Genuinely, this group gets me into such a groove - I have not yet traveled every road in this world, but based upon those which I have traveled, The Freestylers of Piping are unique, singular, and so so groovy. Tune into this episode to hear what happened when Perseus and Medusa decided to... "part"... And here's a first: you can support the Freestylers and Droning On by buying The Freestylers of Piping merch on at BagpipeSwag.com! https://www.bagpipeswag.com/tfop APPLICABLE LINKS Freestylers' w...
Jan 21, 2023•1 hr 44 min•Ep. 72
Some people dedicate their whole life to one art, skill, craft, or area of research-focus. Steph has, somehow, managed to cram multiple whole-lives-of-focus into one and she's still not done! Having recently released, "The Beginner Years," the third in her series of excellent music-related, (often bagpipe/drum-specific,) books, we're excited to release this episode at the beginning of a new year. May 2023 be your most musical year yet, friend! We'll be trying out a, "book club," reading of "The ...
Jan 07, 2023•2 hr 11 min•Ep. 71
Jeff has returned! You may well remember him from his excellent shortbread recipe and more in past episodes - today he's come back to share some background about & recordings of four familiar holiday tunes that fit on the pipes! Several of the recordings you'll hear in this episode are based on Timothy Cummings' settings in his holiday collection available here: https://birchenmusic.com/product/on-this-day-earth-shall-ring-printed-collection/ Tune into this episode to hear James misplace yet...
Dec 23, 2022•53 min•Ep. 70
Katie's been entertaining and inspiring folk in and out of piping since she started her impressively fast-paced bagpipe journey. From busking to competing, to recently joining the National Youth Pipe Band of Scotland: follow her on social media platforms, (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc) to see what's next @thewheeledpiper Tune into this episode to hear Katie say, of learning to play bagpipes at school, "...it got me out of History which I didn't really enjoy very much..." - We're on Facebook:...
Dec 10, 2022•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 69
Just for fun: a mega marathon of all past Holiday Episodes! If you're not into it, no sweat, the regularly scheduled episode will be out next week. To get one of these cool North Pole & District T-shirts at the special promo price of $15, just go to BagpipeSwag.com, there'll be a banner at the top of the site through the rest of December, 2022. Or go to this link. Thanks, Happy Holidays friends!
Dec 03, 2022•3 hr 50 min
The Chanter Rant guys have done a lot of terrible things, and a lot of awesome things. Among the latter is helping this man's philosophy, work ethic, strategizing, and handsome face come more fully into the awareness of the international competitive pipe band community. Tune into this episode to hear Joe promise, on record, to never play Cajun Grace again... Here's a link to Wake & District's website: https://www.raleighpipeband.com/ And, because it came up so often in the show, also MacLell...
Nov 26, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 68
Given his background in aviation one might assume that Dave's, "drone work," has to do with the kind that fly around in the sky - but no, Dave's been hard at work perfecting both design and production methodology to bring solid, reliable, good-sounding 3D printed GHB drones to the masses! Dave was recently featured in Big Rab's episode #299, (also, congrats to Rab on 300 - holy moly!) There's a link over to Rab's show down below. Tune into this episode to hear David & James both do some terr...
Nov 12, 2022•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 67
Tam O'Shanter is a popular poem, maybe especially around this time of year. I convinced my own padre to do a reading for the episode in English, and then got permission from Scots Hoose to use a really excellent pro-recording they had of Hamish MacDonald reading the poem in Scots. Not to mention: amazing musical score provided by Jeremy of the Wetootwaag Bagpipes & History Podcast. Check out the links below, and Happy Halloween! Tune into this episode to hear how excellent this podcast would...
Oct 30, 2022•39 min•Ep. 66
PROMO: Month of October, 2022, only -- special edition of this shirt at crazy-cheap price: https://www.bagpipeswag.com/ (the mug too, but it only ships in the USA). Get one of those, tag @bagpipe.swag in a post wearing/using it, and you'll be entered into a drawing on November 1st for a $45 BagpipeSwag.com gift card! --------------------Normal show notes--------------------- Laura has been living to entertain since she was tiny... she's still tiny, but ever since she was especially tiny - from d...
Oct 15, 2022•1 hr 38 min•Ep. 65
Marc's back! No marriage proposal this time, but plenty of great insight, stories, and ideas about how to be a good Pipe Sergeant! Tune into this episode to hear Marc sum-up the duties of a Pipe Sergeant as, "be the sheepdog". If you want to check out the Pride Pipers, here's their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100069227525235 - We're on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DroningOnPodcast And Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/droning.on.podcast/ - You can write-in to ...
