Here’s an interesting article about finding your discomfort when you practice and eliminating it. It’s written for guitarists, but is equally beneficial to pipers. Paragraph 6 is what I identified with when reading it, about when performing for others (or for recording) I never play my best and invariably make errors -
Cheers,
DavidG
That’s a good article. Everyone says to relax, but not many give any help on how to do that. That bit about sympathetic muscle tension was interesting too.
Like the add says: I have no time for the pain! Pacing yourself, IE. doing a little bit every day, instead of a big DAY of practicing, is the key to healthy musicianship. It’s just so hard to do, if you’re an amateur musician. For the professional, “On Tour” giging takes alot of the desire to practice out of many, except the most practice-happy crew members. About an hour of daily practice was all my instructor gave me, in my first year of music school. He said that after the first hour, you’re tired, and merely practicing your mistakes, which “creep in” because you’ve gone beyond your comfortable limits. Year number two increased the practice time up to the 2 hour 15 minute mark, the 15 minutes being a break in the middle of the 2 hours.
In the past I was always glad I had the mouthblown pipes, to expand my chest away from that sunken chested, hunched over, deep consentration posture, partly watching where I was hitting the regulators, etc.
I used to assume this bent position without thinking, but I have been practicing the feet flat on the floor, sitting up straight, head up formation, for years now to good effect. Holding the bag deep in the armpit also helps as you’re using the weight of the arm more than the muscle tension.
Sean Folsom
Thanks for sharing the article…Like many others, I have a problem with the death grip. I had gotten over it with my old practice set, but since I got my new set, it’s back with a vengeance. I’m working on it day by day, trying to relax my hands, but it’s a slow process.
Being aware of what’s going on with my body while I playing is something that definitely helps, and fortunately I think I am seeing some slow improvement. At this point I realize that, as the author of that article says, the most important thing is not being able to play the triplets, etc., but being able to play in a relaxed way without hurting myself…Otherwise I know I won’t be able to keep playing my whole life.
This is probably the most un-ergonomic instrument in existence…
If so, the flute comes in a close second 
I took Alexander Technique lessons every week for about five years, which really helped my posture, and a few times my teacher worked with me on the flute. I’d love to have her work with me on the pipes as well, but the big lesson I learned from the flute that might apply to the pipes is this: put yourself into a neutral, relaxed position, and bring the instrument to you. With the flute I had (and still have, if I don’t watch it!) the tendency to put the flute out in front of me and lean myself into it. It’s harder to “bring the pipes to you” given the ergonomics of the instrument itself, but I’m working on that to the extent possible. Watching Liam O’Flynn play is always a good inspiration: he looks so relaxed and comfortable.
Economy of motion is important too, I think…I have a flute-playing friend whose fingers barely move when he plays, and people said much the same about Willie Clancy, keeping his fingers relaxed and close to the chanter. My girlfriend is from Brittany and a traditional dancer; it’s always amazing to watch her dance as her feet hardly move, she’s much more restrained than people who didn’t grow up dancing in that culture, but because she conserves her energy she can (and does) easily dance for six or seven hours straight at a fest-noz.
good stuff. Actually, this week I started trying to relax my shoulders more when I play.
We bought ourselves a new digital camera for Xmas, and it captures video…so trying it out while I’m practicing, I captured a vid of me playing the pipes. In watching it, I noticed that my shoulders are hunched up to my ears like Quasimodo. Something I never really noticed..so now after 2 years of learning to play like that, I’m starting to relax my shoulders.
Hopefully it won’t take two years to un-learn it!
-g
I have noticed that I tense my shoulders up all during the day. Even when I am doing nothing at all, my shoulders are tense. So I’ve been working on remembering to check my shoulders and then relax them at any time throughout the day.
I have always found that it helps to look at other peoples’ attrocious posture to help remind me to correct my own.
djm
Well, gee, ah - can I borrow your pipes? A guy gotta ask!!! Only to save your self short term injury… yeah! that’s the ticket-Isn’t that what friends are for… right?..right! 
Interesting article: The print is slightly teeny so you strain to read it! Also he talks about guitarists scrunching up their shoulders etc., which seems au natural for “rockin’ out!”
Are there people who just can’t play certain instruments? I can play pipes/flutes/guitars/kazoos/etc. just fine but the violin stings after a while for some reason - my father can’t rotate his arms around like most people, perhaps I’m cursed with bad genes? I can play cello easy though.
Really? I get more of a pain from the kazoo. 
A fiddler I know suggested that, if you are getting pains from one particular instrument, to try instruments by different makers to see if one is more comfortable that the other.
(Fel, you cannot borrow my pipes. Grr!) 
Speaking of your pipes- did you ever settle on a name for them???