The Pastor Who Played Carnegie Hall

By JOHN WOODS

Father Michael Keane took up the bagpipes eight years ago, about the time he was turning 40. He figured that it would be a good way to celebrate his Irish and Scottish heritage. Back then, he was told that if he practiced hard for a year he would be ready to audition for a spot in a pipe band.

Father Keane beat the timetable by a couple of months and qualified for a position with the Rockland County Ancient Order of Hibernians Pipe and Drum Band. He considers himself fortunate to have learned a lot about playing the bagpipes from the band's founder, Edward Larkin.

"He was a great mentor, much beloved, as well as a superb teacher," said Father Keane, who is the pastor of Holy Name of Mary parish in Croton-on-Hudson.

The band is now named the Rockland County Ancient Order of Hibernians Edward V. Larkin Memorial Pipe and Drum Band, after its founder, who died about three and a half years ago.

Father Keane, when we spoke last week, called it "a family band." He meant that many of its 45 members share family ties. They include the O'Neills of Sacred Heart parish, Suffern, with dad Rich on pipe and mom Barbara on drums along with their grown children, Kevin, drums, and Erin and Kristen, pipes. Then, there are the Browns of Holy Innocents, Pleasantville, with a father and two children who all play. Larkin's son, Brian, a New York City police officer like his dad was, is the pipe major.

The band is a regular unit in the line of march at parades in Rockland and Westchester, and even across the line in New Jersey. They also play in the West Point Military Tattoo, a gathering of pipers and drummers each spring; at the annual Rockland County Feis each July; and at other festivals and concerts.

The band just finished a week of performances that topped anything it has ever done. On the weekend before St. Patrick's Day, they played at St. Patrick's parades in Mount Kisco and Sleepy Hollow. Sandwiched in between was an evening turn at the Holy Name of Mary parish St. Patrick's party. On St. Patrick's Day itself, members strode up Fifth Avenue in the annual New York City parade.

"It was exhausting, but a lot of fun," Father Keane said.

Just prior to the parade performances, the band played the concert of a lifetime as they performed on the same bill as famed Irish tenor Ronan Tynan at Carnegie Hall March 13.

The opportunity came when another band was unable to make the date. The Rockland pipers and drummers opened the show in impressive fashion by playing as they marched down the aisle to the stage. They played a series of songs ("The Minstrel Boy," "Finnegan's Wake," "God Save Ireland" and "A Nation Once Again") in an Irish tribute. Later, they added an American tribute featuring "America the Beautiful" and the anthems of the branches of the U.S. military.

Before they went out for the second act, Tynan paid tribute to their talents. "He said, 'You guys were great.' To hear Ronan Tynan say that really boosted us," Father Keane said proudly.

When we spoke, Father Keane remembered his friend Ed Larkin who had started the band with money out of his own pocket 22 years ago. He said Larkin would have loved the evening at Carnegie Hall just the way he loved being a major part of all the band had accomplished over the years.

"Ed lived his dream," Father Keane said.

It sounds as though Father Keane and the other band members are seeing to it that Larkin's dream lives on.