My great, great grandfather (actually 6 generations back) joined Lord Kenmure's army in the 1715 rising of the clans against England. The entire army was captured at Preston, and following the trial in Liverpool, Kenmure was executed and my ancestor, Henry Wilson, was banished to the colonies. He landed in Baltimore, Maryland, married, and while his wife was expecting, he "wandered off a pier in a state of bewilderment", or so says his obituary. Sounds like too much ale to me.
So, you see, I come by the bagpipes and my Scottishness honestly. I began playing the pipes in 1982 and was the founding Pipe Major of the Ozark Highlanders Bagpipe Band. I was taught by Ramon Hendricks who was taught by his father who was taught by Willie Ross. Ramon has played solo pipes for Princess Margaret of Great Britain and also played at President John F. Kennedy's funeral. I learned most of my reed techniques from John Higgins, picked up a few piping tips from Donald McBride, and learned my method of teaching bagpipes from the late Iain McPherson (brother of the incredible world champion piper Donald McPherson).
My personal achievements include the honor of playing solo pipes for General Norman Schwartzkopf by personal request after Desert Storm, and along with the Ozark Highlanders the honor of playing for Lady Margaret Thatcher (former Prime Minister) of Great Britain, and most recently for retired General and Secretary of State Colin Powell.. One of my favorite performances was with the Music Festival of Arkansas Orchestra in 1991 when they performed the Orkney Wedding Suite. Since my ancient ancestors were the Earls of Orkney, it had been a lifelong dream to do this number, so when I got the opportunity I jumped on it. We played to a standing room only house and got a standing ovation.
Other personal achievements include a handful of medals in solo competition and I was given the second "Ozzie" award by the Ozark Highlanders as Pipe Major Emeritus. I have also composed a few tunes. I wrote "The Ozark Highlanders" march for the band, "President of the Board" for Ozark Highlander Board President David Wilson, and also wrote "McFadyen's Rant", a reel, for our former Pipe Major Jack McFadyen. "Boustrophedon" is a novelty tune I wrote which means, in Greek, "as the ox plows". This is a two part tune in which the parts are played forward the first time and played backwards on the repeats, thus it is played like an ox plows, back and forth. I'm currently working on another novelty tune borrowing the mythical title, "The Sow Got The Measles And Died In The Spring".
The Ozark Highlanders have distinguished themselves by winning or placing in many competitions and we play around thirty jobs each year for all types of functions. We once played inside the scoop of the world's largest strip mining shovel (like a steam shovel, but electrically powered) in Mineral Springs, Kansas. Another big thrill for the Ozark Highlanders was playing along with the University of Arkansas Marching Razoback Band at two football halftime performances in 1990, and being invited to perform with them at a bowl game halftime show should they make it to a bowl game. Unfortunately, it was the worst team in many years and no bowl invitation was forthcoming! You can find out more about the very popular Ozark Highlanders Bagpipe Band and see some photos of the band on parade by visiting their website. Just click on the Ozark Highlanders link below. If you would like to see the latest schedule of Ozark Highlanders performances, click here .
One of my pleasures in bagpiping is having joined a listserv, "Pipers-L". It's a friendly group where discussion is centered on Scottish stuff and bagpiping. Be warned, though, the subjects under discussion vary a lot, because pipers tend to be people with very unique and varied interests. Be assured that no "flame retardant clothing" is needed with this group, and experienced and beginning pipers alike will have their questions and comments treated with utmost respect and courtesy. This is one place where you'll really get a warm welcome and you can find out all you want about bagpipes. If you are interested in joining Pipers-L, contact Kenton Adler by email, kadler@lyon.edu . He'll be glad to hear from you.
If you'd like to get in touch with me to discuss bagpipes or other things Scottish, or if you have comments on this website, please contact me by email , I'd like to hear from you.
Besides this one, my other favorite Scottish/bagpipe websites include: