I had a lovely evening last visiting Skip Cleavinger and his family in KY.
We had ourselves plenty of fun with the pipes. It was a real treat to share the music with such a great friend and an outstanding piper.
I played Skip’s C# Kennedy half-set recently acquired by purchase from Harry Bradley. That chanter is really nice and has a multitude of colorful tones possible with most notes. It makes one wish to take the time to explore its many possibilities. The drones also sounded very nice. Overall, the set affirms my long held belief that C# is the desirable pipers pitch.
Of course, we were beside ourselves playing the beehive set. We delighted in the closeness of Skip’s Seth Gallagher Cn chanter reeded by a friend of ours. Great fun.
D sets…well…the magnificent D chanters we own never made it to prime time. We were lucky they did not get up from the table and whack us on the heads for ignoring them while in our flat-pitch state of bliss.
Our lovely wives put up with our antics as long as they could then we were “required” to pile into the cars to go out for some great BBQ. Upon return, the pipes were brought out for even more tunes.
I’d say it was more fun than a tionol!
I am prompted to write, however, to tell all of you how much a pleasure it is to listen to and watch Skip play. I’ve known him for 2.5 years or so now and have seen some mighty rapid progress and amazing pipering out of him. He has a great depth of knowledge regarding the music and how it is to be played on the pipes. His ear is impeccable and the rate at which he learns and polishes tunes is quite remarkable. He is a true master with regards to the technical matters of playing. And, you could not ask to meet a more likeable gentleman. Skip will be touring with Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith later this year…go out and catch him in concert if able. You’ll also likely see him in So Cal and NY in October. It’ll be worth catching up with him for a tune or two if you have the chance.
