tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54496242011-07-30T15:38:08.668-04:00Peter Walker, Highland piper and Scottish FiddlerPeterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.comBlogger1571100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-82705501475154200282011-05-26T08:48:00.002-04:002011-05-26T09:44:29.894-04:00

Tickets bought, passport en route, B&B's being investigated. I'm looking forward to this trip!My recent increase in interest in dance has made look at Highland Dance tunes & sets on pipes last night for the first time in ages. I really ought to focus on building a repertoire for that for a while. I've also spent some time on flute, trying to improve my embouchure, with a little help from my

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-85909945278119780602011-04-28T10:35:00.002-04:002011-04-28T10:38:20.610-04:00

Fiddle Club is taking a week-long trip to Cape Breton this summer. I'm somewhat excited, though I have no idea what to expect. I'm even thinking of not bringing instruments, to be there just to listen and learn.I'll probably book the flight this weekend, after I get my passport renewal process underway.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-8346473027850100332011-04-14T09:36:00.004-04:002011-04-14T12:57:17.060-04:00

Well, rather than try to summarize my musical career since my last major post, I'll just summarize the last month and pick up from there.And it's been a busy month. on March 20, I hosted the March Fiddle Club meeting at my house, which featured some great tunes from a little-known composer (and from his publisher too), a fun jam, and my venison stew. The very next week was the annual Fiddle Club

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-36572656691433522752011-03-28T08:58:00.002-04:002011-03-28T09:17:01.401-04:00

It's been a year since my last post, and honestly, it's been a lot of business as usual in that time. Gigs, tunes, practice, that sort of thing.The one new thing to report is that I've been intermittently taking Scottish Country Dance lessons since the fall 2010, and have picked up a great instructional DVD of Scottish Step Dance, and have so far learned (sort of) one whole step!We're coming out

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-55836886170258659002010-03-08T13:23:00.002-05:002010-03-08T13:31:01.721-05:00

EJ Jones built a set of border pipes for me, based on an 18th century example from the Mopreth chantry museum. The originals were made of sycamore, brass, and ivory, so that's what he made these from.I had him make me a spare tenor-A drone, so I could set up with 2 tenors and one bass (like the pipes in the photo), or tenor, baritone, and bass (like the usual border pipes); but only had 3 holes

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-12682780740131385402010-02-28T08:05:00.013-05:002010-03-04T12:09:44.415-05:00

With the purchase of my pewter-and-horn mounted kingwood pipes, very similar to the Waterloo set from c. 1715, from Al Saguto in October 2006, my period piper kit got a lot more accurate, and I got a great set of drones. But they were chanterless! I had a Hamish Moore 440 chanter, based on a late 18th century source, which I quite liked, and played with them for a while, but the wood was wrong -

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-27378400352980876672010-02-10T13:58:00.001-05:002010-02-10T14:01:39.505-05:00

So things are taking off with the Devil's Tailors, and my solo site has languished. I've had many gigs, a bunch of new instruments, and a lot of new experiences.But until I have time to get truly caught up, here are three performances from me at a Burns Supper on 1/23/10:

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-9223602429347762842008-09-16T09:58:00.002-04:002008-09-16T10:19:10.115-04:00

Well, it's been slow posting here at the Boghadubh Blog. I've been mostly focusing my efforts on The Devil's Tailors (who have a blog now, if not yet a site). We've changed our lineup, are doing more songs, and are basically having a blast.I've started teaching a lot over the summer, both bagpipes and fiddle, and did a few solo gigs, in addition to Celebrate Fairfax! with The Devil's Tailors. The

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-43094408268287358302008-04-18T10:15:00.002-04:002008-04-18T10:27:27.334-04:00

We're now confirmed to play June 7th at 6:30 PM on the Folk Stage at the Celebrate Fairfax! outdoor festival in Fairfax, VA. They're also trying to get us to play another time-slot the next day, Sunday, June 8th. It's a big festival, and should be loads of fun.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-71867902525992983092008-04-08T07:30:00.005-04:002008-04-09T10:16:16.209-04:00

I listened to the tape last night. Now, it's important to remember that the mixer tape out isn't necessarily what the audience heard.But that said, the levels were all off, except on the pipes+fiddle sets. The vocals, bodhran, and cittern were way too high. The gain on some of the vocals was probably too high too, meaning distortion. The fiddles and guitars were too low; although if the cittern

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-15245116164133427352008-04-07T09:32:00.002-04:002008-04-07T10:01:27.992-04:00

Well, it was officially our second outing under the name "The Devil's Tailors", but it felt more like our first real debut. This year, we had a full band and a nice long set.I spent the morning setting up, and then played for the Alexandria branch of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society with Julie Gorka. Then it was time for us to get going. Rhianon had to cancel, because their singers all

