Tight vs. Open...which is easier?

[PeteyWhistle]

I'm curious to see what everybody believes...Which style is easier to play...tight or open? For me, coming from wood wind instruments which are, typically, inherently open, leaving staccato playing to the tongue, the open style is much easier to play. Also, I'm new to the uilleann pipes and take the approach of 'let's hear some sounds, let's make some noise, let's just play.' the open style allows me to do this. The closed style takes considerable more concentration. For me, the tight style requires much more concentration and slower learning as the amount of finger movements is multiplied.

Do you find the same?

[Uilliam]

In other words ye are playing a flute(or insert here whitever woodwind ye play) tied into a bag with bellows !!
The 21 year approach whilst said very much tongue in cheek does have some credence.How long did it take ye to learn your particular wood wind ?Did ye master it?
Slán Go Foill
Uilliam

[Hans-Joerg]

I found tight piping easier. Just from the start you have to learn that the Uilleann Pipe chanter is NOT a flute and it is much more important to have the bag under pressure without making any sound and keeping your fingers relaxed. After a while (like driving a car) it becomes a very natural thing that you stop after each tone - without thinking. Gracenotes (at any playing-speed) that way are much easier cause the chanter is closed anyway already.

[emtor]

Well, I don't even own a set of pipes, so maybe I should keep my mouth shut, but still . . .
When playing the whistle, I always keep the index-finger of the right hand on it's fingerhole as a default, only lifting it when playing tunes that require the G-note. Many tunes and many tune-sections don't have the G-note, then I always keep the index-finger on the F#-hole. This is kind of playing in a semi-closed style, and it makes certain finger-runs much easier to play.
It wouldn't surprise me at all that learning to play the pipes closed style from the very beginning will pay off in the long run.
The question isn't which style is the easiest, but which style that will pay off the most in the long run.

[PJ]

I found open to be easier but that it was not too difficult to learn to play tight. The real trick is knowing WHEN to play tight or open.

[Cayden]

This is kind of playing in a semi-closed style, and it makes certain finger-runs much easier to play.

Keeping and extra finger down has no relevance to what pipers understand as closed or tight playing. The significance lies in how you move from one note to another, i.e. do you close the chanter between them or not.

[Christoffer]

Before I picked up the UP my only experience of wind instruments was with the whistle, some flutes and recorders etc. So naturally I play in a quite open style. Honestly, I think a mix of the two is the way to go. I've never really liked a strictly closed style or a completely open style. Throwing in some staccato notes here and there can really give some flavour to the music!

Ultimately, I found open to be easier.

[mukade]

Does anyone actually learn an open or closed style?

Some players may have developed a more 'open' or 'closed' style, but I bet any 'open player' worth their apron can pop out staccato notes as good as any of them.

Mukade

[CHasR]

I found open to be easier but that it was not too difficult to learn to play tight. The real trick is knowing WHEN to play tight or open.

agree completely...
for me, it s a question of which is more appropriate in context of the music.

In other words ye are playing a flute(or insert here whitever woodwind ye play) tied into a bag with bellows !!

Also echoing what he says here,
FAR more important than 'open/closed',
is wether or not what you're playing is idiomatic for this instrument...
in other words, getting into the habit of playing UP like flute, whistle, or highland pipe
will be a greater obstacle to mastery than any fingering issue.
happy piping