It was a warm, clear summer night when Los Gatan Maribeth Allen heard the music. She had been outside stargazing when she heard a melody begin, but she couldn’t believe her ears. “Were those bagpipes ...

Bagpipers and drummers from across North America and the U.K. hope to stay on the beat and in tune this week in Kansas City while competing in the annual Winter Storm piping and drumming contest.

On a July afternoon, an old aircraft hangar in Austin rings with the regal drone of the bagpipes and the martial crack of snare drums. But there's not a kilt in sight. In the shade of the curved roof, ...