discouraged with learning the pipes

[kkrell]

I could put all my focus into bad pressure, breathing, etc.

Maybe next time put the focus on GOOD pressure.

Kevin Krell

[Doc Jones]

I'm sure Doc's tongue is planted firmly in his cheek regarding his philosophy about GHB v. smallpipes. If not, be ready to take a dive when a Glasgow Celtic hooligan storms your goal box.

Yikes! Ahem....


Official Retraction:

The Great Highland Bagpipe is, perhaps, the most sublime and beautiful of musical instruments. Its dulcid tones elevate the consciousness and bring harmony to the universe. I think everyone should have a set.

Phew! That was close!

Doc

[mukade]

I'm sure Doc's tongue is planted firmly in his cheek regarding his philosophy about GHB v. smallpipes. If not, be ready to take a dive when a Glasgow Celtic hooligan storms your goal box.

Yikes! Ahem....


Official Retraction:

The Great Highland Bagpipe is, perhaps, the most sublime and beautiful of musical instruments from a distance. Its dulcid tones elevate the consciousness and bring harmony to the universe. I think everyone should have a set.

Phew! That was close!

Doc

I added the red text.

Mukade

[AaronMalcomb]

There's a good sport, Doc. And who says us Highland pipers have a mob-like mentality?

The difference between a Highland piper and most anybody else is that when a Highland piper thinks of a bagpipe they think of the best case scenario: drones in perfect phase lock with a harmonically balanced chanter, cracking technique and dripping with music. Aside from non-participating enthusiasts, anybody else usually thinks of the worst case scenario: drones squealing and roaring, chanter just a couple decibels below dog whistle range and no discernible melody to be heard.

[Björn]

What you wrote is absolutely spot on. The problem is that scottish pipe music is an acquired taste (I got into piping through playing Irish music and thought the GHB was a severely limited instrument, only being able to play nine notes, but then I saw the light), and no one outside piping understands the perfection that is required to play at the top level. I don´t want to offend anyone, to play any instrument really well takes a lot of work, but I know of no music outside of classical music that requires so much practice and so much attention to technique.

I´ve just come home from a serious drinking session with my PM so any spelling errors are to be expected.

[johnnyboi]

If you're stuck in a rut playing the chanter, maybe you need to be challenged by something new?
Try learning a jig and play it slowly with your GDEs nice and even.

Or get your instructor to teach you something totally new, like grips (lemluaths) or taorluaths.

Even though I love my whistle I will usually play my practice chanter as well during any practise session, just because it adds a bit of variety.

Try some CDs to inspire you as well! May I recommend the greatest pipe band recording of all time? (a big claim i know!)
Get "Simon Fraser University Pipe Band - Downunder"
I've been playing it heaps lately and it really is top notch in every respect. It will definitely motivate you!

[Björn]

That claim cannot stand uncontested. I would say that any album by the 78th Frasers would beat Simon Fraser hands down.

[AaronMalcomb]

The best CDs of straight-forward pipe band playing are in no particular order:

78th Fraser Highlanders - Live In Ireland
Simon Fraser University - Live At Carnegie Hall
Field Marshal Montgomery - Unplugged
Victoria Police - Live In Ireland

There is just something about live pipe band albums. The best ones really make you feel like you are in the audience experiencing history in the making.

[johnnyboi]

I know it's a little offtopic... but what I like about the Downunder CD as opposed to their Carnegie Hall release, is that they play such a variety of music and paid such attention to the selection of tunes for that concert, that the album can stand repeated listening indefinitely. The others were great, and I did love Field Marshal's Unplugged... but they all seem to get boring after a while no matter how good the playing is technically...

jigs jigs jigs marches medley jigs marches jigs... snore.. lol

Maybe I'm biased cos i saw the concert live and every listen of the album brings back the energy on the night which was just phenomenal

[Björn]

There is just something about live pipe band albums. The best ones really make you feel like you are in the audience experiencing history in the making.

Absolutely. To your list I would add the 78ths Live in Scotland. I screamed my head off to get on the recording.

[Patrick]

Kinda funny. I was just discussing the "how" of bagpipe instruction with my teacher on Friday. She related one year when she taught a high school group to play the bagpipes. They had to go from about half of them being able to play a scale on the practice chanter to all of them being able to play Scotland the Brave on the full pipes in six weeks.

She spent the first session with them going over setup and maintenance on the rather decrepit pipes the school had, then also how to blow them up and play a scale on them. All that in one session! And this was in the days of all cane reeds!

The version of the tune she taught was stripped of almost all ornamentation and given only the absolute minimum number of grace notes needed to make it work.

They did make it in six weeks and played at the homecoming. After that, she taught them the Scots Guards setting of the tune and several other tunes, but always with the pipes and practice chanter as a team sort of thing, not as totally separate entities.

So, I asked why doesn't she teach that way now? She had to think about it. I expect to have a very interesting discussion at my next lesson.

As for advice, I'll just second what everyone else has said. Focus on what you like in the bagpipes. If you don't like the pipes, quit wasting your mom's money on lessons. That simple.

You know how it can be fun to sit around with a tinwhistle and just noodle around? That builds some good stuff as far as eventual technique goes. Teaches familiarity with the instrument and all that. Do it with your practice chanter. Try to figure out some tunes by ear. Just go with stuff everyone knows like Jingle Bells or the Flintstones theme. Makes the instrument more fun, makes some other stuff easier later on.

Ultimately, don't stress about it. Piping is fun if you approach it that way. Part of what makes it such a difficult instrument to play is the way it is taught by many teachers. They want perfect technique (don't we all?) and all the ornaments before even inflating a bag. Bah! If it is fun to do, you will be motivated to play and make music. If it is a chore, the motivation is hard to find.

I have been working with my children (ages 5 and 7) on their practice chanters and I think the fun-motivation works a lot better than "you have to practice so we get our money's worth!" I play games with them like play a phrase to them and see if they can play it back. You can do this yourself with a CD.

Oh, and if you want a really great band CD, see if you can find a copy of the famous Invergorden Distillery Pipe Band album. My mom has this on LP from when she was young and a friend put it onto CD for her a few years back. There are old-guard pipers who still refer to this as "The Great Band." While Simon Fraser might be more technically up-to-date, this band set the standards for a lot of pipe bands to work hard to reach.

-Patrick

[pancelticpiper]

So, I asked why doesn't she teach that way now? She had to think about it. I expect to have a very interesting discussion at my next lesson.
-Patrick

Reminds me of what I did: I taught whistle and Highland pipes at a weeklong summer camp for several years and developed a compact course, so that you went from learning the scale to just about every technique in six lessons.
Back at home I used the same materials for private students and they worked very well. Only difference, at the summer camp the students were exposed to everything even if they didn't have to time to actually get their fingers to be able to do it, while with private lessons each technique was actually got under the fingers before moving on.