Christian Hunter
Highland Bagpiper & Pipe Major of Clan Hunter of Hunterston (2018-present)
It is a great pleasure to welcome Christian Hunter to our blog post! Smitten with the sound of the bagpipes at an early age, he started learning in earnest while at The College of Wooster in Ohio in his early 20s. Now a much-seen guest piper at events such as the St. Andrew’s Day celebrations, Christian tells us of his passion and his ambitions.
You hear them and your initial thought is you either love them or hate them! Nine times out of ten, a memory forms and it fills your heart with an emotion so powerful, you’re drawn to see where that music is coming from or you begin telling a story about how you’ve experienced them. They are a symbol of both peace and war. The instrument is the Great Highland Bagpipe, the national instrument of Scotland. I’m proud to say I’ve been playing them for more than 25 years and I too have many stories to tell about them.
I have been fascinated with Scottish heritage and history since I was a teenager growing up in Virginia. I learned to play the bagpipes at a late age of twenty while attending The College of Wooster in Ohio as a Fighting Scot (yes, they wore loud MacLeod!) Over the years, I’ve played in both parade and competition bands, competing at high levels throughout the U.S. and twice at the World Pipe Band Championships in Glasgow, Scotland. I continue to pursue my passion for the pipes through solo endeavors, competition in pipe bands and through student instruction.
St. Andrew’s Day celebrations
I’ve been privileged to perform solo for more than 250 weddings, funerals, corporate and private celebrations and ceremonies, and special events, such as St. Patrick’s Day, Tartan Day and St. Andrew’s Day celebrations.
Performing for Madam Pauline, Chief of Clan Hunter.
One particular solo event was at a private luncheon for our Clan Chief Madam Pauline Hunter of Hunterston, Praefectus Venatorus Regis, on her visit to Washington, D.C. in 2018. This was such a special occasion, that I was given the honor of being named Pipe Major of Clan Hunter by Madam Pauline later that year. In the years after, I have played for many Clan Hunter events, contributed recordings of bagpipes, including for the virtual Burn’s Night celebration in January 2021, and leading the parade of Clan Hunter attendees, with Madam Pauline at the helm in the 2023 Alexandria, Virginia Scottish Christmas Walk.
Other highlights include performing for the Bishop of the Scottish Episcopal Church, as well as performing in the Church of the Presidents, St. John’s Church, Lafayette Square in Washington, D.C. at my sister’s wedding.
Throughout the years, I have played with the MacMillan Pipe Band, the 87th Cleveland Pipe Band, North Coast Pipe Band and currently playing with the Capital City Pipes and Drums. While with North Coast, I competed locally and regionally throughout the U.S and Canada, earning titles of U.S. Champions and Midwest Champion Supreme. In 2010, I traveled with the band to compete at the World Pipe Band Competition, placing 4th overall in our grade. I also performed with our group as the headline band at the Dublin Irish Festival in Columbus, Ohio.
The 2017 competition season concluded with the North Coast Pipe Band in its Grade 3 ranking and with an undefeated season in the U.S. Later that year, the band traveled to Scotland once again to compete in the World Pipe Band Championships.
My annual performances for St. Patrick’s Day celebrations have led to being sponsored by both Red Bull and Anheuser Busch, and appearances on local television morning programs. During COVID, for the 2021 St. Patrick’s Day celebration, I was privileged to be featured in a commercial for Guinness.
Additionally, I have been the ceremonial piper for more than 18 years at the annual Cleveland Tartan Day, 12 years for Cleveland’s Robert Burns Night Dinner, 3 years at the Memorial Day service in front of President James A. Garfield Memorial and I was honored to play for the swearing-in ceremony of a U.S. District Court judge.
Christian Hunter, Pipe Major for Clan Hunter
I love the culture and history that the bagpipes offer, and I’m constantly looking for ways to share and grow in my understanding of bagpipe music. I have mentored and taught bagpiping instruction for multiple students, and am a new member of the St Andrews Society of Washington, D.C. One new and exciting project is helping organize and develop an inaugural bagpipe workshop for the 2026 Washington Tattoo. I’m looking forward to an exciting competition season with my band and am also actively working on my first solo recording album, due out in 2025. Follow my piping experiences on Instagram @hunterpiper79.
