Tune it D*#mn it!

I'm not much in favor of "Cutting and Pasting" Blog Posts but Nate over at keydetpiper.com has posted a very good blog. Rather than commenting on "tutored" versus "self-trained" pipers he focuses on the primary problem with many self-trained pipers. ie. They don't TUNE THIER INSTRUMENT. Listen up lads, no one would tolerate a guitarist who was seriously out of tune.

Here follows a re-print of Nate's post. Its a very good read.


"As much as I hate to admit it, not everyone likes bagpipes. Yes, I know it’s hard to believe, but there are people dislike or even outright hate bagpipes. Just do a search for “I hate bagpipes” and you’ll find a plethora of sites devoted to the hating of the instrument I love.

I have this theory that goes like this: “If you don’t like the bagpipes, you’ve probably never heard them played correctly.” I will be the first to admit that listening to bad bagpipes is a terrible experience. The best way I’ve found to describe it is sushi. Good sushi is a wonderful dining experience, but bad sushi will have you in the bathroom retching your guts out. Bad bagpipes have a similar effect.

The problem is that most people don’t have an opportunity to hear good piping. If someone only hears pipes that sound like this, or this, or this, there’s no wonder the instrument has a bad reputation. Those performances have all the musicality and tonal quality of banging pots and pans together, and most people would recognize that it isn’t really music.

So the question is how to expose the general populace to better piping. It doesn’t have to be top-notch playing, but it should be close to in tune with correctly-played embellishments and some sense of rhythm. I offer a two-part solution.

First, if you are a decent player, play often in the public eye (or ear). I play outside all the time when the weather is nice, and your local park is a great place to get some playing in while exposing the non-piping public to decent playing. The more they hear good piping, the better off everyone will be.

Second, educate the poor pipers that most people usually end up hearing. Once a piper learns how to tune his or her pipes, the result is much more pleasant on the ears. I think the problem with a lot of the buskers and street bands is that they haven’t been taught properly in the first place, so they themselves don’t really know how the pipes are supposed to sound.

There’s my recommendation for how to improve the pipes’ public image: better pipers should play more where the public can hear them, and we should all work together to improve ourselves and our peers as pipers."

elegant solution

I had just gone into the garage to begin my practice session when once again my base drone reed found its way out of the drone and into the bag ( a non-zippered hide bag). My son who was working on another project asked for a quick definition of some of the explicatives that followed and what was the cause. Now he is a rather fine mechanic and when I explained the situation he came up with a most elegant solution. He went over to his tool box and took out a set of taps. He then “threaded” all my reed seats, in both the drones and the chanter. I doubt I will ever drop another reed! Thanks son!

Macnish Distillery Pipe Band Volume 3

It is always good to start the new year off with something pleasant, something to look back on and smile. In a previous post back on December 11, 2008 I told you about sending my kitchen pipes back to Jim at Scott’s Highland Services, LTD. Well they came back, totally restored and in great working order. I spent the evening annoying the family and dogs... just had a wonderful time. When my lips finally gave out I spent some time listening to the new CD Jim sent me, the "Macnish Distillery Pipe Band Volume 3". Now I don't sound all that great, but the CD, well that's another story. This is a GREAT CD. The band is based in St. Thomas, Ontario and has successfully competed for over three decades throughout Canada, The US and Scottland. They have recently changed their name back to the "St. Thomas Police Pipe Band", a name they had previously carried for many years. Get a copy, you will be delighted. Now, where is that dog hiding?

Wishing you and yours a Happy New Year!

Well, looking at the calendar this will probably be the final post for the year, so some closing thoughts may be in order.

I had something of an epiphany this week. I was driving down the road and noticed all the graffiti. It occurred to me that in general the only person who normally sees it is the tagger who did it. Then it hit me! Cyber space is just one big vacant building. And 99.99% of us posters are just cyber-taggers. We put up the best sites we can, we are very pleased with our work, and we haven't a clue how to drive traffic to our sites. I did some research on the visitor activity on my blog, and found that the most heavily visited page was one of the earliest posts. It contained a semi-erotic picture of a European performer. It gets hits from all over the globe even now, six months later, while the other posts get random hits if any! Hmmm... I wonder if there is data base of erotic bagpipe art?

The really important thing to remember is that we love Piping. The cyber world is just a place to go when the lips give out! Have a great and prosperous New Year! See you again in 2009.
Pops

Piping... Who Cares? Just do it!

I was just reading a discussion board where the topic de joure was “How do you ask a bad piper to stop playing?” and I wondered, why would you? If you don’t like it move on, if those listening do like it (why else would they be listening) leave them alone, they’re having a good time.

I thought back a few years to an event where our club had retained an Elvis and a Neil Diamond impersonator. No one thought them the real thing, or held their music to that standard (besides it was kareoke), yet everyone had a great evening.

I think more people piping and enjoying pipers is far more important than all pipers sounding the same (no matter how good that may be.) For Christ sake people, just do it! You’ll be amazed how much fun you have.

Worthy of your patronage!

As we are all out shopping this time of year I want to share one of the best customer service experiences I have ever had. I have a set of "Kitchen Pipes" made by Scott’s Highland Services, LTD. I purchased these back in 2004. I always thought it strange that these pipes which produce a much lower volume than my GHBs would be noticeably harder to blow. You know, one of those things you always intend to inquire about but never get around to.

Well, I finally sent Jim at Scotts Highland Services an email asking about this phenomena. Not only was he full of useful suggestions, he insisted I return the pipes to him for a complete refurbishing. It is a rare thing for me to encounter a manufacturer who is so proud of his product as to offer this level of support. In fact, you would have to call him a craftsman, not a manufacturer.

Good on you Jim!"

The Holidays begin

Well here we are, with only two days left in November. Despite an overload of Thanksgiving turkey, I have finished prepping and practicing my Christmas set. First I’ll inflict it on family and friends, and then it’s off!

And, while I’m goofing around with Christmas, I will begin prepping for St. Patty’s day.

I also want to pick up another march or two as I have six parades between now and the next Shrine Ceremonial in March (right after St. Patty’s.)

It is just one continuous cycle. But such fun!!

Sharon and I want to take this opportunity to wish you and those you love the Merriest of Christmases and a Happy New Year.

Anthem Veterans' Day Parade

I piped for El Zaribah Shrine in yesterday’s Veteran’s Day parade at Anthem, Arizona. It was a little over two miles in length and I learned some valuable lessons. I was the solo piper immediately behind the Color Guard, and just in front of the Legion of Honor.

Lesson number one: Although the first mile and a half is up hill do not complain, the last half mile is a real downhill treat.

Lesson number two: Because the crowd is intermittently spaced along the parade route they can not appreciate your piping on vacant stretches of the route. Save your breath for when you have an audience!

Lesson number three: If you don’t have a lot of non-Celtic marches and you are following the Color Guard, play obscure marches, and resolve to learn a few “American” marches by the next parade.

Lesson number four: Finally, and this is true for everything, do not take yourself too serious. Have fun, this is not a dress rehearsal.

See you at our next parade!