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-58817539690809714292008-02-19T07:51:00.006-05:002009-04-07T15:46:29.565-04:00

It looks like the Devil's Tailors is back on track here. I secured the National Tartan Day gig, and managed to put together a band for it. Anders will be available again starting in May, but even with the distance small gigs might be out of his reach. So I've brought on board Jim Stimson, the lute player in my in-the-works Scottish early music ensemble. Jim will be positioned to fill in for

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-39428285782200628262008-02-07T08:22:00.000-05:002008-02-07T12:12:44.568-05:00

Well, where to start?My personal schedule has screwed with my practice in a terrible way, but I'm hoping to get back into it soon. So I'll break it down by topic:Bands:The Devil's Tailors has a new repertoire. Now I just need to track down its guitarists! Chris appears to be out of pocket, probably doing research in upstate NY, and Anders and I finally tagged up - it looks like he's going to be

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-53692910526473037522007-12-03T11:00:00.000-05:002007-12-04T11:02:40.830-05:00

From the comment(s) on the previous post:frustrated piper in hiatus who used to read your competition posts writes: No updates lately?You're right. I should get on that! New general update coming soon, maybe this afternoon - along with Xmas walk pics of my unit.[Update: Okay, maybe this weekend. I'm behind on my session blog too, I'll try to get caught up across the board.] I don't know if

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-73756037601566455922007-04-10T08:18:00.000-04:002007-04-10T09:32:35.382-04:00

Piping:My playing has become a bit sloppy. I have to work on my taorluaths a lot, and clean out some crossing noises. Other than that, my competition march is coming along. The strathspey is pretty good too - the main issue is to point the dot-flag pair before a triplet, so the flagged note is consistently smaller than the first two notes of the triplet to follow. And open up doublings that

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-35502427069670392362007-04-09T12:14:00.001-04:002009-04-07T15:47:03.636-04:00

The Devil's Tailors officially performed their first gig at the National Tartan Day celebration at Market Square in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia, on April 7th, 2007 (a day after National Tartan Day proper. The line-up for this gig included myself, Chris Lindsay on guitar and bodhran, and a virtual Anders Johannson on guitar for Cairn o' Mount (courtesy of a 2005 recording, iTunes, and my Mac

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-58644667632400739062007-03-07T12:28:00.000-05:002007-04-09T12:54:54.868-04:00

After finishing studying harmony and backing with Elke, I've been sent to the woodshed to practice the techniques for a while. Elke and I have moved on to the Grand Northeast style, using the Hunter Collection. It's an interesting and very counter-intuitive style of playing. On pipes, it's been mainly a struggle to just keep up with all the band and solo competition stuff coming down the pipeline

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1168012281856773242007-01-05T10:37:00.000-05:002007-01-14T14:10:29.666-05:00

During my trip to Houston, my friend Jay, a professional photographer with top-of-the-line camera and a mini-studio in his living room, took a whole bunch of extremely high resolution pictures of my baroque violin, my new pochette, my 18th century Highland pipes, and my Scottish smallpipes. The pictures are pretty gigantic, so I'll have to shrink them a bit before putting them up on the site, but

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1168008562756144192007-01-05T09:31:00.000-05:002007-01-05T10:15:02.796-05:00

I've spent the last semester with Elke studying how to back tunes. We first started with chords, then worked a bit on arpeggiated backing, then dabbled in close harmony. I'm still only at the basic level, and it takes me a half-dozen times through a tune - and then only in the most accessible keys - to begin to get the chord progression. So it'll take a lot more practice for this to be a

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1166832201526232412006-12-22T19:02:00.000-05:002006-12-22T19:03:21.543-05:00

I've been studying chords and backing with Elke. More on that later, but it made me especially enjoy this:

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1165837851848351092006-12-11T06:37:00.000-05:002006-12-11T06:50:52.010-05:00

We had a great time at the Alexandria Scottish Christmas Walk, despite the fact we had light turnout with the Appins, as some people had to cancel due to illness. We retired to Murphy's afterwords, where I was plied with booze and, at the request of some WWI reenactors, piped for the ancient and honorable Highland plastic butter-knife dance (similar to the Argyll Broadswords - but without the

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1164640376058990062006-11-27T10:03:00.000-05:002006-11-27T10:12:56.070-05:00

It's been a busy month, but mainly a month of home improvement, rather than music. I have done a wedding gig, and played the Lyceum Scottish Preview event last weekend.And I now know how to wear my blue bonnet. I've never been able to get it to look like the others' - it always looked more like a renaissance floppy hat rather than a bonnet. When I arrived at the Lyceum, one of my fellow

