It’s been a busy 2023 so far. A Nova Scotia wedding in May, two major festivals (ScotFestBC and World Music Festival) in June and another Irish festival in Vancouver in August. Throw in a few weddings including one in Ucluelet, funerals, memorials, backyard parties, Canada Day and of course graduations, and my pipes haven’t had …
The weather looks good for Friday. Sunshine and if you can believe it, double digit temperatures. Well, we certainly deserve it. It’s been a tough winter on the west coast. Fall came in November and I don’t think we have seen the sun since. We’ve seen lots of snow – in late February and March. …
I played on the beaches, on the land, at sea, hospitals and senior homes. It was a busy Remembrance week in the Lower Mainland of BC. As usual, I was the piper at the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club 8-Bells service at sea on Nov. 11. This is an 80-year old solemn event for lost members …
Read more “Catching my breath after a busy Remembrance Week”
I lost a good friend recently. As did many in the Canadian and global bagpiping and highland dancing world. He was a wee man but he carried a big pipe. And that pipe took him on a lifetime of adventures, collecting stories and good friends along the way. Alan James Walters passed away at his …
(Click here to contact Mike directly) It has been a brutal 15-months. For families who lost loved ones during the Covid-19 pandemic, the sense of loss can be overwhelming. Losing isolated family members and unable to be by their bedside in their time of need is one of the most difficult things to deal with …
 The bagpipes are a versatile instrument that can impact many occasions. For example… Birthday and surprise parties: “Happy birthday†on the bagpipes is a sure-fire way to make your birthday memorable…to you and all your guests. It’s well worth the look on the guest of honour’s face when the piper walks in. Weddings: Marching in …
It was a dreary day to hold a highland games. I’m kinda glad we didn’t. Thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, all large gatherings, including the 89th BC Highland Games, have been cancelled for 2020. This decision was made in May and we all knew it was coming. However, it was still a melancholy day for …
It will definitely be a different Canada Day in 2020. But it doesn’t have to be. After years of playing for new Canadians at Vancouver’s Canada Place, the citizenship ceremony this year is, like everything else in Canada, cancelled for 2020. No grand parade of dignitaries, no cutting of the cake with a big RCMP …