Isn’t that a birl?
The tutor books I used were the Logan Tutour and Sandy Jones’ tutor. Then I had an instructor who grew up on the Black Isle and then later Coatbridge who took lessons from P/M Donald MacLeod. He’s given me a few tunes with wee Donald’s notes jotted on the photocopy and some were written out by the man himself.
I guess I overlooked bubbly notes because they usually begin on a higher note (D or C) and always terminate on B, plus it needs to go down to low G. A lot of them need that low G. That’s the biggest difference.
A birl is just a double swipe with the pinky across that low G. Sometimes it starts with a High G gracenote. Two common methods are the tap drag and figure 7. The names describe the method of execution.
Hi Pamela - yes the sound is great! We just had a piping festival here and along with the Welsh Pipes we had great visitors - Neillidh Mulligan - what a master - great piping, great guy! from Dublin (Uillean pipes) and David Faulkener playing Border Pipes which were very beautiful. (Awesome sessions - can’t wait now till next year!!) Last year we had an amazing piper from Estonia here (they are very different pipes! - slung chanters) and Breton pipers (extremely loud - fantastic music!!) and Northumberland Pipes played by ? Anderson - a very fine sound and very small pipes are those!
My flute teacher’s first instrument is Pipes (Pibgorn) - I don’t know about in other traditions but in Welsh music the flute playing style often comes from the way the pipes are played - I suppose because the music was played on them first - although so much of it was lost and sadly the tradition is quite broken.. anyway, watching these guys the fingering looks very similar - but boy do their fingers move fast!!
Enjoy!
Sarah
We just had a piping festival here
What festival do you mean? Breton pipers don’t go very often abroad!
Well thank you for your friendly note!
The festival I am referring to is a very small annual local festival we have here in West Wales (Pencader) organised by Ceri Rees Matthews who invites various visiting pipers each year. If you look up Pencader Pipe Festival on google you can find out all about it - if you want to know who the Bretons were (I can’t remember their name) look at the pictures from last year (Festival number 3).
(The Welsh generally don’t travel much either - but Ceri does - plays with his group ‘Pibe Bach’ in all kinds of places - you can also find them through google - I don’t recall the web addresses right now)
Hope that helps!
Sarah
I have a completely different opinion on D smallpipes than those
presented above. I find the key very pleasing, and easy to blend
in a group setting. If curious, pick up Iain MacInnes’ wonderful
CD “Tryst.” He plays smallpipes in A, C, & D, and the CD will
give a good example of the sound. Gary West’s “Islay Ball” is
(IIRC) all D smallpipes except for one tune with A’s (not counting
the graits’ tunes).
I’m tall (6’4") with huge, I mean huge (well, really normal) size
hands and can play a D chanter with a minute or two of adjustment.
(See picture on left) In any context other than solo playing, I
find A smallpipe’s sound can be muddy. The bottom hand
embellishments tend to disappear.
HTH, John
What make of pipes are you playing? I’m 6’4" as well. My hands are big but my fingers are long and thin so I’m wondering if a D set is worth the try.
I can see what you mean about bottom hand technique disappearing on A sets. I’ve haven’t heard a lot of different makes in person, mostly Sloans, but those pipers were able to get some crackling bottom handiwork.
Cheers,
Aaron
Hi Aaron,
They are made by John Rutzen. He uses the same technique as Hamish
Moore for increasing the spacing of the holes. The top and bottom holes
are drilled in a slant. The spacing is slightly more spread than Moores.
After playing GHBs, I started on a set of Ds, so the chanter feels natural
to me. A smallpipes seem stranger, with the spread wider than a GBH
chanter.
Here’s a little more info:
http://www.bobdunsire.com/CGI-BIN/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=15;t=000265#000000
Best, John