Reed position inside chanter

Uilleann Pipes
1

Hi
I got a Pat Sky set of practice pipes. The reed was not installed when I got it, so I’m wondering what the angle of the reed should be - i.e the width parallel to the front of the chanter..perpendicular? Twisted so it hits the air flow straight on?
HELP! Thanks

Another question is, how do you keep the bladder (?) from slipping down where you can’t squeeze it with your left arm? Does this have to be completely full all the time? Seems like I pump the bellows constantly which is not what anyone else I’ve seen do…

2

It doesn’t matter which way the reed sits in the chanter. The air goes through it the same no matter what.

The idea of squeezing my bladder with my left arm is…troubling.

Pipers call it the bag. Don’t say bladder or mothers will pull their children away from you and avoid eye contact.

The bag needs to be full enough so that moderate pressure will let you play. If it gets overfilled your chanter will freak out. I sometimes realize I am overfilled because I release pressure on the bag completely and the reed keeps going.

Tuck the bag against you and under your arm and you won’t lose hold of it.

3

Pick up the first NPU video if you don’t already have it and get thee to a tionól! Nothing is better than sitting down with some experienced pipers.

4

I use a shoulder strap to hold the bag in my armpit so that it doesn’t slide down.

5

I have the VHS video - but I don’t have the papers that come with it. Anyone have those in a pdf format?
Thanks for all the tips! These pipes are darn hard to play.

I will remember The Bag..not bladder. huh.

6

There is an excellent tionol in Seattle in about a month. You should go to it.

t

7

You want the reed sitting straight in the reed seat. The idea is that the staple (the brass or copper tube which is the inside part of the reed) is a continuation of the chanter bore. Also, you don’t want the slips (the cane part of the reed) scraping against the inside of the chanter top when you put that on. Here’s an image I’ve borrowed from the website of the pipemaker Nick Whitmer - this is what you should be aiming for: