Piper at middle school promotion ceremony

[California Highlander]

My son's 8th grade "promotion" ceremony featured a solo bagpiper leading the procession into the ceremony. She's part of a youth bagpipe band in town and she played Scotland the Brave while kilted in Black Stuart and tie with a white shirt and glengarry. She is also one of the graduating 8th grade students! Blurry iPhone photo attached. For casual events the band wears a black tee shirt with their logo. The school's sports teams are the Scots, so very appropriate. Several other students played in the jazz band during the ceremony as well, so you didn't have to speak to participate.



And no, my son really didn't want me kilted at the event, so I honored his wish. He's fine with it most of the time, but not for this one. Maybe for his high school graduation!

[Chas]

Strange - You are the only one looking at the piper!

Children and schools - funny things. What is in fashion today is out tomorrow and then comes around next week again, when it becomes 'back in the day'.

One day there will be an event, you will mention the kilt and your son will say 'of course' and give you that 'why are you asking such a stupid question?' look. Roll on that day.

Regards

Chas

[tulloch]

That's fantastic! Wonderful way to celebrate the promotion.

[creagdhubh]

Wonderful! Congratulations!

Cheers,

[dea3369]

Ultimate cool!

[California Highlander]

This girl was pretty cool. After playing for her own middle school ceremony yesterday, she played tonight for the high school graduation. I happened to be nearby, heard the pipes, and went to take a look and sure enough, same girl!

[OC Richard]

She probably plays in the Prince Charles Pipe Band, who wear Black Stewart pleated to the stripe.

That band has been a vital institution in San Francisco since the 1960s.

http://www.pcpb.org/

Here they are, in a photo that shows the pleating of the kilts nicely



An aside for us kiltwearers: the Prince Charles Pipe Band for many years prided itself on its matching set of real sealskin sporrans, grey, which must have been brought into the USA before they were banned.

Prince Charles maintains three or four pipe bands at differing competition levels and as their stock of grey sealskin sporrans got smaller they were reserved for the top band, competing in Grade One or Grade Two.

I remember ten years or so ago selling a grey sealskin sporran I happened to have, which matched the bands' exactly, to a member of the band who played in the top band but the band had run out of those sporrans and had given her a plain leather one.

Here you can see some older photos of the band wearing their sealskin sporrans

http://www.pcpb.org/about

[California Highlander]

Prince Charles P&D band looks cool, but she plays in the Piedmont Youth Bagpipe Band. They also usually perform at the local 4th of July parade (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_LUV0JmCvs) as do the Piedmont Highlanders Drums & Pipes, and the Stewart Tartan Pipes and Drums of San Francisco (won best band last year and coming again this year) and sometimes various other pipe and drum bands. Great stuff! What is an Independence Day parade without at a few bagpipe bands???

[OC Richard]

Prince Charles P&D band looks cool, but she plays in the Piedmont Youth Bagpipe Band.

...Piedmont Highlanders Drums & Pipes... Stewart Tartan Pipes and Drums...

Wow so if the Piedmont Youth wears the same kilts as Prince Charles, and the Piedmont Highlanders do too... it would mean, what? Five or six bands in that area wearing the same exact kilts?

And presumably the Stewart Tartan band in Stewart as well!

That's a lot of Stewart going on!

[maeah613l]

I know a 10-year-old young man who REQUESTED his mother get him a PC to wear with his kilt for his 5th-grade graduation. Nice to see another kid who is proud of their Scottish heritage.