Washington Pipers’ Association

Many thanks to all of the judges and the competitors who made time for our events this year!  This month, we had a miscommunication with our drumming judge and unfortunately needed to cancel drumming competitions. Thank you William Nichols for coming down from  Blaine to judge our piping events. Will started piping in Alaska at the age of 6 and travelled down to Washington for the Mastery of Scottish Arts Winter School (Now Celtic Arts Winter School), and to Canada for Piping Hot Summer Drummer regularly.

Will has won prizes at Oban for the past 2 years, including 2nd in the B-grade march.  He won second place in the Kansas City Winter Storm Silver Medal this year.  He won the BCPA Knockout in 2007 at the age of 17, and played with Robert Malcolm Memorial Grade 3 and Grade 2 winning two juvenile World Championships and the 2006 Grade 2 World Championships. Since 2006, Will has been playing in SFU and is currently finishing a Cellular Biology Degree at Western Washington University.

Finally, thanks so much to the Portland Metro Youth Pipe Band who travelled up from Portland / Vancouver to perform a great set of tunes for us, and we learned a little bit about their short history and teaching program led by the Grade 2 Portland Metro Pipe Band musicians, and Pipe Major Mark Tomasetti.

Grade 5 Piping – 6/8 March

1. Karl Stahlfeld – Northwest Junior Pipe Band
2. Russell Prewitt
3. Katrina Jones - Northwest Junior Pipe Band

Adult Piping – 6/8 March

1. Diane Axworthy
2. Cleda Thompson – Kenmore & District Pipe Band

Adult Piping – Piboaireachd Ground & 1st Variation

1. Cleda Thompson – Kenmore & District Pipe Band
2. Diane Axworthy

Grade 4 Piping Strathspey & Reel

1. Liam Bacon – Portland Metro Youth Pipe Band
2. Megan McCrea – Northwest Junior Pipe Band
3. Logan Chavez – Portland Metro Youth Pipe Band

Grade 4 Piping 6/8 March

1. Megan McCrea – Northwest Junior Pipe Band
2. Logan Chavez – Portland Metro Youth Pipe Band
3. Liam Bacon – Portland Metro Youth Pipe Band

Grade 3 Piping 2/4 March

1. Matthew Alger -  Northwest Junior Pipe Band
2. Matt Rucker – Portland Metro Youth Pipe Band
3. Alistair Ramsay – Portland Metro Youth Pipe Band

Grade 2 Piping March, Strathspey & Reel

1. Aaron Stone – Northwest Junior Pipe Band

Grade 2 Piping Jig

1. Aaron Stone – Northwest Junior Pipe Band

Grade 1 Piping 6/8 March

1. Alexander Schiele – Northwest Junior Pipe Band

Grade 1 Piping Hornpipe & Jig

1. Alexander Schiele – Northwest Junior Pipe Band

Season Aggregate winners:

• Grade 1 Piping:  Alexander Schiele
• Grade 2 Piping Aggregate: Aaron Stone
• Grade 3 Piping Aggregate: Matthew Alger
• Grade 4 Piping Aggregate: Paul Vegors
• Adult Piping Aggregate: Diane Axworthy
• Grade 5 Piping Aggregate: Karl Stahlfeld
• Chanter Aggregate: Stuart MacDonald
• Grade 2 Drumming Aggregate: Amber Stone
• Grade 3 Drumming Aggregate: Bryce Kreger
• Grade 4 Drumming Aggregate: Morgan McCullough
• Bass Drumming Aggregate: Morgan Schiele
• Tenor Drumming Aggregate: Ali North

WPA had reduced attendance this year, and moderately increased the amount we provide to judges for their time to help us attract some of the best in the region to our events.  This meant that we were unable to provide as many scholarships as in past years, but we did believe it was important to increase the amount of the scholarship we provided to $450.00 from $250, because there are few week long camps where tuition isn’t greater than $450.00.  Thanks to several Pipe Bands for their membership, and especially the Seattle Scottish Highand Games Association for their continued support and donations to our programs, as well as the generosity of the Grace Fellowship Church, we were able to make one award this year.  Further, the generous support of the Coeur D’Alene Summer School of Piping and Drumming and Celtic Arts Foundation Winter School means three great awards for those eligible for the drawing.

• Tuition Schoarship to the Celtic Arts Foundation Winter School, donated by the Celtic Arts Foundation:
  • Katrina Jones
  • Alternate:  Morgan McCullough
• Tuition Scholarship to the Coeur D’Alene School of Piping and Drumming, Donated by the Coeur D’Alene School of Piping and Drumming
  • Morgan Schiele
  • Alternate: Matthew Alger
• Grace Fellowship Church Washington Pipers’ Association Schoarship: $450.00 to piping / drumming school of recipients’ choice, made possible through members and donors support, as well as reduced rental rates for our competitions.
  • Alexander Schiele
  • Alternate: Robert Graham