The next free “Brown Bag Lunch Concert” is set for Thursday and will feature Skip Cleavinger, a bagpiper and renowned musician who has spent nearly five decades performing the traditional music of Scotland, Ireland, and other Celtic nations.
The concert will take place from 12:15-1 p.m. at Trinity Episcopal Church (720 Ford Avenue), where guests are invited to bring their lunch and enjoy the program in a relaxed, intimate setting.
Cleavinger’s musical journey began with the Scottish bagpipes, later expanding to the tin whistle, Scottish smallpipes, and Irish uilleann pipes. Over the years, he has collaborated with a long list of acclaimed artists, including Martina McBride, Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant, Alison Kraus, Josh Groban, Ricky Skaggs, and Keith and Kristyn Getty. His performances have graced stages with major symphony orchestras across North America, including those in Atlanta, St. Louis, Nashville, Dallas, and Washington, D.C.
A veteran of the Nashville music scene, Cleavinger also served as one of the principal Irish musicians for Chicago’s Symphony Center’s Siamsa Na Gael, an annual St. Patrick’s Day celebration benefiting Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral. He has additionally performed with the Notre Dame University Folk Choir on numerous occasions.
Cleavinger lives in Bowling Green with his wife Rebecca, a talented fiddle player, and their daughter Ruby
