Photograph by Paul Myers
Aspiring bagpipers (from left) Cat Griffin of Los Gatos, Wes Webber and Sunnyvale Public Safety Officer Steve Harrington practice playing their chanters. The proper fingering must be learned on a chanter before playing the actual bagpipes.
Local pipers, drummers form band
By Shari Kaplan
Hark! When the night is falling; Hear! Hear the pipes are calling; loudly and proudly calling down through the glen ... .
While the West Valley area is hardly the land whose praises are sung in "Scotland the Brave," the unmistakable skirl of bagpipes--along with the resonant rumble of drums--can now be heard rising as the night is falling.
Wednesdays at 7 p.m. is the time; Fisher Middle School in Los Gatos is the place. Each week, members of eight fire and law enforcement departments--plus civilians--learn the melodies and rhythms of a traditional bagpipe and drum band.
According to organizer and instructor Jay Tuttle, participants hail from three local agencies: the Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Police Department; the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office (which serves unincorporated Los Gatos and all of Saratoga); and the Santa Clara County Fire Department (which serves part of Saratoga and all of Los Gatos). The other agencies are the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety; the California Highway Patrol; and the San Jose, Gilroy and Palo Alto police departments.
Between the officers, firefighters and citizens, the group comprises close to 40 people of all ages. It all began in August, when Tuttle wrote to Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Police Chief Larry Todd to inquire about forming a band. Two weeks later, Todd met with the Los Gatan and voiced his approval. Tuttle began promoting the idea by distributing flyers, telephoning and emailing. Soon the free lessons were organized.
"There seems to be a shortage of this sort of thing in our area," says Tuttle, who also recruited from contacts made while piping for police and fire funerals, Highland Games and other events in the Bay Area.
"I've played the bagpipes for years, and every time I do it, people come up and ask where they can take lessons," says Tuttle, a native of New York who used to play the clarinet and saxophone in city parades.
Some 25 years ago, Tuttle fell under the spell of the pipes after seeing a Scottish military band. His Scottish heritage didn't hurt either. "You either really like bagpipe music, or you absolutely hate it," he adds with a chuckle.
"It's different from any other instrument. It's a coordination thing. It's like shoving four clarinets in your mouth and playing them at the same time," he says, laughing again. "One boy asked me, 'Do all people turn blue when they play'?"
"Half of the people know how to play; half don't. We farm people out so everyone can learn from each other," he adds.
While Tuttle teaches the pipes, drummers Marge Epich and Gloria Cardenes and drum major Casey McKibben teach tenor drums, side drums and marching, respectively.
"Any opportunity to further open up the police department for citizens only strengthens the police-community relationship. It helps break down barriers between citizens and police," Todd says.
Tuttle and Todd hope that by next year, the band will play in the annual Los Gatos Christmas Parade. They'll also be available for hire at police or fire funerals or other events, public or private. Money raised will go into the Los Gatos Police Foundation, a nonprofit organization.
New students are welcome. For more information, call Jay Tuttle at 408.356.1854.
Saratoga, California Since 1955
