new piper here. Well, not really. I’ve been playing pipes for about a year. A nice full set with a Brad Angus chanter and happy Ganesh drones and regs. I don’t practice enough but do get to play with some great pipers (Great Northern Pipers go brách!). Let’s just say I play a lot of airs and marches - slowly. I’m trying to wean myself off sheet music.
So for my first post on the board I will reveal my deep dark secret. I don’t listen to Irish music much. I mean I like it and all, it’s just that I listen to a lot of other things. So my Irish music collection is pretty pathetic and my knowledge of session tunes is next to nil. Blind Mary and Dawning of the Day just don’t pop up too often.
I know, I know - I just need to get to the local sessions more often. Good plan, I just don’t have that much spare time and so only get out to them every once in awhile.
So, how about a primer on some good CD’s for the Irish music ignoramus. Session tunes, piping tunes, classic - whatever. Obviously I’m most interested in things that will improve my piping by making me final memorize some tunes (I throw down a mean London Bridge).
I have some suggestions that should get you in the ballpark as to what you should give a serious listen to. Some pipe music/pipers are acquired tastes and are to be appreciated a little bit later in a listener’s/players career. I know you can’t go wrong with these suggestions (do yourself a favour:
BRIAN MCNAMARA: Fort of the Jewels
Brian McNamara: Uilleann pipes
JIMMY O’BRIEN MORAN: Sean Reid’s Favourite
Jimmy O’Brien Moran: Uilleann pipes
THE PIPER’S ROCK
Davy Spillane, Jimmy O’Brien-Moran, Robbie Hannan, Gabriel McKeon, Maire Ni Ghrada, Mick O’Brien, Eoin O’Riabhaigh: Uilleann pipes
That’d give you a start in the right direction as it concerns the pipes anyway. These are all highly and critically regarded by most, and splendid recordings too.
For general tunes, the early recordings of the Chieftains provide a pretty good source. The Na Connery recordings are a fairly decent source of session type material. Bothy Band material still gets a lot of play in some session circles as well. That’s just off the top of my head - shooting from the lip. Oh yeah, some of the John Whelan button accordion recordings contain good session fare as well. Some of his Narada recordings were a little new age style so you have to exercise some care if you’re buying.
It really is important to listen to this stuff! I think that listening is as vital to playing well as practicing the pipes. Good luck!
I’m finding that it really depends on who it is you want to play with in a session. Different groups of people have different tastes. You might be better off taking in a few local sessions to find out what they are playing, who their sources are, etc. They might be coming from more of a fiddle or box selection of tunes than piping tunes, in which case you would want to choose your new music collection accordingly.
Something that was pointed out to me recently was of a group of young (18-21 yrs) Irish musicians who were here recently who all played to a very high standard, but who played all recently written tunes, and didn’t have much if any grounding in older tunes at all. Perhaps the very tradition itself is starting to change in Ireland, whereas we on this side of the pond are still mucking along with older material (?).
Eliot Grasso - Standing Room Only
I found this a great C.D. Just released and you can get a great taste of whats to come from the sound clips on Eliots’ web site.
I’m finding this too in Scottish music. Kids, particularly the virtuosos, aren’t learning the basic reprtoire and are just picking up whatever they fancy from albums, from workshops, from tune sites, from whereever they can get their hands on it.
I don’t think it’s too much of a worry; the music evolves. In twenty years time, they’ll all be poring over early Chieftains albums and boasting about how old fashioned their playing is. Plus ca change. It does grate slightly though when fifteen years old kids refuse point blank to beleive that such a thing as a cane practice chanter reed exists, though…
In addition to some of the excellent suggestions above, I’d recommend “The Drones and the Chanters,” Vol. I & Vol. II, a great introduction to a variety of pipers playing in a wide range of styles.
Now if I could just hold a high A consistantly I’d be happy.
Grasp the crossbar firmly with both hands. Make sure your back is straight and your knees are bent. It helps to keep your head aligned with your spine and looking upward to where you want to keep the high A. Now, light up the herb and apply the topical cream to your inner thighs, squeeze the bag, and …
Well I managed to snag the car today so went and picked up The Chieftains 1 & 4 along with Leo Rickard’s Pure Piping and Declan Masterson’s End of the Harvest. I already have a couple others like the Rowsome Tradition so slowly getting a small collection. I’ll get these tunes in my head and then everything is gravy,right? Piping via osmosis.
But like many a new piper I listen to something like Leo Rickard playing Lark in the Morning and think “hmm, so that’s what it sounds like”. Deedle deedle deedle not dum dum squawk dum.
Hey man, that’s just fine - as long as you have andother 21 years on your docket. heehee!
There are some days when it feels futile, there are some days that are not so death defying. Take the good with the bad: improve on the good ones, call it a day on the bad ones.
You’re gonna make bad noises sometimes…everybody does. The trick is not to be afraid of them, play them with confidence and pride. Once you get them out of your system you’ll feel better, and the good noises will sound that much better.
I’m definitely finding this to be the case. Sometimes I find myself wondering exactly what degree of suckitude I will be reaching as I practice. Last night, though, I had the best practice session yet. The songs I’m working on actually sounded something like music! Of course, I know it won’t be that way when I have my lesson this week. My teacher will just have to take my word… or he could ask the dog.
I cried at the Reagan funeral when Mommy patted the casket, and I once shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die. Also, when Isaac Alderson came for the tionol I didn’t have the strength to tell him that Ward’s Jig was the club’s official “first tune” and kept my mouth shut when he complimented everyone on how fast they were picking it up.
Oh, and get “Out of the Wind, Into the Sun” by the Bothy Band.
To hear Twin Cities session tunes get John Williams, Lunasa, Cherish the Ladies, Barra, Legacy, Five Mile Chace, The Gaels, and Celtic Bag Pipe this might still be in Target stores. And Kitie Lie Over was circulating recently.
jUst joking about the not believing it part.