First things first. This is not a tutor. Rather, it is a practical explanation and guide for learners and teachers. This document lays bare the realities of learning to play the Great Highland Bagpipe and those factors that impact the journey. It also contains strategies to strengthen and accelerate your learning. It should be used in conjunction with tutors and exercise books, and other available resources. I highly recommend The Hal Leonard Bagpipe Method and Tune Book along with Jim McGillivray’s Rhythmic Fingerwork. Lastly, this document is dynamic in that it may be improved upon in real time. Your input will greatly enhance this as a practical guide for those wishing to learn or teach.
I teach bagpipes. I taught even as I was learning myself, some fifty-five years ago. I’ve taught hundreds of learners, both young and old.
My journey began in 1957. My dad was a member of the Bridgeport Pipe Band in Connecticut, playing under Pipe Major Jimmy Rankin and later Pipe Major Jim Petrie, both Scottish imports who landed with the Worchester Pipe Band and later travelled south to Bridgeport. Will (older brother) and I received child-size practice chanters by RG Hardie for Christmas that year. I couldn’t read music and played a couple of tunes by ear. We both hated it and circumstances were such that by 1958 lessons stopped. I wouldn’t pick up a practice chanter again until September 1971. In 1972 I played with Kitchener Legion Branch 50 in Grade IV. The high point of that season was finishing 3rd overall out of 46 bands in Grade 4 at the first Scottish World Festival in Toronto.
In 1973 I jumped to Grade I, with The Waterloo Regional Police Pipe Band under PM Duncan MacLaughlin. With two very heavy sets and two medleys to learn, I squeezed practice into every discretionary minute. The band was highly competitive for several years. In 1980 I took a transfer to Edmonton, Alberta and the pipes stayed under the bed for five years.
In the years that followed I played in various Grade 1 and 2 bands until moving to Wisconsin in 2006. I’ve detailed that experience elsewhere on my website. It was a great adventure. At this point in time, I’m finding ways of giving back. My first book was Care and Maintenance of The Great Highland Bagpipe at the encouragement of Ken Eller. I later wrote two books for the Hal Leonard Publishing Company.
Not surprisingly, my views on teaching have changed dramatically over the years. In more recent years, it has occurred to me that traditional teaching philosophies and methods are narrow in their approach, not taking into consideration certain indisputable realities.
1) Not everyone has the same goals.
2) Not everyone has the same drive.
3) Not everyone has the same “natural” talent.
4) Not everyone has the same physical tools.
5) Not everyone has the same aptitude.
6) Not everyone has the same circumstances.
Most teaching materials and methods do not allow for the wide range of factors impacting learners. They tend to put everyone through the same narrow instructional process regardless of their individual circumstances. They also leave the learner without a stated destination or pathway toward achieving their personal goals. I will not be critical as that is not the purpose of this document. Moreso, I’d like to focus on strategies and methods specifically intended to help all learners reach their goals within their personal circumstances or limitations suggested above.
A Quick Overview
Early Scottish and Irish immigration to North America was very robust, especially following both world wars. Scottish/Celtic culture and music was very strong. Concentrations of pipers and drummers saw a rise in the number and quality of pipe bands. If a poll were taken today I am confident that the majority of pipers and drummers would claim ancestry to pipers and drummers a generation or two ago.
Youngsters today have many more choices and demands on their time. There is little room for the hours and years of practice required to become a competent top-level performer. Without a strong support structure, they are likely to pursue other interests. If they do start at an optimal age of early teens, the sustainability of interest and participation is under incredible pressure. Many are taken away by responsibilities or conflicting interests.
Most adults, on the other hand, lead a less frantic and scattered existence. They are better able to structure lessons, personal practice time, and group performance obligations. Sadly, they cannot turn back the hands of time. The mental and physical attributes of an adult often severely limit upside potential.
This document will explore new strategies and methods that will serve both adults and young learners without imposing debilitating requirements. I will save my explanation of this until later.
Table of Contents
Why Teach Adults & Is Age a Factor
The Practice Chanter & The Six “Ps”
