Hi all,
I am new to the forum (although I have been a lurkin’ for some time) and I’m awaiting my Patrick Murray practice set in a couple months or so. I have played GHB for near 30 years and smallpipes for a year and I’m looking for a tutor book. The local shop has Davy Spillane’s book and I love his playing. Would anyone in the know care to review the book? or recommend another keeping in mind a limit of funds. Thanks much in advance lads.
I like Spillane’s playing too but the tutor has nothing but the most basic information about the pipes. Many people seem to agree that the Heather Clarke tutor is the best.
Hey, two new guys!!
WELCOME to C&F…
Thanks guys
I have heard that Heather’s tutor is very good and will likely go in that direction. I love a methodical approach.
At 2333 posts Tony, we have some catching up to do 
I recommend putting the limited funds toward a purchase of the 1st video from NPU. This video will be essential to assist in learning the proper initial suggested fingering for the Uilleann Pipes and will also help you get some fairly straightforward tunes in the bag.
You should resist the temptation to play the uilleann Pipes the way you play the GHB’s. Work hard to NOT sound like a GHB piper playing the UP’s. It is useful to NOT try to play tunes on the UP’s that you play on the GHB’s for the simple reason that your fingers have long done it one way and now you need them to learn to do it another way.
Think of the analogy of learning to drive a car with stick and clutch after a lifetime of driving automatic transmission. Or, of learing to fly a fixed-wing aircraft after a lifetime of flying rotary wing aircraft or vice versa. You must discard many things and learn new ones that will challenge you greatly.
I agree with both the above, Clarke’s book + CD and the NPU videos. Spillane’s tutor is mostly by his co-author, Tommy Walsh, who clearly doesn’t know squat about pipes or instructing others.
But more than either of the above, get in front of an experienced player/teacher ASAP. None of the books or videos attempts to give you the guidance you need in holding the pipes correctly, using the bellows correctly, or holding/playing the chanter correctly. This issue has come up several times before on this board in the past. You might want to do some searches.
djm
Once again thanks for the valuable info. Much like learning piobaireachd on the GHB there is no substitute fo a qualified teacher if you can afford the lessons. Does anyone know any piobaires in Calgary?
Thanks!
As a soon (perhaps…) to be UPer in much the same situation, (GHBs, smallpipes, etc), I would say the one really useful thing you could do in the meantime is get hold of a whistle and start playing that. An acceptable whistle is cheap and will repay study.
My tuppence for the Clarke book as well - it’s well written and comprehensive, though concise. I’m not sure how easy it would be to follow with no music and no musical experience, but that obviously doesn’t apply here.
Cheers,
Calum
I’ve got both Clarke and Spillane’s tutors. I could learn more from Micky Spillane’s book than Davy’s. I like the breakdown of gracenotes in the Clarke tutor, but make sure you also get the instructional C.D. I don’t know if anyone is selling it without the C.D., but make sure it’s in there. You might also wish to pick up the O’Niell 1800+ tunes book although some of the arrangements seem outdated or different than the way they are played today. One of the hardest things to get used to in the switch from highland to Irish pipes is that there is no Kilberry(sp?) or Scots Guards collection and no pipe major breathing down your neck to do the gracenotes that way and only that way. This sudden freedom can be daunting to the gracenote whipped highland piper. So if you do play Scottish tunes on U.P., get ready to drop gracenotes and transpose fingerings. A to A and sometimes G to G scales will work depending on the tune. Kiss the birl goodbye! I miss low G sometimes. 
Remember also to give equal listening to fiddlers and flute players. Imitating them can give you, at times, a flavor to your piping that will serve you much better than slavish copying of other pipers. It will give you insight as to where some of the great pipers are getting there ideas for variations.
Good luck, and welcome to the board.
Marc
It blows my mind that Davy ever put his name to that book. It’s highly doubtful that he wrote it in my opinion.
Patrick.
I agree Patrick.
