Bagpiper Plays For The Trill Of It All At Greenwich Parade

GREENWICH, Conn. -- Bagpipes may be an acquired taste. But for Patty Sheehan, who marched in the the Greenwich St. Patrick's Day parade, it was a taste she acquired about 35 years ago.

Patty Sheehan holds her bagpipes before performing with the Greenwich Pipe Band at the 41st Greenwich St. Patrick's Day parade on Sunday.
Photo Credit: *Frank MacEachern*

Frank MacEachern

03/23/2015 5:10 a.m.

"I just love the instrument," Sheehan said as she cradled the bagpipes in her arms before performing in the parade Sunday.

A Greenwich native, Sheehan now lives in Fairfield but still plays with the Greenwich Pipe Band. She said she took up bagpipes in 1980 because she was entranced by the music and the instrument.

"I just thought it was so interesting, and I decided I just wanted to play it," she said as the sounds of bagpipe music filled the air as her fellow bagpipers warmed up before the parade.

Bagpipes can be a polarizing instrument -- some love it and others despise it, Sheehan acknowledged.

"To me, you either love it or you don't," she said with a smile.

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