I’m a whistler who would be happy to play even the simplest tunes on uilleann pipes, but I have 2 problems:
A: a tendency to tendonitis. I even have to be careful not to tense up while whistling or typing in order not to inflame it.
B: not a huge amount of musical talent.
I’ve read of the uilleann pipes that they can be a “daunting musical challenge”. Would this apply to a “practice” set also?
Last question: would lessons be an absolute must for a no-talent neophite whistler like me?
Well, all I can say is you’ll never know until you try. Are you near any pipers who could maybe loan you a set while you figure it all out?
Jeff
You have to sit down and do some decision making. I would say that you should reconsider taking up this instrument, but not for the reasons you state. Rather because you are setting yourself up for failure in your mental state. This instrument is tough to play, for many reasons. But these have more to do with all the associated knowledge (reeds, tuning) and skills (proper bag and bellows technique) and require a positive mental state in order to be successful. When I start to feel like I am not going to make it, I put on some Liam Og, Davy Spillane, Paddy Maloney, et al, and then remember that they felt the same. And I know that I can do it. Mental outlook in this discipline, as in all disciplines, is critical and it is the key to success. It is what keeps you practicing.
You can learn this instrument…figure out if you really want to. Then build or buy a Daye penny chanter and get to it.
Whitmores,
Mick made important and positive suggestions that much of the success playing any instrument is the mental approach. I agree. But, I’ve been in 2 car accidents in the last 10 years and experience shoulder and arm pain from pressing on the bag. Simple stretching and light exercise has helped reduce the pain to allow me to play. Consider asking a physical therapist (or doctor) for some program that can benefit your strength without bringing on a tendonitis condition.
Don’t force your grip on a chanter… relax and allow the notes to come out. Reeds can be adjusted to ‘play easy’ enough where young children are taught pipes have no problems playing.
Thanks guys. There’s a pipe maker in Lubbock Texas. He does mostly great pipes, but he’s starting to get into uilleann pipes. However, I do agree that my attitude is not where it should be. I’m the kind of guy who gets thrown off his whistling by tapping his foot. This doesn’t bode well.
Don’t tap your foot.
Dionys
Decide whether you are doing this for love of the instrument and the right to claim that you play. I will never be a virtuoso, but simply playing and practicing gives me such enjoyment that all the hassle (and it is a hassle) is worth it. I play for myself, no one else. So who cares if tapping throws you off…
Jeff
Jeff has a very valid point. Your suspicion that you may not be musically talented (true or not) should really have no bearing on your decision to learn the instrument. If you enjoy what you are doing, then it really doesn’t matter if you are ‘good,’ or not. Unless your only motivation is to show how ‘good’ you are to someone else.
There’s nothing wrong with that kind of motivation, but I happen to think it should always be a secondary (or tertiary, or..) consideration.
I have seen many performers who frankly hurt my ears, but the joy on their face makes it apparent they they get some pleasure from it.
My three cents,
Dionys
P.s. Don’t tap your foot. Unless it makes you happy.
Well guys, I love the U pipes, but I’m NEVER going to entertain others with them. That’s for sure. Could I entertain myself? That’s the question. Someone earlier described learning pipes as a hassle. I never feel that way about the whistle. What I enjoy is expressing emotions and just playing with tunes and adding ornamentation. The thought of struggling mightily just to do scales up and down two octaves puts me off.
You’re getting yourself worked up. The octaves are really not that bad. Whistle octaves were hard when I first started too. There are alot of horror stories about Uilleann pipes being freakishly hard. Only 75% are true(joking). Really though, if you can honestly entertain yourself I’m sure you’ll entertain others. Just relax and have fun. You’ll manage fine.
Marc
Recently I had the pleasure of taking tuition from Joe McKenna at the Gaelic Roots school in Boston. He made an excellent point in the service of debunking the myth that the pipes are cripplingly difficult to play. He asked how many of the students in the class drove their cars every day–of course, it was everyone, save the 13-year old (who was the best piper in the class). He pointed out that the mental-physical coordination required to drive a car skillfully was quite comparable to the level required for good piping, but that because, in our society (U.S.), it is assumed that you will drive and everyone does so all the time, you don’t have to wrestle with any self-imposed mental blocks about whether you’ll be able to–you just do it. Imagine what a piper you’d be if you’d been practicing all the time you’ve spent in a car for one reason or another. Anyway, without suggesting that you sell your car, I’d suggest that you are probably accomplishing things in your life at the moment which are fully as challenging as the pipes, you just aren’t questioning your ability to do them and you are budgeting time for them without even thinking about it. If you have a yen to learn the thing, get started and make sure you give it at least the same fair shake as you would to those many things in your life which you use your talents and energies for because you have to. Incidentally, if you have the chance, meet and learn from Joe McKenna. He’s an unfailingly generous, humorous and lucid teacher. Good luck.
L
…
Re talent, it’s a factor all right, but I think it was Tiger Woods who once commented that the funny thing was that the more he pracised, the “luckier” he got with shots in competition.
Pipers do get away with murder because the instrument seems so different. I find the piano amazingly complicated, and don’t know how fiddle players manage to play true notes all the time. But most pipers when beginning are crippled by being given a bad setup - reed too hard even when blown in, plus sometimes mismatch between bellows and bag. It would be useful to have direct access to a maker or someone who can adjust the set, at least at the early stages, and explain the tendinitis problem and specify that you’d like a gentle reed, at least at the start. And relax, relax, relax: you need to dissociate the pressure which you’re applying with the arm to the bag from the pressure of the fingers on the chanter holes, which may be considerably less. And don’t start trying to play tight ornamentation until you can play at least a few tunes without any. Good luck!
Heck, I think I’ll give it a try. I’ll find that guy in Lubbock, and as long as him name isn’t Bayley, I’ll see if he can help me. Wow, what a trip! If I could play just the simplest tune it would be such a kick!!
Whitmores, I’m confused… are you in Ireland or Lubbock Texas??
Sorry for the confusion Tony. I’m from Dundalk, but I live in the Dallas area. I’d change the profile to make it clear, but I can’t find a way to change only one item. As far as I can tell I have to re-type everything.
re-typing huh? life can be so difficult at times…
Texas is a really big state. The only piper I can think of is Rick Collins, but he’s in Lubbock Texas, some 200+ miles away. Rick’s a good guy, he might know someone closer to you.
E-mail: rco645@hub.ofthe.net
I’ll do some more searching, I’m sure I’ll find someone in Dallas.
Thanks for that Tony. I met the pipemaker from Lubbock at the scottish fest in Dallas. I lost his card but I"m sure I could find him again. Can’t be too many pipemakers in Lubbock! But it would be great to have a Dallas area U-piper as a contact.
Thanks again.