Bruce Korthout — Bagpiper from the Netherlands

I'm Bruce Korthout, a professional bagpiper based in Hedel, the Netherlands. I started piping in 2021 — late by traditional standards. To make up for it, I treat piping the way an athlete treats their sport: daily, structured, deliberate practice. More than 2,500 logged hours and counting. That's the foundation behind every booking.

I am officially graded by two of the leading European piping bodies:

• CLASP Scotland 2026 — Grade 3 Light Music & Grade 3 Piobaireachd (The Piobaireachd Society / The Competing Pipers Association)
• BAG Germany — Grade 4 Light Music & Grade 2 Piobaireachd

I'm also a Pipe Corporal with Dutch Pipes and Drums, where I help build the band's curriculum and am involved in the internal training and assessment of pipers. This is not an external examiner qualification. Alongside that I play in Venlo Caledonian Pipe Band (Grade 4A) — band discipline keeps my solo playing honest.

Stage experience that matters

I've played in a pipe band at productions and events where André Rieu, Guus Meeuwis and Defqon.1 were part of the programme — as a pipe band on the bill, not as a direct collaboration with these artists — alongside solo bookings for weddings, funerals and corporate events. Big stages, intimate ceremonies, last-minute funerals — the music is different, the preparation is the same.

What you're booking

Not a "guy with a bagpipe". You're booking a musician who arrives early, plays in tune, dresses the part (jeans or kilt with D-Dress jacket depending on the occasion), and treats your day as the only thing on his calendar that matters. No middlemen. You always speak to me directly.