Instruction of the bagpipes

I have been playing the highland bagpipes for most of my life. Now I am at a point where I can begin passing my knowledge of this instrument on to younger people who have decided to take up this wonderful instrument and keep the traditions of the Scottish Arts alive.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Bagpipe
• Instruction
• Senior
• Project

[d1v4dPwnz]

I CANT play, inflate, and press at the same time... does my arm always need to be pressing the bag even when inhaling? i cant do that multitasking right now.. any suggestions?

[bagpipeplayer]

@d1v4dPwnz That's because you only press when you are taking a breath. That sort of coordination takes time to develop. My suggestion would be to start taking lessons, stay on the practice chanter a little longer, and then when you do get up on pipes, plug up the drones at first so you can focus on coordinating blowing and squeezing.

[d1v4dPwnz]

@bagpipeplayer alright well i guess bagpiping is gonna wait then, ill just use these pipes with the paki drones right now, they seem fine to me

[bagpipeplayer]

@d1v4dPwnz You can do webcam lessons with a fellow named Jori Chisolm. Google him.

Dunbar poly pipes aren't really the best thing for serious pipers. They sound well enough, but you'll have rivers of water coming out of them after just ten minutes of playing even with a water trap. The best thing you can do is to just save up and get a decent set of blackwood pipes.

[d1v4dPwnz]

@bagpipeplayer yeah I wish. Iv checked for instructors.... none around me, they are atleast 3 hour drive which is really dumb. If I get poly pipes, Dunbar drones, will I be fine?

[bagpipeplayer]

@d1v4dPwnz Go find a bagpipe teacher that lives close by you and talk to them about your drones. If they know their stuff, then they'll be able to tell you more than I can. Unless you post a video of yourself playing, I can't give you a lot of help.

MG reeds can be host to any number of problems. Use EZEE drones, they don't last long but they have the least problems..

Get rid of the paki drones as soon as you can. Trust me, even if they sound good now, they will crap out.

[d1v4dPwnz]

@bagpipeplayer hmm... they sound fine to me, I have MG Drone Reeds and my drones sound great. I know what you mean though, I want McCallum drones but I don't have $830 right now...

[bagpipeplayer]

@d1v4dPwnz For the simple reason that you'll never get a set of Pakistani drones to tune properly. If you can't keep your instrument in tune, you may spend more time trying to get them to work right than you spend actually playing. Either that, or you'll get so frustrated that you begin to find excuses to not practice.

[d1v4dPwnz]

@bagpipeplayer how exactly will the drones mess up my bagpipe playing?

[bagpipeplayer]

@d1v4dPwnz Sorry to say this, but yes. The Pakistani drones are not going to serve you well. A set of pipes is only as good as the weakest component, so it is best to have a set made by someone who treats every component as it is the most important piece. By buying Paki pipes, you will spend more money trying to get them to work than you ever would have if you bought a set of McCallums of Naill's in the first place.