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1162687697143444982006-11-04T19:43:00.000-05:002006-11-04T19:48:17.156-05:00

It's been a while since I've posted anything. Things have been busy on all fronts.I've been gigging and teaching more, so that's good. The pipe band won in Anne Arundel.I bought an AWESOME set of 18th-century pipes (pictures coming soon) for 1/7th what I would have paid for the set I was looking at, and my set really is one of a kind. Might need to get a matching koranda-wood chanter for them,

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1156172792314509502006-08-21T09:05:00.000-04:002006-08-21T11:06:50.816-04:00

Well, it was a light weekend for music & reenacting. I've been working up a number of alow airs and slow marches for this upcoming gig at Arlington Cemetary on Sunday morning. Here are the ones I'm looking at, starting with the ones I already know:Slow March of the 74th HLIMy Dearest DearHector the HeroBells of DunblaneAmazing Grace24th Guards Brigade at Anzio (played slowly)Flowers of the

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1155565972188082232006-08-14T10:28:00.000-04:002006-08-14T10:32:52.190-04:00

Well, Chris was MIA for the rehearsal; dunno why (though I'm guessing he was called out of town for work). So Rosemary and I spent 4 hours getting caught up, both personally and musically. We did 5 sets that we had a guitar track from Anders for, and looked at Hector briefly.At one point, Rosemary exclaimed after going through The Devil's Reels, "Wow, the Scottish and Irish styles are really

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1154711006317690282006-08-12T20:02:00.000-04:002006-08-16T09:38:41.266-04:00

Okay, so this is turning into a real series.I made myself a new sword belt. The old one, which was just a simple baldric of two 2" belts stitched together, didn't support the sword, so the basket would tip upwards, the scabbard would flop around and collide with my legs when I walked, and the whole thing tended to fall out of the belt a lot. That, and the buckle was riveted on, which is

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1155298964136237222006-08-11T08:17:00.000-04:002006-08-11T09:30:50.056-04:00

That's the bad news. I've almost inverted the long and short notes. So I'm going to have to learn the high hand throws the old fashioned way, just like I learned the low hand ones so long ago.Other than cutting short some phrase endings, my teacher liked the rest of the ground of the piobaireachd I'm trying to nail down; though he suggested I view a connecting note figure as a tachum instead of a

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1154376201538148452006-07-31T16:01:00.000-04:002006-08-04T12:41:58.433-04:00

So I finished the dirk, except for the end nut (which I will make myself) and the butt plate (which will see some decorative carving):Not bad at all. Next time I do this, I'll make the grooves deeper, and carve in wooden "studs" at the intersections between knots. The nut isn't quite centered, so when I file down a castle nut from soft steel or iron, I'll try to hide that fact by leaving the tang

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1154376014426295082006-07-31T15:56:00.000-04:002006-07-31T16:01:09.486-04:00

I finally got pictures from the 2005 Scottish Christmas Walk in Old Town Alexandria. As fellow reenactors Gerry and Susan were bar-hopping after the event, we noticed that a photography studio was taking free pictures of parade participants. So we eagerly took them up on the offer!Click on the thumbnail for the bigger version.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1153430455176981632006-07-20T17:18:00.000-04:002006-07-20T17:20:55.176-04:00

The dirk handle is coming along:Very nice, if I must say so myself! Just 4 more Triskelion patterns to go on the haunches (one on this side, three on the other). The wood burning tool really did wonders to cover up my weaknesses as a carver. I also completed the replacement chape for the scabbard, and began cutting out the butt plate for the dirk handle.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1153155820857920782006-07-17T12:32:00.000-04:002006-07-17T13:03:40.950-04:00

The music front proceeds as usual. The only interesting tidbit is that everyone in band has tapped the reed seats on our chanters with a 12-24 tap. The screw threads allow for extremely precise adjustments to tuning. Why didn't someone think of this a decade (or more) ago?I'll probably also be using a tap soon to make my own end nut for the dirk. I need to find me a length of soft steel or iron,

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1152632472414453152006-07-11T11:33:00.000-04:002006-07-20T17:18:32.716-04:00

Well, it's been kinda crazy around here, hence no posting.On solo pipes, I'm looking at MSR sets; my competition one for next year will probably be Charles Edward Hope Vere/Susan MacDonald/Colonel MacDonald, but I'm learning others to develop my acumen in the idiom. I really need to spend some time with piobaireachd again, though.In the pipe band, we've had our ups and downs. Some busy weeks for

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1148404975039665442006-05-23T13:10:00.000-04:002006-05-23T13:22:55.106-04:00

