Do you also find that you have to let off on the pressure for back D or else it sounds flat? It's different from a whistle where you can blow a flat note in tune by pushing a little harder. On my pipes anyway, if I blow a little harder on back D, it goes flatter. It's kinda weird really...going up the scale, and after increasing the pressure a bit for the upper half of the first octave, letting off really fast for the back D.
Pretty tough in a fast passage I imagine. Well, anyway, I've recorded a short bit of The Parting Glass, and I'll let ya all tell me what ya think. I'm sending it over to Tony at Clips and Snips.
Slán!
Bri~
New reed questions...
That's pretty impressive that DDaye would have 4 humidifiers going.
Brian, sounds like you're making great progress. Try to play an f# grace note in front of the high octave g...just a wee little f# first, barely perceptible, as you are lifting the two fingers to play the g when going up from G or any other first octave note. It is a useful trick that I use when the reed is requiring a little more pressure and it adds to the piping as well. I think S. Ennis did this a lot.
The other reed problem sounds like a low humidity issue and will get better soon or whenever you humidify the room.
Brian, sounds like you're making great progress. Try to play an f# grace note in front of the high octave g...just a wee little f# first, barely perceptible, as you are lifting the two fingers to play the g when going up from G or any other first octave note. It is a useful trick that I use when the reed is requiring a little more pressure and it adds to the piping as well. I think S. Ennis did this a lot.
The other reed problem sounds like a low humidity issue and will get better soon or whenever you humidify the room.