Pipers have played at funerals for hundreds of years and can be heard at any type of funeral or memorial -- military or family, cremation or burial, inside during the ceremony or at the graveside. The enchanting sound of the pipes is the perfect farewell to your loved ones, and will add a solemn and dignified touch that your family and friends will always treasure.

The following is a brief guide on where you might find the pipes.
  • Piping outside as family and friends arrive
  • Leading the casket into the hall or church
  • Playing one or more selections at some point during the service
  • Piping the pall-bearers and casket out to the coach at the end of the service
  • Playing outside as the people leave
  • Playing at the cemetery as the mourners arrive
  • Leading the pall-bearers and casket from the hearse to the final resting place
  • Playing one or more selections at some point during the graveside service
  • Playing during the lowering of the casket or placing of the urn
  • Playing in the distance at the end of the service as the people leave
  • At a Celebration of Life, the pipes can provide uplifting as well as solemn music

At the Visitation: The quieter, more melodic sounds of the Irish uilleann bagpipes can be played to enhance the mood at the viewing or wake. The music can range from more solemn airs and laments to the more upbeat and cheerful tunes you might find at an Irish wake.

Since every funeral is different in some way I will work closely with you and your coordinator to provide the most professional and memorable experience possible, and will usually arrive early to speak with the clergy and funeral director about any final changes.

Call or email to discuss your specific preferences and to obtain an immediate quote.

(Please specify location and date of your event.)
Fees will vary and are dependent upon the amount of time involved, the travel distance, and other individual factors and requests.
Piping for the sheriff's funeral

Music selections?

Some popular tunes are,

Often times the request is made for tunes that are more upbeat than the solemn ones listed above, especially as people are leaving the graveside service.

Visit my Tunes page to hear these and other samples.

Irish or Scottish, my repertoire includes slow airs and upbeat tunes of both these Celtic cultures, as well as various familiar hymns.

"Music is God's gift to man; the only art of Heaven given to earth and the only art of earth we take to Heaven."

— Walter Savage Landor
(1775–1864)