Ok. I thought it might be one of those types of instruments that really required a teacher. Thanks. :)
I have taught myself banjo, accordion, pennywhistle and etc. but I had an inkling that bagpipes are on a totally different level. But btw, do you think that experience playing pennywhistle would help me with bagpipes? I mean, are they the same fingering or not?
The areas of difficulty: becoming quick with grace notes,
getting the "ornamentation" (runs of grace notes) right,
physical effort (about a month and you're past that -- left arm, lips and diaphragm),
bagpipe maintenance (with many plastic parts a lot easier today, though I like the tone of cane reeds better),
memorizing whole tunes (you never perform from sheet music),
dedication (pipes NEED to be played 1/2 hour every other day at worst, an hour a day is better -- with new materials this may have changed),
and tuning.
I suppose the physical effort, the maintenance and the tuning would be the hardest for me. I already know how to do grace notes and I play 99% of my songs from memory.
A long parade under a hot sun is guaranteed to have you a bit out of tune at the end.
Funny. I had never really thought of bagpipes getting out of tune, but then again, I had never thought of pennywhistles getting out of tune either until my sister got adjustable ones that needed tuning.
pick up a practice chanter
Just curious, are those just to get the fingering right, or is there more to them?
Btw, thanks for telling me all this stuff. It is really good to know. :)
The fingering is definitely different, but having played a pennywhistle will get you off to a quicker start.
The practice chanter has two purposes: first, to teach you the fingering. But second, it's for... practice. As a rule you learn (and practice) tunes on the practice chanter. Every piper has one in his kit.
I also have a "practice goose": a practice chanter outfitted with a bag, but rarely used it.