Andrew Donlon of Washington, D.C. began playing the bagpipes at nine years old under the tutelage of Chris Hamilton, and has been a student of Willie McCallum since 2012.

An active solo competitor, Andrew travels extensively throughout North America and Scotland. Some prizes of note abroad include 3rd Place in the Gold Medal at the Argyllshire Gathering (2019), 4th Place in the Gold Medal at the Northern Meeting (2019), three consecutive second place finishes in the Silver Medals (Northern Meeting 2017 & 2018, Argyllshire Gathering 2018), 4th Place in the B March at the Argyllshire Gathering (2019), and winning both the A Jig (2017) and B MSR (2019) at London. Other career highlights in North America include winning the United States Silver Medal in Kansas City (2015), the MSR at the Colonial Highland Gathering at Fair Hill (2017), and winning the inaugural Piobaireachd Conference Competition (2016).

As a bandsman, Andrew started his career with the Rockville High School Pipe Band and has been the Pipe Major and Executive Director of MacMillan since 2015, when he took the reins of MacMillan succeeding his first teacher, Chris Hamilton. Under Andrew’s leadership the MacMillan band won the 2015 North American Championships at the Glengarry Highland Games and was subsequently upgraded to Grade 2, and the band has since risen through the ranks of the penultimate Grade with its eyes set squarely on creating pipe band excellence in the United States. Outside of MacMillan, Andrew has also played with the NY Metro Pipe Band (2013-2015) and the Spirit of Scotland Pipe Band (2016).

A popular teacher and clinician, Andrew has conducted workshops for bands throughout the Eastern United States, has taught for the National Piping Centre’s Virginia Summer Schools, and is a member of the music faculties at the George Washington University Corcoran School of the Arts in Washington, D.C.  and the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Andrew also became a member of the EUSPBA Judge’s Panel in 2023.

When not piping, Andrew is a staffer in the United States Congress and is pursuing his Juris Doctorate at the George Washington University Law School.