Even Newer Poll!

[elbowmusic]

Okay a screwed up. It won't let me edit it, so here's how I meant to make the last poll.

When I think of playing music, I think of playing it with other people. One nice thing about being in a Pipe Band is that you get to play on a regular basis with other musicians. But I'm interested in you other pipers. Do you play often with others? Whether it be once a week, once a month or often, but sporadically, do you get a chance to play with other people?

[scoutcow]

I play in a folk rock/metal band. We practice once in two weeks, so I'll play together with electric guitar, bass, cello, drums and 2 singers then. I play GHB, medieval bagpipe and whistles in the band.
I've only played together with another piper once. A few weeks ago at the Scotland Festival here there was another guy with a medieval bagpipe in the same tuning, so we played a few tunes together

[CHasR]

Okay a screwed up. It won't let me edit it, so here's how I meant to make the last poll.

When I think of playing music, I think of playing it with other people. One nice thing about being in a Pipe Band is that you get to play on a regular basis with other musicians. But I'm interested in you other pipers. Do you play often with others? Whether it be once a week, once a month or often, but sporadically, do you get a chance to play with other people?

Usually there's an ulterior motive (like a gig) involved...this will mean rehearsal with the other musician(s) sometime prior (prefrerably) to the performance...
Unless it's a standing act (like Zampognari di Fila..) where rehearsals are more or less on a regular basis, these pick-up kind of duos, trios, (with pipes and something else) etc normally never go beyond a rehearsal or two, despite the best efforts of the participants....
Not to deplete the musical value of a trad session, but Ive always found them to be a wee bit of a power trip for the 'organizer', a time eater where I should be doing something of more direct value instead of spending money on drink and sitting there holding my instrument while everyone plays in F...
A lot of effort on the more unusual pipes is spent trying to find venues for them...for a long time I pushed SSP's Firesides, Borders, half-longs, what-have-you and Uilleann, as an alternative to the multi-situation GHB. Folks just werent interested. They'd go for Uilleann, if anything, and the few bookings we got (for ssp's etc) the client was already familiar with the instrument and knew that was exactly what they wanted. Even with some media exposure, audience would go "ooo...aaaa...different pipe!" and that would be the end of it. The couple times when Ive pulled out a "derivitave GHB-type pipe" on a gig the bewildered audience looked at me as if I was somehow cheating them. "Ha. That's nice"..."Dosent sound like the real thing"... "Is that a toy?"..."Howcum that looks different?"
cripes Im such a wag. Look how Ive twisted your topic. Sorry Nate. I better get back to work See you in VT?

[elbowmusic]

I don't think you've twisted anything. I actually have the same problem with sessions. It's never been worth it for me!

Your description of people's reaction to non-ghb pipes is right on. And that's why i love Cape Breton and PEI. They are not your average cross section of people. Musicians in those lovely places know Smallpipes and Border Pipes and even like them!

Definitely see you in VT. Looking forward to it.

Nate

[macwarner57]

I happen to work at Sweetheart Flute Co here in Connecticut. And when I'm not running the 6,000 lb Clausing lathe, I'm testing whistles, flutes and playing along with the other gents in the shop. I get more than my fair share of playing done AT WORK!

And not a day goes by that we don't cackle at you poor stiffs slaving in cubicles... teehee-heehee!
_________________________
--Elbow power!--
www.macwarnerbagpipes.com

[CHasR]

And not a day goes by that we don't cackle at you poor stiffs slaving in cubicles... teehee-heehee!

Im usually sweating it out playing Flowers of the Forest in some dingy cemetery laughing at you poor stiffs slaving away at a lathe in a flute factory!!

[Yuri]

I used to play with a pipe-and-tabor player, playing medieval music. Since I live in a country with population about the size of a medium-sized shopping mall's over in the States, the possibility of gigs is rather remote. Not only most people haven't heard of any other pipes than the GHB, they never heard of the middle ages either.
Now, if I did gigs for sheep, that would be different. The population is certainly there. Maybe I could start with baa baa black sheep...

[pancelticpiper]

I play GHB in a pipe band and play uilleann and low whistle at Irish sessions, and have for more than 30 years.

Over the last few years I've been bringing Scottish smallpipes to the Irish sessions more and more, teaching GHB tunes to the other players. Most of the other musicians like the GHB tunes, but there's one fiddler who leaves the room whenever I get the SSP's out- a strange sort of snobbery IMHO. This same fiddler REALLY hates my "border pipes" (actually old 3/4 pipes).

I've never enjoyed playing by myself all that much. But 99% of my gigs are solo GHB or uilleann, simply due to pricing.

About reaction to non-GHB's at gigs, I have played my old "3/4 pipes" with "border" chanter at a number of funerals where the people have requested tunes that don't fit on the GHB scale, and nobody seemed to notice the difference. Of course the so-called "3/4" pipes are really about 7/8 size, and to most people look like a GHB.

I have done a few gigs on my Cornish Doublepipes, where the people either specifically wanted Cornish pipes or specifically wanted Renaissance non-GHB pipes.