Hi folks
I am new to this forum and Uilleann piping. I have just got a new practice set from Kenneth McNichol. I live in a part of Australia a long way from practical Uilleann piping tuition. I have Heather Clarke’s book but am interested in obtaining any suitable DVD tutors for the added visual content. I have been trying to find a source on the net for the mad4trad DVD without luck. Can anyone help me? If anyone has a copy they want to sell or any of the NPU DVDs I would be interested in hearing from them.
Cheers, John
Look into Skype lessons!!! www.skype.com
It’s just like living next door to another piper.
Also, join NPU. They have the DVDs you refer to, and they have free videos (once you are a member) that range from beginner to advanced.
Last, make sure you are counted in the official “how many pipers” census. 
Skype lessons? Do you mean Pat Skype?
Actually Skype is a free video conference site on the web. With a camera and microphone (my microphone is built into my camera) you can “call” anybody else in the world with Skype for free. I don’t know which pipers are teaching lessons using this method, but I know there are a few out there.
You could start by looking at http://www.uilleannobsession.com/ and contacting Patrick D’Arcy - See the left hand side of the web site home page. I can vouch that he is a fabulous piper and a great human being.
Does anyone know of any other pipers teaching via Skype?
Bill Ochs and, apparently, Pat Sky(pe).
Thanks to all for helpful replies.
Cheers, John
Hi John,I found “The Art of Uilleann Piping”,vol 1 Beginners Guide to be invaluable when I started pipng.It includes a DVD with a book of music and can be purchased from NPU(Na Piobairi Uilleann),which is the flagship of uilleann piping and is based in Ireland.Non-members can purchase the dvd directly from them.Mike.
Hear here! The NPU DVD’s are a great place to develop your piping.
Patrick.
Hello,
I have been playing recorder and tin whistle for 10 years. Now I’d like to learn to play uilleann pipes. What do you think is a better way:
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buy a half set from David Daye
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buy something like this: http://cgi.ebay.com/Uilleann-Pipes-made-Bob-May-/330486351100?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4cf28584fc
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start just with the practise set (I think half set would be a better way as I will be getting used to a drones from absolute begining)
johny, have you read the FAQ FAQ FAQ, READ READ READ!!!?
I think it might answer your questions.
Get the best ye can afford nothing wrang wi getting drones at the beginning it will help ye get yer pressure techniques .Good luck .Plenty of sets oot there at the moment thanks to oor politicos messing everyting up…(I wish someone would tell oor Condem coalition that borrowing has been around Governments for Hundreds of years,it aint new so whit is all the hysteria aboot ?)
Uilliam
If you really want to know, the hysteria is not about the govt borrowing a few trillion dollars - the bailout was just a headfake to pay a few bonuses. The real problem is the baseless 650 trillion dollars in derivatives that was created out of thin air by the geniuses in the investment banks, and that money can never be paid back - not in a million years. But one way or another they will kick that can further down the road until they bill the taxpayer for it.
Anyway, get the best set of pipes you can find.
Doesnae alter the fact that there is hysteria aboot it does it? 
Anyways get the best ye can afford 
Uilliam
Yes, I have read the FAQ. The advice to buy the best I can afford is good, but that’s what I’m asking on - which of the three posibilities I mentioned, is the best? I know David Daye’s uillean pipes work well but I have a bit problem with it’s desing - it simply looks like a part of vacuum cleaner. On the other hand, I can’t afford a traditional half set from a renowned pipemaker.
Just to say make sure that the chanter is the best you can get. It should play well and in tune. Ask around and most folk here will give you honest opinions and advice. A good chanter makes all the difference when starting out. Good luck.
PS there is a fine Holly chanter on Ebay at the moment. You would do well to invest in something of that kind of quality. 
johny, it seems your choice is between the Daye 1/2 set or a practice set, so it’s your esthetics at choice.
My trip was thus: I found a list of makers somewhere shortly after I became disabled and got on disability. I purchased a practice set , but the reed was cracked, so I went to a party the maker was attending and he made me another reed. I ordered the drones and got them a year later. I took a reedmaking school after I got the drones as I found that the chanter was very flat in the second octave. Two years after I first got the practice set, I finally had them in tune. 
If you prefer the “real thing” go the practice set route, if you are looking for a cheap working 1/2 set, try the Daye or Pat Sky’s budget sets.
As someone who was also inclined to start with a half set, I can tell you that you’ll do much better to invest everything you’ve currently got into a good chanter and forget about the drones for now. In retrospect, I wish I’d saved the money on the drones and just focused on the chanter. You’ll have years worth of work that you can do on just getting the bag, bellows, and chanter technique down without throwing drones into the mix. You’ll make much greater progress with a quality chanter than with a starter chanter and drones.
I just recently disconnected my drones and am playing a practice set. It is so much more comfortable to be able to focus on playing the chanter without the mainstock being another thing to worry about being airtight and ergonomically comfortable. Drones will come in time and if you’re playing the chanter, bag and bellows properly, won’t be too difficult to get used to.
The economic factor is that you can always add nice drones to a nice chanter with no loss on your investment in the chanter. If you buy a starter set then you’ll have to upgrade every piece of it eventually and I guarantee you won’t get back what you put into it. Not so “economic” in the long run.
I found a piece of Tupperware that fit into the main stock socket (with some thread for airtight fit) and most of my practicing is done with just my “practice set”. My Crohn’s disease and the medicines I take for it keeps me from having a lot of endurance.
My C 1/2 set takes up quite a bit of room and the C chanter, bag and bellows is much easier to pick up and have a quick practice.
I’m looking forward to being able to order a Daye chanter. Just about got the deposit saved. Have some Burma teak for a couple of sets of bellows. So while I’ waiting for my chanter I’ll be busy making them. Keep one sell one for other bits and pieces and I’m gonna take pictures. Well, that’s the plan. Wish me luck! My GHB cane drone reeds are currently on Ebay. Once I have my Uilleann drones, I’ll be flogging Uilleann drone reeds too. Got to pay for those regulators somehow!