| CHRIS PARKE |
Member of TMP&D Since
Chris couldn’t decide what to do when he grew up so he decided to try and cram 4 or 5
careers into one lifetime. After starting trumpet in 5th grade, He switched to Euphonium at
Antelope Valley High School . He was band president and was named to the All-State High
School Honor Band and the All Southern High School Honor Band. This set the stage for a
successful college career at Northern Arizona University and Cal Sate University Long Beach.
After graduating from CSULB with a degree in Music Education, things start to go a little off
course.
Accepting a job at the Ski Barn in Lancaster , 16 years in the world as a ski bum ensued.
Many, many days of skiing, fun and just down-right frolicking followed. Some of those years
are fuzzy but at age 35 had to settle down and get a real job.
He started in the advertising business with the AV Press, went into the insurance industry as an
Allstate agent but since the insurance business is just downright boring, He went back into
advertising and currently is employed at Clear Channel in Lancaster as a marketing consultant.
Somewhere in there he played Bass Trombone in the Antelope Valley College Jazz Band for a
few years and traveled to and played in the Ocho Rios Jazz Festival on Jamaica , mon!
That rekindled the music in his soul, so when he heard a pipe band at a Celtic Festival at UCLA
and thought that was the coolest thing he have ever heard. This was the point of no return and
he was hooked.
As we sat around teaching each other the pipes at our Thursday rehearsals, somebody found
out that he was a band director in another life which led him to being elected Pipe Major. Off
we went and he was learning the pipes and the finer points of Pipe Major at the same time.
After cajoling a few other pipers to join him at Bagpipe Summer School, adding a drum section,
we had a Pipe Band.
He teach the pipes to a handful of students in Lancaster and hope this journey still is exciting in
10 years. He do know that once you get music in your soul, you can ignore it for a while but it's
always with you and sooner or later it will come out again. Grab it and enjoy the ride!
Chris couldn’t decide what to do when he grew up so he decided to try and cram 4 or 5
careers into one lifetime. After starting trumpet in 5th grade, He switched to Euphonium at
Antelope Valley High School . He was band president and was named to the All-State High
School Honor Band and the All Southern High School Honor Band. This set the stage for a
successful college career at Northern Arizona University and Cal Sate University Long Beach.
After graduating from CSULB with a degree in Music Education, things start to go a little off
course.
Accepting a job at the Ski Barn in Lancaster , 16 years in the world as a ski bum ensued.
Many, many days of skiing, fun and just down-right frolicking followed. Some of those years
are fuzzy but at age 35 had to settle down and get a real job.
He started in the advertising business with the AV Press, went into the insurance industry as an
Allstate agent but since the insurance business is just downright boring, He went back into
advertising and currently is employed at Clear Channel in Lancaster as a marketing consultant.
Somewhere in there he played Bass Trombone in the Antelope Valley College Jazz Band for a
few years and traveled to and played in the Ocho Rios Jazz Festival on Jamaica , mon!
That rekindled the music in his soul, so when he heard a pipe band at a Celtic Festival at UCLA
and thought that was the coolest thing he have ever heard. This was the point of no return and
he was hooked.
As we sat around teaching each other the pipes at our Thursday rehearsals, somebody found
out that he was a band director in another life which led him to being elected Pipe Major. Off
we went and he was learning the pipes and the finer points of Pipe Major at the same time.
After cajoling a few other pipers to join him at Bagpipe Summer School, adding a drum section,
we had a Pipe Band.
He teach the pipes to a handful of students in Lancaster and hope this journey still is exciting in
10 years. He do know that once you get music in your soul, you can ignore it for a while but it's
always with you and sooner or later it will come out again. Grab it and enjoy the ride!