The pipe band had a less than stellar showing at the American University gig. In the middle of the first set, the band cut off in a wave of uncertainty in the middle of the third tune. Two pipers didn't know the music, so they were blowing drones. We had been warned that the cutoff might come at any time, and I think someone between them must have mistaken the "stop marking time" signal for a

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1147095654421289172006-05-08T09:12:00.000-04:002006-05-09T22:50:04.476-04:00

Rosemary and I played together for the first time in public on Saturday, in the third of my Potomac Overlook Park gigs. Rosemary insisted that she only play piano, because she's trying to get over her own fears of performance (since that's not her instrument; she may teach it, but she took it because conservatory required it, not out of any love). And she did great, and we sounded fantastic. A

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1147093721124701782006-05-01T08:54:00.000-04:002006-05-08T09:08:42.663-04:00

I got clobbered in competition again. Fourth out of a field of five. Granted, I did have the nerves, but I think I acquitted myself well. The woman who took first is much as I was two and a half years ago: a skilled (if lapsed) violinist taking up Scottish fiddling after a long vacation from the instrument, playing a pretty basic repertoire.After some frustration and soul-searching, I realized

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1143486059389132972006-03-27T13:25:00.000-05:002006-03-29T23:36:54.173-05:00

I've been playing a lot of dance music recently. I played for a dance class with Liz Donaldson before heading to Houston for St. Patrick's, and yesterday, I played for a fiddle club dance. A few weeks back, I played with CAPD for the Thistle Dancers. I'm enjoying the challenge - it's difficult, especially on these long sets, to be so consistent with tempo and rhythm, but it's a good exercise.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1142969494795907782006-03-21T14:23:00.000-05:002006-03-21T14:31:34.840-05:00

The idea behind The Devil's Tailors began just over two years ago, on 3/18/2004, when Anders announced his intention to join whatever outfit I started. Six months later, Anders and I had our first rehearsal together. A year later, in March 2005, Anders and I had completed four rehearsals and had recorded some "concept" demos. Twenty months later, we'd invited Chris to join us. Rosemary came a

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1141746947727998412006-03-07T10:41:00.000-05:002006-03-07T10:55:47.800-05:00

On another topic, I've recently been getting a lot of new sheet music. I purchased the Gow Collections and Repositories from Fiddler's Crossing, to add to my copy of Marshall. It's great to have those old bass lines too.My recent find that's got me the most excited is actually Anders' Xmas gift: 2 volumes of the J&R Glen collection for Highland Bagpipe. These books are about 100 years old, and

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1141746022213277502006-03-07T10:22:00.000-05:002006-03-07T10:41:29.226-05:00

My music has been moving at blazing speed recently; not just the tunes themselves, but the pace of things.I've had two parades in the last 2 or so weeks with Alexandria. Both finished up for some of us at Pat Troy's, and I was dragged on stage four times after the St. Paddy's for little 5-10 minute pipe sets while the musician playing that stage took a break. Though I made lots of mistakes when

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1138287901611603032006-01-26T10:03:00.000-05:002006-01-31T00:11:31.650-05:00

I think I may have found a magic trick to end my pre-competition jitters.But for this magic trick, I need a volunteer to assist me...

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1138056809687854282006-01-23T17:49:00.000-05:002006-01-23T17:53:29.700-05:00

I don't know what it is, but the better and more comfortable (dare I say "brazen" I become about public performances, the more of a basket case I become in recital and competition situations. Elke's students had a studio recital, and I fell apart. I am playing so beneath my ability in such situations, because I get so nervous. And rationally, I know better, I'm trying to keep it under control,

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1137592859851490662006-01-18T09:00:00.000-05:002006-01-18T09:29:45.736-05:00

So today's a bit of an anniversary for me. I've had my new violin for a year now.I played on the same inexpensive student violin from 13 to when I stopped playing classical violin at 16; and when I took up the instrument again as a fiddler 15 years later, this was the instrument I went back to. I loved it, it was made the same year I was, but there were limitations to it I couldn't even realize

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1136829488289318062006-01-09T11:16:00.000-05:002006-01-09T12:58:08.330-05:00

I had a good meeting with the people over at Potomac Overlook Park. They want me to do 6 90 minute shows over the spring, and if it works out, they'll be looking to give me the "artist in residence" slot. It'll be tough to get accompanists, but I'll see what I can do. It will be a fun little promotional thing.I got my smallpipes back from EJ, and they're awesome. His new reeds take so little air

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1136388232578286792006-01-04T10:16:00.000-05:002006-01-04T10:23:52.590-05:00

