self-taught pipes?

[Jack Daw]

Straight finger, yes...until the A BIRL! I learned the tap-and-sweep method; so, to practice I tied the other fingers to a block of wood. ENJOY!

[sharpdressedscot]

Block of wood?

How the heck does that work?

[Mr. Woolery]

I have met one self-taught piper who was decent. He got a lot of pointers, but no real formal instruction. I've met nobody who was "good" without a teacher. And going it totally alone is a recipe for disaster.

The bagpipes are an instrument of wonderful and powerful majesty, but you work for it. There are several hurdles to overcome along the way, not least of which is coordinating your blowing and squeezing to keep the air pressure steady in the bag. That's a hard one to learn at first and everyone has to go through it. Then you toss in marching and it makes everything harder! A teacher is very important here. Very.

Straight fingers are for a couple of reasons. I also started on tinwhistle, so the straight fingers bothered me until I had them explained (now I notice that very good whistle players sometimes play straight). First, try drumming your fingers on a table with them curved over. Do it as fast as you can. Now, try it with them straight. The curved fingers have a tension that you have to fight against in order to lift them up. This may not slow you down much, but it leads to finger fatigue and sloppy playing. Second, many people can not actually accurately finger the chanter with the fingertips. Straight fingers reach out better. But the tension thing is the most important reason. Makes for cleaner playing.

As mentioned (though it bears repeating), bands generally give free lessons. Some bands will subsidize lessons, but either way you are learning to play for a whole lot less than a private teacher. However, I have noticed that the best players I know have private teachers. You can get a band going fairly well for basic street band playing with one teacher and a room full of students, but to get good solo pipers seems to require individual instruction.

Good luck!

-Patrick

[BonnieT100]

Where in NC are you located? There's a few pipebands in Raleigh/Durham and there is one in Fayetteville. My teacher lives in Raleigh but gives lessons down in Fayetteville, so I get pipes twice a week, most weeks. I used the John Cairns system while in Iraq to maintain myself and made a little progress.

[sharpdressedscot]

Where in NC are you located? There's a few pipebands in Raleigh/Durham and there is one in Fayetteville. My teacher lives in Raleigh but gives lessons down in Fayetteville, so I get pipes twice a week, most weeks. I used the John Cairns system while in Iraq to maintain myself and made a little progress.

I live in Gastonia/Charlotte. I found a band, one of the only two I could go.
And the other one plays Irish Warpipes!

[Kiltedfirepiper]

I started with a 25$ pakistani PC and the CoP tutor#1

everytime I practiced I had a mirror set up to make sure I had my fingers right and Like has been said "went slow "

self teaching can be done, but you better have a degree of OCD and lots patience.
be a sponge and soak up anything you can pick up from pipers you meet.
it can be done.

I still have a problem with burls ....but thats because I broke my pinky finger when I ws younger and it didnt set right...they call it a boxer's fracutre....can you guess how I got it

I never wanted to compete so playing to a grade was never a concern for me.
I still feel I represent piping in a good light.
if you want to see BAD piping goto this page of Bobdunsire.com
worst piping vids on youtube

and for the best ...look at this vid
Angus MacColl

[JS Sanders]

<< I still have a problem with burls ....but thats because I broke my pinky finger when I ws younger and it didnt set right...they call it a boxer's fracutre... >>

I'm digressing this thread a bit, but perhaps it may help.

I'll presume you know to have the edge of your right thumb against the chanter, not the inner flat part. Hold it like it's a lightly varnished doggie doodie.

This birl technique has worked for people I've assisted with injured or stiff pinkies - it's generally called a Seven Sweep Birl. Hope I describe it well, it's a little like describing how to tie knots.

Execute a downward sweep of the pinky to below the chanter loA note hole. Your pinky rests gently on the chanter. Next you bring the finger back up, in a slight curling motion, almost like a flourish. Done properly, it looks like you're drawing a #7.

An old master who was invaluable to me, said find a birl that works for you and practice 500 time daily 'til you get it. Doing that cinches it. A properly performed birl is a close 2nd only to a beautifully barking leumlath.

Slainte,
steve

[Lambda]

I never wanted to compete so playing to a grade was never a concern for me.
I still feel I represent piping in a good light.
if you want to see BAD piping goto this page of Bobdunsire.com
worst piping vids on youtube

Oh goodness.... I'll never get that hour of my life back. Those videos were so bad I couldn't stop watching them until I got to the end just because I thought there had to be a good one in there somewhere!

My advice is that if, God forbid, you ever do self-teach, please NEVER get recorded until you are good and certain you don't look like those people. I have had people tell me they hate the bagpipe when I've told them I play, and it is because of people like those represented in the above videos that they felt this way. It's tragic when most people get their opinion of the pipes from the worst of the worst. The instrument is too beautiful for that bum rap.

Getting an instructor of some kind (or at least sitting down with someone who has piped before) is by far the way to go. Way too much can be learned improperly that takes longer to unlearn if you ever get serious.

[Kiltedfirepiper]

yeah I've tried that approach...my pinky will lock up and pop when I try that.
when I make a fist my pinky sits about 3/4" lower than the rest of my hand....when you palpate the bone you can actually FEEL the curve in the bone!...it makes typing a female dog too...

the only thing that works is a fast down up ( if that sounds right) and it gives me a halfway decent burl.
nothing like the blackwatch's "ripping a phonebook in two" effect ( I've always loved this discription of a good burl..or was it a D-throw? either way it works for both!)

totally OT but there you have it

KFP

[JS Sanders]

Here's another to try...

I use the Tap & Curl Birl method. Place your finger directly above the loA-hole and all you do is curl inward, sweeping past the hole as you do so. Just separate the movements: tap/bounce, rest, and curl (just barely sweeping past the hole for the second loG sound of the birl.

When you execute it well, it is blistering fast. It just plain rips and really compliments a kick-**** reel. The 500 repetitions a day still apply in learning it.