My Piping 

In the Fall of 1999, I moved to a new band, The Keith Highlanders Pipe Band . The change brought new motivation and a whole new set of tunes to memorize.
2001 has been a big year in my piping. In February, I attended the Mastery of Scottish Arts Winter School. At Winter School, I had the opportunity to work with and learn from some of piping's greats: Michael Cusak, Alisdair Gillies, Ian Mclellan, Roddy MacLeod, and Jack Lee. These teachers have become an inspiration to me.

It was at Winter School, that I was exposed to piobaireachd for the first time. Piobaireachd or Ceol Mor is the ancient classical music of the bagpipes. "Piobaireachd" (pronounced "pee-brock") is an ancient and sophisticated musical genre developed over many generations. A very rough description of it would be as a theme and variations: The "urlar", or theme, is repeated with ever more difficult ornamentation. There were very strict rules and protocols as to the manner in which Piobaireachd was to be played. All the tunes were committed to memory through the use of special words, and some of the clans established special piping "colleges" as it took many years to train a piper to the necessary standard. It was a "classical" music in the strictest sense of the word.
Later in February 2001, I joined the Washington Piper's Association and began competing as a solo piper. Through WPA, I was introduced to many new people and experiences.

In the Summer of 2001, I began studying Piobaireachd with Colin MacRae, Sr. From him, I have discovered passion for this art form with me. This music makes me feel connected to a long tradition of piping.

Without a doubt, the most exciting thing I have done in piping is competing at the World Pipe Band championships. In the summer of 2002, The Keith Highlanders travelled to Scotland. We played for the Clan Keith's 1000th anniversary. Next we travelled around the country and ended up in Glasgow where we played at The Worlds. It was truly amazing.