Hi. I’m new to uilleann piping. I’m having a bit of difficulty playing in the upper octive. I’ve heard another local piper play my Gallagher practice set, and there is no doubt the pipes are in good condition and are capable of playing the upper octive. Can you please offer some advice with regards to playing in the upper octive?
Also, how does one handle playing upper octive 3 Ds in a row? I’m used to craning the upper octive Ds on the tin whistle.
Finally, how important is it to PULL the elbow away from the body when pumping the bellows? Should you actively pull the elbow away from the body, or just let the elbow drift away?
You mention a piper nearby has tried them - is he unable to give you a lesson or two to get you started. Where abouts are you as there may be a others nearby who can assist
I’ll second Bazen and Elemeks thoughts on the matter.
IMO, you need two things to help you in your quest to attain and maintain the second octave: time and instruction. Get thee to a tionol near you (providing one is near enough) or as Elmek suggested, see if the piper who tried your set will be able to toss a few ‘pointers’ your way.
Patience, go slowly, it will come with time, patience and practice.
I’m having a bit of difficulty playing in the upper octive. I’ve heard another local piper play my Gallagher practice set, and there is no doubt the pipes are in good condition and are capable of playing the upper octive. Can you please offer some advice with regards to playing in the upper octive?
I’ve taught a lot of beginners over the years, and usually their problems with the 2nd octave (note the spelling) stem from:
not sealing holes accurately, so that leaks occur, so that the chanter does not peform as it should. But don’t get into the habit of trying to use brute force/the “death grip” to achieve a good seal. A good seal comes from proper hand/finger positions, not from tension, and the hands/fingers should be very relaxed at all times.
not being able to maintain a steady/consistent bag pressure. In other words, many newbies can attain the upper notes, but not maintain them, due to bag pressure drop. You overcome this by practicing playing long notes, first in the low register, then working your way higher in the upper register. If your ear cannot tell when you are holding a note at steady pressure, you can have an electronic tuner in front of you, and practice holding various long notes, and trying your best to keep the little needle on the electronic tuner steady.
Don’t get into the bad habit, though, of using too low a pressure for the low notes and too high a pressure for the high notes. Because, once you start using the drones, you’ll find that the drones are going all over the place due to your wildly changing pressure. If your chanter reed is correctly made and adjusted, the difference in pressure between the notes requiring the least pressure (usually low E and low F#) and the notes requiring the most pressure (usually high A and high B) will not be all that great.
actually, most of the beginners’ problems, in my experience, are due to having a chanter reed which is not properly made or adjusted. Beginners with a good chanter that’s well reeded usually have little difficulty with the gamut of the uilleann pipes.
Also, how does one handle playing upper octive 3 Ds in a row? I’m used to craning the upper octive Ds on the tin whistle.
Do you mean the note which pipers call “back D”?
In the old days, this note was not ornamented by pipers. Rather, they would usually just play it out, with a nice vibrato. The exception was the lovely “ghost D” (D sharp/E flat) gracenote done with the pinky. Listen to pipers such as Liam O Flynn and Paddy Moloney for this approach. When fiddlers were doing a “long roll” on D, the pipers would normally just play three eighth-notes D C# D.
But then-when did it start and who started it? - pipers began doing the thumb triplet on back D. The first pipers I head doing this were Finbar Furey and Paddy Keenan back in the 70’s. I myself do “long rolls” on back D simply by doing two thumb swipes. I do this because the fiddlers I play with do long rolls on D a lot and I like to match what they’re doing. Anyhow do a lot of listening to the pipers I’ve mentioned and it all will become clear.
Finally, how important is it to PULL the elbow away from the body when pumping the bellows? Should you actively pull the elbow away from the body, or just let the elbow drift away?
I think what you mean is to lift the elbow in order to fully inflate the bellows. Yes, I think that most or all pipers do lift their elbow a bit before they do a stroke with the bellows. Otherwise you’re doing a stroke with half-empty bellows and have to pump more often.
One form of a back D triplet is described in Tadgh Crowley’s tutor from 1936, the execution being identical to today’s “back-D-rubbing” with the exception that a “C”-note is used inbetween rather than the silence of the otherwise closed chanter. Of course I know that the ornamentation given in this tutor has nothing to do with common uilleann piping, but still - it’s there…
Edited to add that this is purely academic and of no help to the beginner. The back D-triplet is considered to be un-traditional by many; if you like it, then play it (like I do), but this shouldn’t be one of your worries at the present stage of learning.
