Bagpiping has given me the opportunity to be a part of a number of unique ceremonies and occassions. I played my best friends wedding, a Wiccan memorial service (I didn't think anyone used more incense than Catholics), the fifth anniversary of September 11th at the Hatch Shell, a surprise birthday party, and I almost got to play once for Martha Stewart. Course none of that is going to buy Daddy a new pair of ghillie brogues so most of my public appearences are funeral gigs. I also hooked up with a local funeral home to help them out when they need an extra hand. My one hard and fast rule for playing at funerals, or anywhere else for that matter, is never let on that there is anything wrong, and all will be okay.
99.9% of the time there are no bagpipe experts in the crowd to judge you. I played at The Knight's of Columbus on St. Patrick's Day, and got a rousing ovation after tuning my pipes for 45 seconds. Many times I have forgotten the how to start the song I wanted to play after I started to blow, and just kept playing notes until a song formed. I think people are more impressed that you can actually make something so odd looking make music that they are willing to overlook your shortfalls as a musician.
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