unique location, there is also many hotels on the Gulf of Mexico within a 10 minute drive. Tampa International Airport is 45 minutes south of the property. Most people arrive the day before the school starts to settle in for the duration of the stay. We have an informal Meet and Greet the night before the school officially begins.

Meals are a communal event. There are grocery stores and fast food restaurants within a mile. People are welcome to purchase food and beverages and keep them in the refrigerators at the home. We also share meal responsibilities with volunteers cooking a meal and the rest of the participants on the clean up committee. All expenses for the meal are divided up equally among those who partake in the meal. Occasionally we will go to nearby restaurants for lunch or dinner.

The school offers classes for beginning and more advanced pipers with help from both peers and the instructor on an all day basis. Aside from the structured classes, there are many porches and “private” areas for folks to practice between classes. Evenings are filled with sessions in which the instructor also participates. There are two classes in the morning for both levels of pipers. Following a lunch break, there are two more classes in the afternoon.

Due to popular demand, Barry Shears will be returning again in 2013. Barry is a marvelous instructor for numerous reasons. His knowledge of piping history is surpassed only by his story telling abilities, making the history come alive for the listeners. Barry has published many books covering music, tunes and music history as well as CDs. He often brings slide shows and other media for all to enjoy. Barry has a tremendous grasp on what it takes to teach at different levels. His understanding of how to play for dancers and to get the most out of the music is flawless. Barry went to Ireland this year to learn how to make an Uilleann pipe chanter and reeds under the guidance of pipemaker Ray Sloan. He will certainly share his new found knowledge and stories with us this year.

The 2013 school runs for 4 days from February 28th to March 3rd and the tuition is $350 for a complete immersion experience.  Camping on the property is free and there is access to electricity and running water if needed. Please contact Maeve DeHetre at maeve27@verizon.net for any questions or further information

by Barry Shears-

This past September I had the pleasure of spending a few weeks holiday in Ireland. The main purpose of the visit was to participate in what was being advertised as a Bagpipe Making Holiday with master instrument maker Ray Sloan, who had set up his workshop at Inver Bay  in the rugged beauty of County  Donegal.

Cottage and wokshop

I have been playing a set of Ray Sloan Scottish smallpipes for almost 15 years now, and since I have been toying around with the idea of learning to play the Uillean pipes at some point in the future, I decided to spend a week with Ray and make an Irish pipe chanter, reed and adapter to use with my existing pipes and to learn more about reed making in general. I mentioned the idea to my good friend and fellow musician, John Dally, Vashon Island, Washington, and as it turned out he had been considering this venture for some time as well. After several email exchanges between the three of us, John and I found ourselves on a bus from Dublin to Donegal. After a four hour bus ride through the countryside we arrived in Donegal Town where we later met Ray and his charming wife, Belinda.

Donegal Town is a quaint little community and as luck would have it, Donegal had just won the Gaelic football Championship in Dublin (the first time in twenty years), so the town was awash in people, full pubs, and an overall air of excitement and jubilation. This was an unexpected diversion but I had come to learn about pipe making and I was anxious to get started.

The work part of the holiday started Monday morning with Belinda picking John and I up at the B&B, then a 20 minute ride to their house and workshop, where we spent most of the day. Belinda is an excellent cook and she provided delicious lunches all week and copious amounts of tea during the morning and afternoon breaks. Ray and Belinda were also kind enough to take us to several local evening sessions where we could sample some of the local music and refreshments and join in on a tune or two.

Ray’s workshop is a small stone structure close to the house. It contained several lathes, a drill press, a large work table, shelves of various types of wood, and artificial ivory, leather, reamers, cane, and several instruments in various stages of completion; everything one would expect in an instrument maker’s workplace. To make the best use of time, John started on reed making first and Ray introduced me to wood turning on a metal lathe. I had very little experience with lathes before this and within an hour I was turning down my first piece of African Black wood for a chanter.

Where is all begins: Blackwood billets

Ray is an excellent teacher and does a great job of explaining the subtle intricacies of wood turning and reed making. As a teacher he prefers to let the student do almost all of the work, under his watchful eye. Most of the work to make a chanter is done using the more precise metal lathe, but there is still a certain amount of traditional turning with hand held tools and reamers. The whole process took a little more than three days with the remainder of the week devoted to reed making for both chanter and drones. At the end of five days, both John and I had made an Irish pipe chanter each and several reeds for both Uillean pipe chanters and Scottish smallpipes.

Barry, Ray and John on the last day of class

The daytime classes were not only productive, but also a lot of fun. The learning process was often interspersed with spontaneous story-telling, jokes, friendly banter and the occasional reference to one or two piping personalities. The entire week exceeded my expectations and I would like to return next year to increase my knowledge of wood turning, perhaps tackling a set of drones, or a C chanter.

The idea of making your own bagpipe and reeds is a relatively new concept for modern pipers. It has its roots in the traditional art of wood turning and musical instrument making of the early 19^thcentury.  A bagpipe making holiday represents a new direction for an old profession: a form of craft tourism where people can learn basic skills and craft their own musical instrument while living in another part of the world and experiencing a different culture.

Uillean pipe chanter adapted to a Sloan Scottish smallpipe

It was said of the famous 19^th century Scottish piper, John Ban Mackenzie, that he not only killed the sheep and stitched the bag, but he also turned the drones, chanter and blow-pipe on a lathe, made the reeds, and even composed and played some of the tunes on them. While animal husbandry is not in my future, I do plan to perfect my reed making skills through practice and use what I learned about lathes to perform some basic wood turning. The pipe making holiday was not only relaxing for me  but it has helped me develop a greater appreciation for pipe makers and the time, skill and effort which goes into making the instruments we play.

Barry W. Shears, a native of Glace Bay, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, is a piper, instructor, historian and author of a number of books, most recently “Dance to the Piper. The Highland Bagpipe in Nova Scotia” (2008 Cape Breton University Press).