The bagpipe sounds you'll hear at Philly's St. Patrick's Day Parade
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - It's a sound instantly recognizable.
Members of The Philadelphia Emerald Society Pipe Band are rehearsing each note.
"Really unique sound, it's great. Everybody gets a big kick out of it," member Kevin Maloney said.
The members are perfecting their performance for this year's Philadelphia St. Patrick's Day Parade.
"That's like our Super Bowl," Maloney said.
The band, which has been in existence since the 1970s, has a long history of marching in parades.
"This year's Philadelphia parade is really important to us because we're celebrating our 50th anniversary of The Emerald Society Pipe Band," Maloney said.
The group even traveled to Ireland several times to compete.
Of course, there is much to learn when it comes to playing such a unique instrument.
"Tuning is everything so we try to control that as best as possible," pipe major John Collins said. "So, you're tuning the drones, which are the pipes that are sticking-up and you're tuning the chanter. Everyone has to blow at a certain level so that we all sound the same. Believe it or not bag pipes cans be in tune, it's just not that easy."
While these musicians make it look easy, it requires a great deal of practice and plenty of patience.
"It takes a while to teach, you know before we put them in parade status, their taking lessons for maybe two or three years. So it takes a while, and you have to hold their interest for two or three years, you know," pipe major Joe Tobin said.
Carol Baldan is looking forward to her first parade.
"It's taken about two years for me to get to this point, which it was a goal for me though so here I am," Baldan said.
In addition to forging friendships, it's a chance to share their musical talents with the community.
"It's a unique instrument and if you play well, it's a beautiful instrument. If you don't play, well, scare the dog. Know what I mean," Tobin said.
