Bagpipe Etiquette

[dirtyweasel]

Feileadh-mor lives in Southern California....no such thing as basements here.

[artk2002]

Feileadh-mor lives in Southern California....no such thing as basements here.

Yeah, but nobody blinks twice at bagpipes, either.

I'd head for one of the bigger parks.  The back side of Griffith Park, or El Dorado, or whatever that one is off of the 60 heading east out of LA.  Of course, he could ask his teacher how s/he practices.  Or others in the band, if he's joining a group.

[artk2002]

Feileadh-mor lives in Southern California....no such thing as basements here.

By the way: Welcome to both of you -- always happy to have SoCals with us.  Please post in the LA/SoCal folder -- let us know where you are!

[Sycorax]

As a former bassoonist the only advise I can give you: Put same stuff (thick fabric like velvet curtains, heavy carpets) in the room you practise in.

Apart from that I can only quote an Irish friend of mine who used to say: "A gentleman is a man who can play the bagpipes, but doesn't do it."
I don't know if this goes for ladies too. ;->

Sycorax
ducking and running

[Kaylee]

I went to Carnegie Mellon University as an undergrad.

CMU's band is called the Kilties (Andrew Carnegie, Scotsman, yes I know it's still lame).  They also have a good music school at CMU, and they used to recruit people to play bagpipes in the band.

They would teach these people to play bagpipes in the morning, in the parking lot outside my freshman dorm.

Anything less heinous than this, I would not complain about.   

[Lisbeth]

I love bagpipes and many other instruments that have loud sounds to them.

But I have to agree that a public park probably isn't the best place to play them.

I can understand your not wanting to do it at home where it might disturb your neighbors, but you would be doing the same in a park that's close to a residential area.

I'd either look for a rural area where you can play them, or see if there's a music school or place with a practice room where instruments could be played.  I realize that neither might be a practical choice, and in that case, I'd try to negotiate with the neighbors for a time when you can play where you'll either not be disturbing them or they can take it.

[shuniah]

When my friends were learning the pipes, they did a great deal of their practicing with just the chanter (sp?). We used to call them teh "farting ducks". Would that let you get more practice in?

[artk2002]

CMU's band is called the Kilties (Andrew Carnegie, Scotsman, yes I know it's still lame).  They also have a good music school at CMU, and they used to recruit people to play bagpipes in the band.

IIRC CMU is the only university in North America that offers bagpipes as a music major.

[YogaChick]

Feileadh-mor lives in Southern California....no such thing as basements here.

Really?  Why?

[SamInTheShadows]

P.S. I love bagpipe music! . . . You go, girl!

(others posted while I was typing.)

LOL!! Im not blaming you because I didn't explicitly state it, but I am actually male.   

If you were wearing a kilt, I'd definitely go to the park to enjoy the view music...

[Kaylee]

CMU's band is called the Kilties (Andrew Carnegie, Scotsman, yes I know it's still lame).  They also have a good music school at CMU, and they used to recruit people to play bagpipes in the band.

IIRC CMU is the only university in North America that offers bagpipes as a music major.

You may very well be right.  I was a drama major.   

[Clara Bow]

Feileadh-mor lives in Southern California....no such thing as basements here.

Really?  Why?

I'm guessing here, but I bet it has something to do with stability in earthquakes.

[wordgirl]

I'm going to go against the flow here - I see NOTHING wrong with practicing in the park.

I wouldn't walk right up behind someone and blast them, but parks are neither churches nor libraries. Children play there, dogs bark. It's an open-air environment and available for use by all. I don't think the sound of bagpipes is so intrinsically offensive that it would render the park useless to anyone else. In fact, if I heard pipes I'd start looking for them and then settle down to listen. Along with fireworks and 75 percent off sales, they are like magnets for me.

Besides which, pipes are really meant to be played in the open air. If you're learning, you should learn what they are supposed to sound like from the start. If you can practice with just the chanter, of course, that's great.

[ARVolund]

I have to agree that playing a in park would be ok as long as it is fairly roomy and you are not sitting right next to someone. Maybe in the middle of the afternoon when it is not as crowded if your schedule allows it.

Bagpipe Etiquette-not something I thought I would be discussing or thinking about today when I got up. You really have  to love this site.

[thinkso]

My husband practices either 1) just the chanter or 2) with full pipes and drones in our walk-in closet.  All that clothing really helps muffle the sound.

Under his kilt?   He says he wears "nothing but good intentions!".   Hee hee.