The Mystic Highland Pipeband holds weekly practice on Wednesday from 5:30 - 9 p.m at the Coast Guard Foundation, 384 Taugwonk Road, Stonington Connecticut. Take I-95N to Exit 91. Turn left at the end of the ramp (at traffic light) onto Taugwonk Road. Go approximately 1.8 miles and you should see a couple of small signs for the Coast Guard Foundation (with Coast Guard striping on it) and for the Stonington Country Club on the right. Take that right and go past the country club and keep going back. Eventually there will be a split in the road by a big Eagle statue, take the right fork and pull on into the parking lot. Changes to the practice location is updated on the webpage. New members are always welcome and lessons in drumming and piping can be arranged.
For bagpiping new students typically work with experienced pipers from 5:30-6:00 p.m. From 6:00 to 7:00 advanced piping is taught on an individual basis and the pipers that are interested in competition piping work together. From about 7:00 to 8:00 PM the pipers work together on perfomrance tunes and the entire band practices together from 8:00 to 9:00 PM. The standards used to teach you the Bagpipes will be those found in the College of Piping Tutor Book I. If you would like to purchase one of these books, contact the band.
Students and visitors are welcome anytime to visit with the band during practice.
Drumming lessons are available at any time for snare drum, flouishing tenor drumming and bass drumming. Anyone interested in drumming is welcome to take lessons. The drummers typically start practicing drumming at about 6:30, although special arrangements can be made by contacting the drum sergeant.
Several members of the band have taken lessons in highland dancing and have made several performances of the Gillie Callum, the Argyle Broadsword, the Reel of the 51st and several broadsword dances that were correographed by band members. The dancers have not competed but rather have learned the dances for peformances like Robert Burns suppers. Lessons for anyone interested in highland dancing can be arranged by contacting the band.
The band has formed a color guard that participates in many of the band events and parades. The color guard practices marching and maneuvers separately from the band. More information about the color guard can be obtained by contacting the band.