On the weekend, I played at a reception for about 100 people. When I arrived in the hall, there were already about 50 people chatting, so I couldn’t hear my drones very well and couldn’t tune them. After the speech, I played a few tunes, and of course, there was silence for that, broken only by the sound of my untuned drones. I had to improvise with a quick adjustment to the bari and bass but it was not ideal.
I have a guitar tuner which works on the vibrations from the guitar, not the sound of the strings. This works well in noisy pubs, etc., when I can’t hear the string. But the pincer of the tuner is too small for the drones.
Does anyone have tips for tuning drones in a noisy room (other than getting everyone to clam up for a minute)?
I don’t know how to find it now, but once upon a time I SWEAR I saw a photo of Fiachra O’Regan in a festival tent with his drones resting on/over his shoulder like Highland pipes. From the looks of it, he was tuning them.
I have tried this method in crowded rooms since, and it works. Looks a little – okay, a LOT – unorthodox, but when I put them over my right shoulder they’re right next to my ear, and I can hear them reasonably well. It may not be perfect, but it gets me close.
Because I detach the chanter first and put my thumb over the bag-neck opening, it’s pretty easy to do one-handed once you switch the drones on; I imagine you could hold a tuner with the other hand if you’re talented that way and put it down to adjust.
Of course, if you have a stop switch you’re in business!
“Tuning up in the loo” option is a good idea if you have time. However, my experience with event organisers is usually something like “The juggler has been taken to the ER with a suspected concussion. Can you go on NOW?” That actually happened once!!
That’s my experience as well. Though it wasn’t a juggler, it was a minister having a seizure.
The other thing I run into is that the weather in the bog is usually pretty different from the weather in other places. And then there’s the part about having nowhere to sit … at least not in the ladies’ …
Have you tried earplugs? Even a simple set of foam earplugs might cut the ambient noise enough to let you focus on the closer drones, especially if you lean toward them a bit (the inverse square rule, and all that). Don a brimmed hat like The Keenan for extra focus.
I once played an entire St. Paddy’s gig wearing 40 dB earplugs. It was so noisy I couldn’t even hear the floor monitor at my feet, so I gave up. The plugs let me hear just enough of the player next to me above the noise to function. But the overall experience was admittedly bizarre.
I tell the organizer beforehand that I need a quiet room to tune my instrument - this has rarely been a problem as there is nothing special about this demand, really - other musicians or show acts of whatever kind need a room for dressing up.
In the very few cases when it was necessary (like, the tuning changed on stage) I have politely but firmly(!) asked the people for just two minutes quietness - usually the talking stops immediately because of the surprise, and before they start wondering what’s going on and asking why, the tuning is done… I only need 20 seconds…
It can be trained to feel the vibrations of out-of-tune drones through bag and elbow, it does however take a good while and plenty of concentration.
And lastly, in absolutely desperate situations - if I can’t hear my drones, no one else can, either. I have played whole gigs without any drones (for various reasons) and no one ever noticed there was something missing.
Yes, a clip-on contact mike works. That assumes you have a tuner that will accept an external input. And since, PJ, you mentioned only your clip-on guitar tuner, I assumed that’s not the case and that you’re tuning by ear. If you do have a regular tuner, you might be able to position it near enough the drones to work even in a noisy room.
Actually, a guitar clip-on ought to open wide enough to fit on some part of the drones; I know mine does. The problem with this (or a contact mike) is that the secondary tube vibration may not be strong enough, since it’s really the air column that’s sounding. But it’s worth a try. I sometimes tune my D or C whistle with a clip-on, much to the amusement of others (it looks quite strange).
Of course, Michael Loos’ suggestion makes sense, too. The tuning ritual is a natural part of the performance - unless you have to start cold on the first note, e.g. for a bridal procession or similar situation.
!!! Now where the heck did I put my perky pink hat?