Oct 01, 2022•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 64
If you haven't heard of JD, you've probably at least heard JD (he's the new voice of the Weekly Drone on The Big Rab Show) - and if you haven't heard JD there's at least a chance you've been in a plane that he touched at some point during production... Tune into this episode to hear about the time JD played pipes for a porn star... and the time he played at a (I'm guessing) illegal cage fight... and much, much more... This episode opens with a bit of a tune JD wrote, "Mrs Maria Ingraham," and it...
Sep 17, 2022•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 63
If you've ever been impressed by production quality in a penny whistle tutorial on YouTube, you were probably watching Sean. A self-proclaimed, "recovering highland bagpiper," Sean joins me to talk about whistles & why, (I'm sure,) all pipers and drummers should pick up a whistle. Tune into this episode to hear Sean extol that ever-popular musical genre: Elf Metal. If you're looking to get a lovely whistle, here's the discount code for whistles from the good people over at LÍR : HERITAGEBAGP...
Sep 03, 2022•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 62
Ross needs no introduction, I’m sure. He’s an amazing piper, whistler, tunesmith, and I hear he’s a decent baker as well! Along with the totally-talented Brìghde Chaimbeul and the superbly-skilled Steven Byrnes, Ross has gifted us with another unique collection of music in the new album, “LAS”. For C-Smallpipe enthusiasts everywhere, this has been much-anticipated, as Brìghde and Ross did the whole thing on C-smallpipes. And whether you care a lot about the key of the pipes or it makes no differ...
Aug 20, 2022•1 hr 47 min•Ep. 61
Craig Weir's wild roller coaster of a piping career took off when he was young and shows no signs of slowing down. From punk-ska bagpipe fusion with Gleadhraich to pure poetry with the Cabalistic Cavalry & tons of excellent behind-the-scenes stories and heartfelt discussions on the All Ears Podcast, those of us who love bagpipe content certainly are indebted to him and he keeps serving-up more and more! Tune into this episode to hear Craig say, "I'm big in Japan". Here are links to Craig's v...
Aug 06, 2022•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 60
Hey friends, The memorial album for Zach Lees is coming together! Enjoy a sample of Fred Morrison's contribution to the project, a new 6/8 March called, "Band of Angels," (named by Zach's Mother). Here's a link to the Kickstarter https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jimbojet/original-fred-morrison-track-for-zachs-memorial-album?ref=nav_search&result=project&term=fred%20morrison And, of course, any questions feel free to email me: pipingjim@gmail.com...
Aug 02, 2022•5 min
Ross is the current Pipe Major of Wasatch & District's Grade 2 band, and he's come back to the show to chat about this whole, "how to be a pipe major," thing... Tune into this episode to hear Ross say, "...these belong in a museum!" Previous Episode: https://www.utahbagpipes.com/podcast/episode/4339402c/052-the-ross-episode Check out Morrill Bagpipes' website for fully customized highland pipes, practice chanters, and SSPs: https://morrillbagpipes.com/ Follow Morrill Bagpipes on Instagram fo...
Jul 23, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 59
Michael Roddy is a talented multi-instrumentalist, (several of which are variations of bagpipes,) and instructor who took a good chunk of time to sit down and talk about the recent album from one of his projects, Arise & Go: Meeting Place. Tune into this episode to hear Michael say, "I almost needed a change of pants..." Here are links to things that came up during the interview: The poem that inspired the band name: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43281/the-lake-isle-of-innisfree Ari...
Jul 09, 2022•1 hr 51 min•Ep. 58
My good buddy and frequent guest, Swan, surprised me with wings and a request for a story we've chatted about often before: though it be poorly prepared & presented, may you nonetheless enjoy the Ballad of Tony's Bagpipe Bard! Tune into this episode to hear James miscredit a quote to Jane Austen which rightfully, (or mythologically,) belongs to F. Scott Fitzgerald - which is especially funny because The Great Gatsby actually came up in the conversation! Here's a link to a memorial page for T...
Jun 25, 2022•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 57
Ian is a piper, a spinner of stories, a maker of films, and much more. In recent years he's been working on a passion project of impressive proportion, researching and documenting the story of James Richardson, VC. Here's a link to the website where you can get started digging into all the cool stuff that Ian has produced, and will be continuing to produce, in future: https://www.paradigmmpc.com/Films/UnparalleledValour.aspx And the Facebook Page: https://m.facebook.com/The-Pipes-of-War-Unparall...
Jun 11, 2022•2 hr 9 min•Ep. 56
Bruce & the Baxter Family have been a part of the Utah Pipeband scene since the beginning >insert old-person joke here
May 28, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 55
Eamon has been an internet-creator since childhood and, luckily, much of his online comedic styling has to do with bagpipes. Here's a whole long list of links to cool projects he's done/is working on and other links to things that come up during the conversation. All of these come up in the discussion - enjoy, friends! *Links to all of Eamon's projects we mentioned in this interview can be found in the YouTube notes for this episode. Unfortunately a character limit precludes including them here....
