Starting the Year Off With a Bang!

January 9, 2010 was the first Vancouver Island Pipers Club of the new year. In preparation for the Midwest Highland Arts Fund's Winter Storm contest in Kansas City, Missouri, we were lucky to have both James P. Troy AND David Bowman (Simon Fraser University) performing for the evening.

These boys used the Club as a testing ground for their contest material and wowed the audience with wonderful music, fabulous technique and smooth presentation. Not only was it perfect timing with Winter Storm in the coming week but with the recent launch of Bowman Percussion and the very handy Rad Pad!

Visit www.bowmanpercussion.com for details and join the Facebook group to keep up to date with news, events and product information.

Being the President of the Pipers Club, I get the pleasure of securing the entertainment and setting the program for the season. This is a great opportunity to feature local talent and stay true to the premise of the Club in the first place: nurture and support the young players in an encouraging and non-competitive environment. It also gives us a great excuse to see, hear and hang out with old and new friends.

It also provides a platform to launch workshops and various other events. We took the opportunity with Dave to conduct an afternoon drumming workshop at the Bay St. Armouries. He did so with enthusiasm and finesse and was well received by the small yet passionate group of players that turned out. Dave's direct yet patient approach to teaching, his detailed analysis of the process, his John Fisher influence plus his experience with SFU provides players with a fantastic perspective on technique, motion and musicality.

Never far from a perfect photo opportunity, Ryan took Dave's visit and the haunting backdrop of the Bay St. Armouries as a chance to snap a couple of photos of yet another photogenic musician. Go to Ryan's Photo of the Week on Photographer Network to see the result. As with Ryan's shots of Jori Chisholm and James Laughlin taken last year, there is a bit of a contest to see if Dave can gain the most number of views to bump these guys out of the running...

A couple of other shots from the evening:

As JWT Reedmakers host a lecture series on various bagpiping topics throughout the year, the VIPC hopped on that band wagon to host this first drumming focussed afternoon. As the response was favourable, VIPC and/or JWT Reedmakers will be pushing to host these kinds of afternoons on a more regular basis. Stay tuned.

Thanks to David Bowman, Bowman Percussion and James P. Troy for an evening full of good music, laughs and of course pints.

-JLT