98 LOUISVILLE MAGAZINE 7.16
TOOL OF
THE TRADE
Photo by Chris Witzke
"Dogs will howl. Cows will come
and look at ya. Geese will come
by. If they howl when they hear
a siren, they'll probably howl at
the bagpipes," says professional
bagpiper Karen Brumley, who
will perform during the annual
Jane Austen Festival (July 15-
17 at Locust Grove). Brumley
began playing the instrument in
the Jeffersontown High School
band in 1977. "There's a lot of
complex movements. It does
take a lot of air pressure to play.
And the whole dynamics of
blowing and then squeezing —
fguring out how to make that
work," she says. "Most people
should expect it to take about
two years before they're able to
play a tune in public."
— Jenny Kiefer