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Professional Scottish Piper
"A PIPER FOR ANY OCCASION" Add a touch of Scottish "Magic" to your special event with a bagpipe player. Punctual, dependable, cheerful and professional. Although based in Queensland's beautiful Sunshine Coast, I am prepared to travel anywhere within Australia or overseas. I am also available at short notice for any event. Weddings
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A bagpiper will always add a great sense of occasion and atmosphere to your special event with a combination of traditional highland dress and piping. As a professional piper, brought up, taught, and based in the U.K. I pride myself in my quality of playing, my repertoire of tunes and being well turned out in the Scottish tradition.
I have been taught by the very finest tutors including P/M Jim Caution, Pipe Major Gordon Speirs, and Pipe Major John Roe (Scots Guards). I played with the 57th RAMC army unit (grade two) at the Duke of York's barracks in Chelsea, London, under Pipe Major Bob Hill (ex Scots Guards/Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders).
I was a founder member of The Blue Bonnets (City of London) Pipe Band, and played at many functions for British Caledonian Airways.
Currently, I teach bagpipes at schools and private students of any age, which I find very satisfying.
I have played at numerous functions throughout the world including Scotland, London, Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam, The Gambia, The Seychelles, New Zealand, Crimea, Switzerland and Portugal. I have played for Princess Margaret, Princess Anne, Sir Rod Stewart, Kenneth McKellar, Michael Parkinson, Bruce Forsyth, Harry Secombe, and at The London Palladium for a full season. I played for the film "Mary Queen Of Scots", played backing music for the rock band "Cream" and have also featured in their magazine of the same name. I have competed in solo and pipe band competitions around the world.
* 2013 and 2014 - I played with the British Airways Pipe Band in the UK. Whilst there I received 2nd prize in Piobaireachd competitions (classical music for the bagpipe).
* August 2015 - I was invited to play at the world famous Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo at Edinburgh Castle. The Tattoo lasted for five weeks including a week for rehearsals and drill.
* 2016 - I was invited to play at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in Melbourne (Australia) and also Wellington (NZ). In April I travelled to Charleville, Queensland to play on ANZAC day for the RSL which was very moving and had a large turnout.
* 2017 - was also a busy year. I went to Basel (Switzerland) in July to play at their annual Military Tattoo, then straight on to London followed by The World Pipe Band Championships which are held every year in Glasgow.
* 2018 - I went, with a band, to a Festival in Russia (Crimea) for two weeks. I found this to be an amazing place. Following this I travelled to Queenstown (NZ) to play for a wedding, and then back to Scotland in July/August to play in the Edinburgh Military Tattoo again.
* 2019 - Once again I attended the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo for the month of August. This was the most demanding tattoo yet. Prior to the actual shows beginning we drilled for four days, 16 hours a day. The evening performances ran nightly from 9pm to 10.30 pm, with two shows on a Saturday. By the time we got back to our accommodation it was often midnight except for Saturday which had a 1am finishing time. It rained a few times during performances which meant constant cleaning and preparation of our uniforms for the next show. The theme "Kaleidoscope" incorporated a very complicated drill requiring constant concentration. The music was also extremely demanding especially at the speed required for the highland dancers. But I loved it.
Following Edinburgh I played at the Tattoo in Sydney, also organised by the British Military. This is deemed to be the biggest ever Tattoo.
*2022 - After a 2 year break caused by the pandemic, I was very happy and privileged to return to Edinburgh once again to participate in this year's tattoo and what an uplifting tattoo it was. The audiences were amazing and the cheer that the massed Pipes & Drums received was deafening every time, especially at the end as we marched out to play our way down the Royal Mile. For me, this is what it's all about, the hard work, drill (5 days and long hours) and music made it all worthwhile.
A busy year in 2023, once again playing at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. When rehearsals began I was transfered to play with the Irish Guards for the whole of the Tattoo, I met some great people in the band and enjoyed it immensly.
I have been taught by the very finest tutors including P/M Jim Caution, Pipe Major Gordon Speirs, and Pipe Major John Roe (Scots Guards). I played with the 57th RAMC army unit (grade two) at the Duke of York's barracks in Chelsea, London, under Pipe Major Bob Hill (ex Scots Guards/Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders).
I was a founder member of The Blue Bonnets (City of London) Pipe Band, and played at many functions for British Caledonian Airways.
Currently, I teach bagpipes at schools and private students of any age, which I find very satisfying.
I have played at numerous functions throughout the world including Scotland, London, Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam, The Gambia, The Seychelles, New Zealand, Crimea, Switzerland and Portugal. I have played for Princess Margaret, Princess Anne, Sir Rod Stewart, Kenneth McKellar, Michael Parkinson, Bruce Forsyth, Harry Secombe, and at The London Palladium for a full season. I played for the film "Mary Queen Of Scots", played backing music for the rock band "Cream" and have also featured in their magazine of the same name. I have competed in solo and pipe band competitions around the world.
* 2013 and 2014 - I played with the British Airways Pipe Band in the UK. Whilst there I received 2nd prize in Piobaireachd competitions (classical music for the bagpipe).
* August 2015 - I was invited to play at the world famous Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo at Edinburgh Castle. The Tattoo lasted for five weeks including a week for rehearsals and drill.
* 2016 - I was invited to play at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in Melbourne (Australia) and also Wellington (NZ). In April I travelled to Charleville, Queensland to play on ANZAC day for the RSL which was very moving and had a large turnout.
* 2017 - was also a busy year. I went to Basel (Switzerland) in July to play at their annual Military Tattoo, then straight on to London followed by The World Pipe Band Championships which are held every year in Glasgow.
* 2018 - I went, with a band, to a Festival in Russia (Crimea) for two weeks. I found this to be an amazing place. Following this I travelled to Queenstown (NZ) to play for a wedding, and then back to Scotland in July/August to play in the Edinburgh Military Tattoo again.
* 2019 - Once again I attended the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo for the month of August. This was the most demanding tattoo yet. Prior to the actual shows beginning we drilled for four days, 16 hours a day. The evening performances ran nightly from 9pm to 10.30 pm, with two shows on a Saturday. By the time we got back to our accommodation it was often midnight except for Saturday which had a 1am finishing time. It rained a few times during performances which meant constant cleaning and preparation of our uniforms for the next show. The theme "Kaleidoscope" incorporated a very complicated drill requiring constant concentration. The music was also extremely demanding especially at the speed required for the highland dancers. But I loved it.
Following Edinburgh I played at the Tattoo in Sydney, also organised by the British Military. This is deemed to be the biggest ever Tattoo.
*2022 - After a 2 year break caused by the pandemic, I was very happy and privileged to return to Edinburgh once again to participate in this year's tattoo and what an uplifting tattoo it was. The audiences were amazing and the cheer that the massed Pipes & Drums received was deafening every time, especially at the end as we marched out to play our way down the Royal Mile. For me, this is what it's all about, the hard work, drill (5 days and long hours) and music made it all worthwhile.
A busy year in 2023, once again playing at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. When rehearsals began I was transfered to play with the Irish Guards for the whole of the Tattoo, I met some great people in the band and enjoyed it immensly.