The Devil's Tailors are beginning to take shape as a band. Though the latest addition isn't official yet, here's how we might be looking as a lineup:Pete - Fiddle, Lead Vocals, Highland Pipes, Scottish Smallpipes (plus occasionally Tenor Banjo, Mandolin, Cittern, Wooden Flute, Whistles)Anders - Lead & Rhythm Guitar, Backup Vocals, Mandolin, Irish BouzoukiChris - Rhythm Guitar, Backup Vocals,

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1135471273008125672005-12-24T19:27:00.000-05:002005-12-24T19:44:19.040-05:00

I should be starting up some regular work on the Uilleann pipes again soon. One of Elise's flute students (the one I ran into at the Christmas walk) and I will be working together to self-teach the Uilleann pipes. I will loan-to-own her my spare practice Uilleann set, and play the other. I recently reeded them up with the 3rd generation plastic reeds from Bagpipes Galore, and they sound pretty

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1133806966755101492005-12-05T13:21:00.000-05:002005-12-05T13:22:46.766-05:00

It's official!I'm now piping in Grade III in the EUSPBA!I knew it was coming, but still very nice to have confirmed.Now the real work begins...

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1133793790132743302005-12-05T09:27:00.000-05:002005-12-05T09:46:50.646-05:00

I discovered how different piobaireachd written and piobaireachd played can be. I have been crash-learning Black Donald's March, and John forgot to mention the scansion, so I assumed it was 4-pulse. So I was playing it HMMH; when it turns out to be 3-pulse, played MMHL, with the light pulse almost as a pick-up note. This completely changes the feel of the ground from common to compound time.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1133267925290694452005-11-29T07:23:00.000-05:002005-11-29T13:14:23.596-05:00

Back in June, Anders and I were at a loggerjams with Cairn O' Mount - I wanted the guitar part to stick to the simple driving rhythm part he had previously recorded for me. He was already bored with that, and wanted to try something different. We went round and round, and it got kind of ugly.This last weekend, with Anders in town, we hit on another approach. I have been jamming with a local

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1131991400493308712005-11-14T12:54:00.000-05:002005-11-14T13:03:20.506-05:00

I'm still waiting on the results of my Upgrade Request, but the official year-end standings are in. Out of 797 pipers in Grade IV Senior in the Eastern US Pipe Band Association, I ranked 4th in both overall and piobaireachd. My points per competition was a bit disappointing, so consistency will be my main goal for next year.We're working on new tunes in pipe band: a set of march, air, strathspeys

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1130187135817278922005-10-24T16:45:00.000-04:002005-10-24T17:11:47.790-04:00

Competition season ended this weekend with a whimper, instead of a bang. I tanked in all my solo fiddle and pipe contests at Richmond, and a chanter squeal from me dragged the band down at least a notch. I did have a wonderful time with the reenacting, though.I also think I made huge strides in my new Cape Breton competition set on fiddle from Elke's advice, I just got terribly nervous and

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1129055697140693452005-10-11T14:21:00.000-04:002005-11-14T13:03:55.180-05:00

All things considered, the Anne Arundel games went well, despite horrible weather.On the plus side, I took a 1st in the 2/4 march and got my second Above Grade Level - further improving my chances of making it into Grade III. On the down side, for reasons I'm not clear on, I didn't place in the piobaireachd contest. I felt I was in tune and played very well, despite playing in the driving rain (

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1128354938156609742005-10-03T11:49:00.000-04:002005-10-03T11:55:42.130-04:00

The EUSPBA stats are in, and I'm currently ranked as the #1 Grade IV Senior piper, out of more than 780 in my grade.It won't last. Apparently more people scratched at NH than I'd thought, so I only have a 2 point buffer. And it's a real horse-race - everyone in the top 5 is within 8 points of each other. And there are much better pipers, like Rob Riszk and Nate Green, among them. I'm pretty much

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1127851859078327662005-09-27T16:00:00.000-04:002005-09-27T16:12:23.803-04:00

I had a very successful showing at the pipe competitions at the New Hampshire Highland Games this weekend. The morning was fairly cold - the 40s - and damp. My first contest was the piobaireachd; the judge had no comments on my playing (which I thought was quite good), but hated the sound of my (teacher's) chanter. The B, C, D, and E were flat she said. She strongly recommended I get someone to

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1127484642535406422005-09-23T09:57:00.000-04:002005-09-23T10:43:50.373-04:00

Yesterday, the City of Alexandria Pipes and Drums played for the opening ceremony for the PGA President's Cup golf tournament.I arrived at the band's meeting point in Manassas, VA (the western suburbs of DC) at 6:50 AM, 10 minutes before our bus was to depart for the golf course. I threw on my kilt and shirt, tossed the rest of my uniform and my pipes into a bag, and we headed over, and I

