As part of our mission, the Nashville Pipes and Drums prioritizes the education of new musicians in Scottish Piping and Drumming. At our Monday night rehearsals, our team of instructors teaches multiple classes at different skill levels. The goal of our classes is to prepare students to begin to play band repertoire that they will need to participate in local band gigs and events.
Students are invited to join the regular band and/or the competition circle at the discretion of the pipe major, in consultation with their instructor. Many of our competition players started their piping or drumming career in our beginner lessons!
Many of our students come with backgrounds in other instruments and styles of playing. Some students are brand new to reading music. The band welcomes all ages to play, though we don’t recommend beginning lessons before the age of ten. Parents with students younger than ten should consult with the pipe major or drum sergeant about the advisability of taking lessons.
NP&D offers structured classes every Monday evening. For exact times, please see the calendar below. Several band members are also available for individualized private instruction. Beginning drum lessons are also offered. Group classes are taught by volunteers and are free of cost.
Beginning piping students begin learning on the practice chanter in the Beginner Chanter Class. This class teaches all piping fundamentals on the practice chanter. This runs twice a year, for approximately 16-20 weeks. The lessons in this class are highly sequential, so missing classes is not recommended. Students that miss too many classes in the sequence, or who do not practice sufficiently to keep up with the class, may need to repeat the course before they will be prepared to move on to the next course. After the beginning chanter class, students progress to the Intermediate Chanter Class. In this class, students will learn to play and memorize all our standard repertoire tunes on the practice chanter. Students will typically spend about 6 months in this class. Towards the end of the intermediate chanter class is when students will be advised that it is time to purchase a set of bagpipes. The final class is the Beginning Piping Class. Lessons for this class are scheduled on an individual basis. This class teaches students how to play the bagpipe and how to maintain their pipes. This class is more self-paced and students can spend anywhere from a few weeks to a year in this class.
NP&D has two church homes, Woodmont Christian Church and First Presbyterian Church. We utilize both facilities for classes. Specific information regarding exact class locations will be provided upon outreach and enrollment. Students will have the opportunity to stay after class and meet the band and observe practice if they choose
Interested in learning to play? Contact us here!
Calendar iCal link: https://calendar.google.com/calendar/ical/54c5908542732f30fbf877c36a3d9647397c9663703baefbf1e8cadabd2dca01%40group.calendar.google.com/public/basic.ics