Reportedly, he did not perform the tunes for the accompanying cassette. The transcriptions are not of his playing. The Do’s and Don’t come from the Rowsome tutor…
It is a decent photo on the cover though…and there is a bit of history ith some nice photos throughout. that’s about it.
I imagine there have been plenty of us suckers, who when starting out, figured Spillane! This must be good! I did not find it useful early in my piping.
Clarke, Armagh, Ennis, and all other tutors lack a key ingredient…a real live person doing the teaching. That’s why one should consider NPU videos, perhaps Scioltrad and most importantly attend Summer schools and tionols.
Thanks you very much all!
I can’t agree more that a live person or barring that, a video-taped person teaching is irreplaceable. We know the situation there. The NPU videos will definitely get a serious look, as will the Clarke book.
I have been playing the D and C whistle for about a year, although not with as much commitment or confidence yet. I love playing it and hope to get a low D later this year as well (I know… just get a flute but that’s another thread for another forum).
My intention is to play in sessions and more importantly with a group/band. I love the ensemble of UP and fiddle, flute, whistle, guitar and bodhran. First things first though is my long tuition as a lone piper. I made the painful mistake of taking my SSP to a session too early in the learning curve and although they were all very polite, in a tight lipped sort of way, I felt a definite need to go home and practice.
Thanks again and look forward to some serious rewarding piping.
I used the Clarke tutor but I think that the Ennis tutor covers a couple of things that I haven’t seen explained elsewhere and that is the section on leading and tipping in the second octave, I wish it had been around when I first got going. There were a few things about getting notes in the second octave that I found really difficult when starting out and the information in the Ennis tutor about how to lead into notes and how the second octave approach and fingering needed to be different etc was especially helpfull. I imagine this may be particularly so when moving from a single octave chanter to a two octave one.
Don’t forget Sean Potts uilleann pipe CD ROM for the computer.
I’m with Giles about the Ennis book explaining the pinching etc. better. The bits about obtaining high G are indispensable, I always had trouble getting a high G roll from back D especially.
All of these tutors have something to offer you can put to use, I think. Heather’s is the best structured, for sure. The videos are a good job, too. Lots of info to be had.
I notice some pipers definitely avoid what some consider “Highlandish” gracings - back D on anything, C# on the A. Rowsome and Ennis didn’t use that stuff as far as I can hear, and have a smoother, less cutting sound than Touhey or Clancy. How about the rest of you - do you go out of your way to avoid these possibly harsh gracings, use them all the time, or not think about it, or?
When John (or Sean) O’Brien taught at last year’s Chicago Tionol, he was very big on gracing with the back d. Pat Cannady asked him if it was, in particular, a North Dublin thing, and John replied that, as far as he knew, it was a Mick O’Brien thing. It definitely gives that “blip” sound that I associate with Scottish smallpipes and tends to make the tune sound bouncier, jauntier. I don’t use it often, but it’s handy for creating that kind of feel.
The notation certainly has nothing to do with the way the tunes are played on the CD.
Royce
(And I really like the part where advice is given to never ever adjust the reeds.)
I notice some pipers definitely avoid what some consider “Highlandish” gracings - back D on anything, C# on the A. Rowsome and Ennis didn’t use that stuff as far as I can hear, and have a smoother, less cutting sound than Touhey or Clancy. How about the rest of you - do you go out of your way to avoid these possibly harsh gracings, use them all the time, or not think about it, or?
Oh, I’m all about harsh gracings. The harsher, the better. GRRRRR!!!
Calgary Celt-
Do you know Cam Keating? He’s been doing competitive GHB piping for years, and is also a very nice small and uilleann piper…he’s been in the Calgary area for some time (he’s also a very good reed maker).
Since using the Willy Clancy book I have been using them more and more. Also the Chris Langan book. Willy Clancy is where Mick O’Brien is getting this stuff from. Lots of stacato triplets like ACA and cutting with the back D. Puts some life into the tune, and some dynamics into the tone, which otherwise can become monotonous.
djm