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1127320163117968652005-09-21T12:24:00.000-04:002005-09-21T12:35:11.350-04:00

The trip up to MA to visit Anders and Kim was musically fruitful. Anders and I got a lot of arranging done. Kim was very excited about some new songs I suggested for her (and one she picked for herself), so we got started on some of them, and she was sounding great, and was making progress on bodhran too!Since then, Kim has indicated a reluctance to be in the band for now, but I'm hoping I'll

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1124727973622050522005-08-22T12:26:00.001-04:002009-04-07T15:48:05.692-04:00

Ah, it's nice to have a break. No competitions, few lessons, only a couple performances with the pipe band. Of course, this disincentivies me to practice, so I gotta stop being totally slack.Things went poorly for me at the Virginia Scottish Games in the pipe contests a few weeks back. I didn't place in the piobaireachd, and barely placed in the 2/4. I think the problem was condensation: a

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1121872556928560612005-07-20T11:11:00.000-04:002005-07-20T11:15:56.936-04:00

My pipe teacher has taken me off strathspeys for the time being to back up and work on my grace note chops. Apparently I'm not lifting my fingers enough for my grace notes, and (counter-intuitively), my d-grace notes are too big. This is especially evident in my strathspey triplets, especially the low-hand triplets that use the GDE pattern of gracing. So he's sent me off to learn some jigs that

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1121182004044808572005-07-12T11:14:00.000-04:002005-07-14T08:37:00.406-04:00

Jan Tappan has judged me on fiddle three times: at the May 2004 nationals, at the May 2005 nationals, and this last weekend at Grandfather Mountain. When I got up to get my score sheet from her, she said reassuringly, "You get better every time I hear you". But I just can't see it. Maybe I am getting better in my contests, but in low-stress situations, like in front of an audience, I'm getting so

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1120735076398166152005-07-07T07:06:00.000-04:002005-07-07T07:18:54.310-04:00

Well, looks like Tropical Storm (now depression) Claire has delayed my weekend plans. I'd expected to head out to Grandfather Mountain this morning at around 3 AM, get there by 10:30 AM, and have the rest of the day to have fun. But the National Weather Service predicted 24 hours of nonstop rain starting sometime yesterday, not clearing up until very early tomorrow morning. So I'll leave tomorrow

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1120052903657542962005-06-29T09:31:00.000-04:002005-06-29T09:58:44.876-04:00

This weekend saw some interesting developments on the musical end. It started off with a gift Anders gave me Thursday night - a 19th century book of Scottish songs, with biographical information about the songwriters. The book is very expansive, and there's a lot of obscure material in there. I can't wait to discover the lost gems in it. Some I might have to set to music, some come with known

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1119442744588910372005-06-22T08:13:00.000-04:002005-06-22T08:19:04.606-04:00

I've been talking to my instructor a lot about the cost of competition. Specifically, how it's very difficult to maintain a band repertoire, a competition repertoire (light music and piobaireachd), and learn new tunes all at the same time. It's doable, but you have to have a lot of energy and keep at it.Well, I haven't kept at it for the last month or so. It's been all about competition and band.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1118927666403388302005-06-16T09:04:00.000-04:002005-06-16T09:14:26.406-04:00

Competition season rolls on.Weekend before last, I took a 1st in 2/4, a 3rd in piobaireachd, and a 5th in 6/8 march (would have done better, but lost my bass drone) at the Southern New Hampshire Highland Games. I was fairly happy with those results.I wasn't quite as happy with my showing last weekend, at the Harrisburg Pipes and Drums Festival in Harrisburg, PA. I took a 2nd in Slow Air, and a

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1116719332267904222005-05-22T20:10:00.000-04:002005-05-22T20:07:38.490-04:00

Saturday, I finished first for the first time in this competition season, at the Colonial Highland Gathering in Fair Hill, MD. The 1st place finish (field of 15?) was for the 2/4 March contest, the only contest held for Grade IV Sr. The judge thought my tuning was good and my blowing steady, and my execution over all very good. My expression was a little lacking, and I have to agree with him.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1117106784051277232005-05-19T07:25:00.000-04:002005-06-16T09:14:51.416-04:00

A few pictures my father took of me at the Houston Highland Games:

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1116433262730334072005-05-18T12:10:00.000-04:002005-05-18T12:26:17.353-04:00

Last weekend, I competed in my second U.S. National Scottish fiddle championship. As expected, I didn't place. It was a much bigger field, 10 contestants, and former National and Junior National champions locked up all four places.I got nervous again, but my technique had improved so much over the last two weeks that all in all, I think I put in a good show. I lost the tune in the A-part of Banks

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1115643853149052512005-05-09T08:59:00.000-04:002005-05-09T09:04:13.243-04:00

