Good heavens, Rick: there are hundreds of players of the Northumbrian small pipes alive today. Even I know more than 16 of them...

(I originally typed Northumbrian small pies and was tempted to leave it like that, but some of those buggers are bigger than me.)

An Croenen's comments on Belgium are exactly the advice I was given when I worked for a little while in Brussels in the late '70s. Worked for me. Everyone was nice to me, except for just one snotty arseole (I can't recall if he was English or American); I ill-wished him, and he fell flat on his face as he tried to leave the bar. I wish I could remember how I did it...