A Strong History of Promoting Scottish Arts

Mastery of Scottish Arts (MSA) was founded as a non-profit corporation in September of 1997. MSA is dedicated to the preservation and development of Scottish arts, piping, drumming, fiddling and dancing, through world class instruction, student participation, and Scottish community collaboration, united in common goals. The mission of MSA is to bring world class Scottish arts to the Pacific Northwest. We are pursuing this mission by holding a week-long Winter School teaching Scottish piping, drumming, Highland dance and Scottish fiddling during late January or early February each year.

Our primary focus is developing world class American artists, particularly in the Pacific Northwest, and encouraging all students to be the best they can be. In order to attain the finest artistic expression possible and support the growth and development of pipe bands and dancers, MSA initially created three annual events, however currently offer these two: the Masters of Scottish Arts Concert and the Winter School.

The Winter School was started in 1997. It is a residential school held for 5 days. We have consistently served well over 100 student pipers, drummers, fiddlers and dancers with world class instructors from Scotland, Canada and the United States. All of these instructors have been World Champions in their own right. In 2004 Scottish fiddle instruction was started at the Winter School and world famous fiddle instructors were added to the Masters of Scottish Arts concert.

MSA is run by a volunteer board of directors. These directors elect a Chairman of the Board, a president, secretary, treasurer, and other directors numbering from 3 to 12. This is a working Board and anyone is welcome to help. We are a recognized charitable organization by the state of Washington and a recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.

Our current Board of Directors is:
Michael Riedel, President
Tyrone Heade, Vice President
Jan Gould, Treasurer
Melissa Maxwell, Secretary
Skye K. Richendrfer
Melissa Chittenden