I woke up at 3 AM on Saturday morning to get ready to go to the Bridgeport Highland Games in Bridgeport, WV. Pipe contests in 2/4, 6/8, and a rarity for Grade IV, piobaireachd full score - which means double aggregate points for the year. An hour or so getting ready, and then 4 hours on the road, stay at the games until the score sheets were out, back on the road, home by 4 PM or so.I quickly

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1115127725405944802005-05-03T09:25:00.000-04:002005-05-03T14:04:07.153-04:00

Anders was in town to rehearse the band material last weekend, and we decided to work on songs this time. On Saturday and Sunday, we came up with the basic arrangement of three songs we plan to perform, Cairn O' Mount, Sergeant Where's Mine, and The Mosstrooper's Lament. We also came up with the main instrumental solos for the first two songs (The Bonniest Lass in the World, and Hector the Hero,

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1114175927462891652005-04-22T09:09:00.000-04:002005-04-22T09:18:47.463-04:00

On Wednesday night, I played fiddle for a Scottish Country Dance class at the Durant Center in Alexandria, VA as my first paying gig, with Julie Gorka on piano and Becky Ross on lead fiddle.Because this was going to be my first time playing solo for a dance, the teacher had suggested that a more experienced fiddler be hired, and that I play second fiddle, so to speak. This was very helpful in

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1113566657482890922005-04-15T07:43:00.000-04:002005-04-15T08:04:17.486-04:00

The fiddle chair for most of the DC-area Highland games approached me at fiddle club, and asked my permission to use pictures taken of me last year's games on the Virginia Scottish Games brochure and website. The pictures are of me at the fiddle contest, competing in ~1715 Highland garb, which I wore to hang out with the Appins. The pictures are great, and I'm going to try to get a friend to get

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1113329253658721042005-04-12T13:44:00.000-04:002005-04-12T14:07:33.663-04:00

There is a hazard to playing Scotland the Brave at a Scottish fiddle session. There just might be a piper in your midst, and he just might have his practice chanter with him.It did get quite the laugh when I pulled out the practice chanter and marched back into the room at this week's post-fiddle club session, but it's always dicey to try to play in tune. The low hand was pretty close to 440 Hz,

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1112968987877747402005-04-08T09:54:00.000-04:002005-04-08T10:54:38.200-04:00

Last night, Pipe Major John Sprague announced that I was the newest member of the City of Alexandria Pipes and Drums. He reminded the band that I had kept with tradition, ditching my first band gig (the Apple Blossom Parade) for a competition (Southern Maryland Celtic Festival).People make fun of the pipes a lot, and there are certainly people who can't stand the sound of them, and that's fair.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1112369053361391482005-04-01T10:22:00.000-05:002005-04-01T10:24:13.360-05:00

I had to discontinue my Irish fiddle lessons for financial reasons, starting this month. I suppose it's a good thing for now, I really haven't been able to concentrate the effort that I wanted on the Irish style, since I was concentrating so much on the Scottish fiddle and pipes, and the pending band.I'm hoping I'll have the money to resume lessons next year, not to mention the spare time.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1111423158662251862005-03-21T11:27:00.000-05:002005-03-21T11:54:19.333-05:00

I listened to the raw sound files again, and it sounded better than I had remembered. I also noticed that my bowing wasn't quite as staccato as I remembered, but that there was a different problem that was exacerbating this impression. In my reels and jigs, I've been playing my quarter notes as an eighth note followed by an eighth note rest, rather than drawing it out the full length. Philippe

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1110899784734873912005-03-16T10:10:00.000-05:002005-03-21T11:56:49.700-05:00

Anders and I got a lot of great work done at this rehearsal. We're definitely seeing incremental improvements each time we play together. Anders brought a small mixer and a couple of studio microphones, and I went out and bought a couple of boom stands, and we recorded on real equipment this time, and the difference was huge. I'm still not completely happy with my intonation, that's something I'm

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1110553013909158192005-03-11T09:50:00.001-05:002005-03-11T10:00:26.736-05:00

So I went back and spent a week on the technique on the strathspeys I was having trouble with on pipes, marking all the weights of the beats, drawing ties to indicate all quadruplets, and focussing on execution. When I went to my lesson, wow, what a difference. I played Bob of Fettercairn and Maggie Cameron with my instructor, and both were coming along very well. Also, I think I'm beginning to

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1109767670842249562005-03-02T07:39:00.000-05:002005-03-02T07:47:50.843-05:00

I was very disappointed with myself at my pipe lesson. The piobaireachd material, Struan Robertson's Salute, went fairly well. But when we got to the strathspey I've been working on for a year now, Bob of Fettercairn, I just couldn't do it. I was no better than I was a year ago, and worse than I was six months ago."Musically, it's clear you know what you're trying to do", my instructor told me. "