May 14, 2022•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 54
The only, "Exotic Piper," I know, Marc has been on an interesting journey from his parochial choir-boy days amongst Roman ruins to rising through the artificial Brigadoonish mists in a local Utah theatre... If there's a, "most interesting piper in the world," Marc's at least a decent candidate for that title. Tune into this episode to hear Marc not-technically-refuse James' marriage proposal! - We're on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DroningOnPodcast - You can write-in to the show with comme...
Apr 30, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 53
Ross is a busy guy - he's a rock solid pipe player, the current Pipe Major of the Wasatch & District Grade 2 band, and he's the main man behind the lathe at Morrill Bagpipes. Check out his awesome pipes on their website: https://morrillbagpipes.com/ On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Morrillpipes/ And on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/morrillbagpipes/ Tune into this episode to hear a lovely sample of Ross playing his recently finished set of Leadwood pipes! - We're on F...
Apr 16, 2022•57 min•Ep. 52
I've been so excited to publish this interview! I'm sure anyone who's listened to previous episodes will be aware that I'm a big fan of Tim's arrangements, recordings, and compositions. This album: The Birds' Flight, which launched in July of 2021 immediately became, (and has remained,) one of my most-constantly-on-rotation albums. Tim is, as ever, a delight to chat with. If you enjoy this episode half as much as I did making it, you're in for a great time! Hop over to Tim's website to pickup a ...
Apr 02, 2022•1 hr 41 min•Ep. 51
You may already know that Chris Johnson is a chess champ, new dad, gold prospector, and tennis aficionado -- but did you know that he also plays bagpipes? Tune into this episode to hear Chris say, "Well, that sheep is a jerk, I'm gonna eat him." - We're on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DroningOnPodcast - You can write-in to the show with comments, ideas, requests, etc. at TheDroningOnPodcast@gmail.com - Support the show via Patreon , or by buying cool stuff at BagpipeSWAG - - - And now, som...
Mar 19, 2022•1 hr 34 min•Ep. 50
Jeremy previously visited the show in episode #34 to talk about his piping-podcast, "Wetootwaag's Bagpipe and History Podcast" ( https://www.wetootwaag.com/ ) Today he's back to talk about a really excellent album he recently put-out, "Pay the Pipemaker," full of tunes from the past & a truly face-melting original on Highland Pipes, Uilleann Pipes, Border Pipes, Whistles, Jaw Harps... and more, I'm pretty sure. And note: this month's Droning On Patreon givEaway is a physical copy of this alb...
Mar 05, 2022•1 hr 59 min•Ep. 49
Look out - Johnny knows karate... Warcraft, Mortal Kombat, tax audits, parenting, and even pipeband talk make up the conversation in this episode. Tune in this week to hear Johnny say... a lot of stuff - I think we've set the record for episode length this time! - We're on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/DroningOnPodcast - You can write-in to the show with ideas, requests, etc. at TheDroningOnPodcast@gmail.com - Support the show via Patreon , or by buying cool stuff at BagpipeSWAG - - - And n...
Feb 19, 2022•3 hr 9 min•Ep. 48
Why does music exist? What does it do for/to humans? Why do music at all, let alone in a group? The talented and insightful Danny Caldwell answers all these questions entirely - and more - in this episode. Tune in to this episode to hear Danny say, "...my dad always told me, 'you need to wear earplugs when you play your bagpipes or you're gonna be deaf,' and I never listened to him ". - We're on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/DroningOnPodcast - You can write-in to the show with ideas, reques...
Feb 05, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 47
In which I ramble for eight minutes and 20 seconds, but your patience is rewarded with a beautiful set by Timothy Cummings & Jeremiah McLane: 5/4 Waltzes: Port WIlliam > Apple Knoll I couldn't recommend that track & album enough. Available here: https://wheezersqueezer.bandcamp.com/album/the-wind-among-the-reeds -------------------------------------------------- Pertinent to the rambling: -------------------------------------------------- Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook....
Feb 01, 2022•14 min
*Updated Audio: previously I'd accidentally released this episode with a sample track of PM Willie Gray muted, so around the 1hr mark there's just a moment of silence. This has now been corrected & the tune is audible. Kirk Potter is a Drummer by day and a Computer Geek... also by day. Creating PadLab with Rhythm Monster wasn't enough for Kirk, he had to go and revolutionize the world of pipe band music notation as well with his award-winning, Ensemble . Tune into this episode to hear Kirk i...
Jan 22, 2022•1 hr 46 min•Ep. 46
