<S> To the Piper in Question from the OP.

These are my first set of pipes, they were a historical set from the regiment that my first pipe band was from. They were at the Battle of the Somme, a very famous battle in WW 1 for us Canadians.
The silver and ivory are real on these pipes, so moving them from place to place across borders is a huge PITA, due to customs loving elephants or something or other...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OpVfBenW60&feature=relatedThe above is something I was a part of, although many, MANY years before 2008. Reading the OP article brought back memories of this, so that's my <S> I guess.
http://piobaire.com/page10.html - Some brief descriptions of the effects Pipers had in action during war.