New Hampshire
School of Scottish Arts
922 Elm Street, Suite 315 Manchester, NH 03101 (603) 621-9949
P/M Gordon Webster and Lezlie Webster, Directors

General Information  

The School continues its work in teaching students in Bagpipes, Highland Dance, Scottish and Cape Breton Fiddle, Smallpipes, Highland Drums and Pipe Band work. With over 200 people going through the school each week Manchester is getting it’s fill of Scottish music. When asked how we advertise the response was “We open our windows!”

 This year the school continues with exams in Highland Dance through the Scottish Dance Teacher’s Alliance and Piping Exams through the Institute of Piping in Scotland. This is the third year coming up for piping exams being held in North America and we are excited about our future role in this area. We have put candidates through Elementary to Graduate.

Our biggest excitement however comes with the Bagpipe Museum and its move to the NHSSA. Jim Coldren of Baltimore was looking for a home for his museum and we think we have the perfect place to house his collection. This collection will provide a lifetime of work in publishing, research, cataloguing etc. as well as the opportunity to have so many different types of bagpipes to display, work with and research.

 We welcome anyone interested in finding out more about our facility. We have classes most afternoons and evenings through the week as well as Saturdays and Sundays. Please call or email us for a good time to visit!

Classes

New Classes are beginning now. We have three terms – Fall, Winter and Spring ending in June. Private lessons can be started at any time within these terms if we can find an available time slot with an Instructor.

Classes in Concord

Highland Dance Classes – Classes will be held at two locations – Petit Papillon and Creative Dace Workshop of Bow. Classes will be grouped according to ages with approx 6 dancers per class to allow for individual attention to the detail that Highland  Dance requires.

Bagpipe Classes will be held at various locations depending on the location of students. We have Pipe Major Webster’s Piping Room in Concord Heights and Bow Creative Dance Workshop but we will add a church or school location if numbers from central Concord warrant it.

Harp, Fiddle, Step Dance and Penny Whistle will also be held in Bow and at Petit Papillon.

Costs :        Highland Dance/Step Dance $12 per class payable monthly.

                   Piping/Fiddle - $10 per class payable monthly

                   Piping/Fiddle private – ½ hour - $20

                   Piping/Fiddle private – 1 hour - $30

                   Penny whistle – $10 per class

The NHSSA Pipe and Drums welcomes new players at all times. Please see their site for timings of band practices. Previous experience required.

Manchester

Dance classes are generally after school and depend on age. Monday through Thursday and Sunday afternoons. Please call the office 621-9949 for an up to date listing. Cost is $12 per lesson paid on a monthly basis. Advanced dancers – 2 hour class is $15

Piping lessons are booked with one of our Piping Instructors. Lessons can be for ½ an hour or a full hour. Cost is $20 per half hour and $30 for full hour.

Drumming lessons are booked with a drumming instructor and can be a class or private depending on age.

Fiddle lessons  are also booked with an Instructor and costs vary with each Instructor. Please call the office for contact info. Brendan Block is still accepting students during the week and Gary Hume has some openings. Barbara McOwen is back on a part time basis only.

Milford Location

 Pipe Major Ken Smith will be teaching Piping in Milford area. Alicia Lekas has room for Step dancers and Highland dancers in Milford.

Anna Ciglar will continue teaching dance in Rindge and will add Peterborough if enough interest.

Please call the office if these locations suit you better.

Mission Statement

It is the purpose of the New Hampshire School of Scottish Arts (NHSSA) to foster and expand the spirit of Scottish Performing and Cultural arts in New Hampshire. Students at the School are afforded the opportunity to take lessons to sequentially improve their skills; to explore their Scottish heritage; to participate in organized performances and competitions; and to train to become future instructors in the Scottish Arts.

Philosophy

It is the belief of the New Hampshire School of Scottish Arts that by creating a forum for the presentation of a variety of related arts, students will have the opportunity to participate in a "college" of the Scottish Arts. Students are to be provided with a broad array of instructors, courses and related arts activities from which to broaden their cultural experiences. In the School's endeavor to promote the intergenerational preservation of the Scottish Arts, students of all ages and backgrounds are brought together to participate in lessons and may also explore their cultural heritage.

NHSSA purports that by enabling students to collectively join together, they will be supported in their efforts to participate in bands or other regional groups and to compete in local or regional events. Students will also be given the opportunity to attain the standards necessary to become instructors of the Scottish Arts.

Goals

The New Hampshire School of Scottish Arts was organized in September, 1998 in order to:

Establish a "college" of the Scottish Arts;

Provide classroom environments geared to the specific Scottish arts being taught;

Recruit a core of experienced instructors in order to promote excellence in the level of instruction;

Institute Master level classes and workshops to expose students to the performance standards of Master Pipers/Dancers/Fiddlers;

Provide instructors in the Scottish Arts with the opportunity to share common expenses, venue, advertising and promotion;

Promote a series of events to showcase the talents of the instructors and students;

Train several prospective students to work as instructors at the school in future years;

Subsidize multiple lessons for families.