Jun 6, 2020
Are you ready to “gig”? I mean, are you really READY to gig? I have taught many students during these last few decades. A lot of those students have been intrigued by the thought of playing for money. I don’t discourage them, for sure, but I do want to make sure...
Jun 6, 2020
Throughout the last month, I have found myself sitting on my studio floor on numerous occasions, re-hemping pipes for my students. I hope they were watching. The Great Highland Bagpipe is almost a living, breathing life form! It needs care to work properly. Often, my...
Jun 6, 2020
A while ago, I wrote an article called “Are You a Bagpiper or a Wannabe?”. At the time I wrote this piece, the main component of the article was focused on making the decision to “do it”. I had recently turned 55 and in doing that I realized that even...
Jun 6, 2020
I tell my students that they need to practice every day, even if it’s only for 15 minutes. The purpose of that statement is to simply get them to practice every day. As they become more experienced, they will have more to practice and the time will automatically...
Jun 6, 2020
In teaching people to play this great instrument, I deal with a lot of “perfectionists”. I used to be one myself, but it made my stomach hurt, messed up my digestion and gave me a headache. I decided a while back that I would do the best I could. I tell...