Home Calendar Contacts |  Bio  |  Church Ministry  |  Recordings  |  Organ  |  Bagpipes  |  Teaching  |  Bach  | Contact Jim for more information on beginner pipe training, or to hire Jim to play the pipes at a wedding, funeral, or special event. Although James D. Hicks has spent the greater part of his life pursuing a career in organ performance and church music he has, over the past few years, learned how to play the Great Highland Bagpipes and Scottish Smallpipes. Jim began competing in the Eastern United States Pipe Band Association (EUSPBA) competitions in 2002 and finished third out of 777 pipers in the final season standings. During the 2003 season Jim finished sixth out of 260 pipers in the Grade III Eastern United States Pipe Band Solos competition. In the summer of 2004, Jim took a break from competing and concentrated on learning to play the border pipes. This instrument was made by Nigel Richard of Edinburgh, Scoltand and is ideal for making music for any indoor occasion, mixing well with other acoustic instruments in sessions or folk groups. As opposed to the more familiar mouthblown Great Highland Bagpipes, the border pipes are bellows-blown and possess a much quieter sound. They enjoyed their greatest popularity in southern Scotland during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Jim played this instrument in public for the first time on December 12, 2004 for The Presbyterian Church's annual Celtic Christmas service. VIEW PAST COMPETITION RESULTS 2005, 2004 & 2003 Competition Results