Sonoma’s only young bagpiper, John Noonan is, by all accounts, an exceptional young man. Inspired years ago by an older friend’s playing, John first took up the bagpipes at the tender age of seven. Today, at almost 13, he not only plays the pipes but the violin and piano as well. Add to that his enrollment in an independent high school program for gifted students through Stanford University and you start to get the picture. But don’t get the wrong idea – it’s not all work and no play for John. He is also an avid year-round soccer player who enjoys hanging out with his three brothers and one sister – all gifted musicians – in his spare time.
As for being the only young bagpiper in Sonoma, John is humble yet proud. “It’s pretty cool,” he says.
As the lone local student of Valley-based bagpiper and Belfast, Ireland native Jim McElroy, John has grown and matured during his five years of tutelage. What began as a hesitant meeting with McElroy has grown into mutual admiration. McElroy has tutored John in not just the pipes but in all that comes with the associated pomp and circumstance of the instrument. John has, in turn, taught McElroy a thing or two about determination.
According to John’s parents, it took some persuading to get McElroy to teach their young son. At first reluctant to take on a student so young, McElroy acquiesced to one lesson and the help to purchase a chanter – the small learning instrument used by bagpipers for practice. McElroy’s ambivalence stemmed from his own experience – he’s been piping since he was 12 – and his part-time job. In addition to a business career and being a professional piper, McElroy has also been the bagpipe instructor for Fairfield High School’s Scarlet Brigade Pipe Band since 1994. As such, he is used to working with conscientious teens and was hesitant to instruct a youngster like John for more than a few reasons.
“My first instinct was to tell Cindy (Noonan, John’s mother) to call me in three or four years,” said McElroy. “But I consented to one lesson and was blown away by his talent and perseverance when we got together. I had sent one lesson ahead for him to practice and he had it almost perfect by the time we met. His little fingers were so small that they could hardly reach the holes on the chanter but he got it mostly correct.”
Five years later, McElroy is no less impressed. “John is a hard worker and has risen far beyond his 12-plus years. He is not only a talented bagpiper but he has shown the strength of character that comes with piping. He absorbs everything I give him and has more than 100 tunes memorized – from easy to difficult and everything in between,” said McElroy. The two get together weekly for lessons and can often be seen and heard near the Veteran’s Memorial Cemetery.
John and McElroy have piped together on many a solemn occasion in Sonoma including the annual Memorial Day remembrance and last year’s funeral for the Maloney family. Together they also open the first Tuesday Night Farmers Market each April and appear at graduations, weddings, evenings at Murphy’s Irish Pub and many other special events in and around the Valley.
Alone John takes on different events parades, parties, the Sonoma Valley Harvest Wine Auction and, of course, plenty of St. Patrick’s Day festivities, where he often accompanies his younger sister performing Irish dance. He plays a full, adult set of bagpipes purchased for him by his grandfather and imported by McElroy from the legendary city of St. Andrews, Scotland.
Recalling one Veteran’s Day appearance at the Sonoma Veteran’s Building, John said that “It felt good to play, like I was doing my job for the war,” after a soldier, returning to Afghanistan for another tour of duty, complimented him on his rendition of “Amazing Grace.”
In addition to his bagpiping John, along with his brothers and sister, have formed a band that plays a crossover between Celtic and Klezmer music with a few surprises thrown in for good measure. Between the five siblings, the First Street Band plays the bass, guitar, fiddle, keyboard and drums – a complete ensemble that is regularly invited to perform at functions around town.
But for now, the pipes remain John’s favorite instrument. John’s Grandpa and Grandma are both buried in the Veteran’s Cemetery in Sonoma. They were both veterans of World War II and were Sonoma residents in their latter years. During John’s practice times he often stops to play at the side of their graves. “I miss them, so I play,” he says.