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1109595344649332342005-02-28T07:44:00.000-05:002005-02-28T12:30:39.136-05:00

I played my first Scottish Country Dance this weekend, thrown by the fiddle club and put on at the Glen Echo, MD town hall. The turnout among musicians was quite good - we had 24. The turnout among dancers was half that, unfortunately, so a couple musicians got up and joined the dancers on the floor. The sets went very well, and we all had a lot of fun playing them. Some of the transitions were

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1108743687599142402005-02-18T11:11:00.000-05:002005-02-18T11:21:27.600-05:00

I've updated the calendar page to include all my '05 competition, fiddle club, and pipe band performances, and it looks like I'm going to be a busy fellow this year. And so far, that only includes one (tentative) professional gig, the Saturday night of the Virginia Scottish Games. That's going to be a hectic weekend (pipe, fiddle, and band contests on Saturday, wedding gig Saturday night,

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1108560119667077572005-02-16T08:12:00.000-05:002005-02-18T11:11:08.263-05:00

My new baroque-style bows arrived yesterday, and they're a lot of fun to play. They're a little light, and that seems to lead to a bit of bounce, so I'll have to put some effort into learning how to control them. I think I'll stick to my black bow for most performances still, but these will be my all-purpose period bows. The maker did cheat - on bows of this period, the frog clips into place,

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1107873166885174502005-02-08T09:24:00.000-05:002005-02-08T09:32:46.886-05:00

Anders and I got a lot of good work done on our 3rd rehearsal. We looked at most of our sets, and Anders took home recordings of most of what we did. Some of the new tunes got arrangements, and we were generally tighter. My intonation still needs work, but I'm beginning to figure out why. I don't know if it's worse because of the new violin, or, because the overtones are so much stronger, it's

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1107438508421959292005-02-03T08:38:00.000-05:002005-02-03T08:48:28.420-05:00

I am truly in love with my new violin. After a week of playing it, I played it and the old one in quick succession - after tuning them both to the same pitch standard. And the difference was striking. The old student violin was very thin-sounding, even when I hit a resonance (like a 3rd finger ringing with the string below), it was very muted, like a nasally 8 year-old singing "nanny nanny boo

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1106002898676350292005-01-17T17:56:00.000-05:002005-01-17T18:01:38.676-05:00

I got my Walter Mahr baroque violin today, and I'm in love. First of all, the instrument is gorgeous, aesthetically. The varnish is a deep, reddish orange, the figuring on the back is tiger-striped. The fingerboard and tailpiece are ebony - I'd have preferred ebony veneer over maple, but this is quite lovely in any event. The sound is quite nice to my ear. Rather than tune it to the "canonical"

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1104931158381389212005-01-05T08:09:00.000-05:002005-01-05T14:29:35.953-05:00

That's what my pipe instructor told me when we started to work on my 440 Hz concert A pipes. He retracted his slurs against the maker when I reminded him that it's a Hamish Moore chanter, and we commenced to rain curses down upon the name of the man who makes the reeds. That proving unproductive, I mentioned that I had got a Bill Durham reed to work at 432 Hz, and figured another might at 440.

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1104538749911499832005-01-01T00:00:00.000-05:002004-12-31T19:19:09.910-05:00

The original tune Should auld acquaintance be forgot, And never brought to mind? Should auld acquaintance be forgot,  And auld lang syne? For auld lang syne, my jo For auld lang syne, Should auld acquaintance be forgot,      And auld lang syne! We twa hae run about the braes   And pou’d the gowans fine, But we’ve wander’d monie a weary fit  Sin auld Lang Syne   For auld lang syne, my jo For

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1102956514560129112004-12-13T11:40:00.000-05:002004-12-13T11:48:34.560-05:00

Anders spent the weekend at my place for our second rehearsal. We got a lot more done this time around than last; we discussed some song choices, and then rolled up our sleeves and did sets. We worked through pretty much all the instrumental sets save "The Family Gow" (which we had worked on before) and "Teviot Brig", and we didn't get to the two slow airs played alone. But we got through

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1102442569646587902004-12-07T13:50:00.000-05:002004-12-07T13:02:49.646-05:00

I paraded with the Appin regiment, a 1745 Jacobite reenactor group, for the first time on Sunday. Wearing my heavy blue-and-red belted plaid, a linen shirt with a collar I modified, black-and-red tartan hose I made (with much help), a cravat, a borrowed red waistcoat and green-and-brown tartan doublet, I cut quite the figure. I was also armed to the hilt: basket hilt sword, dirk, and steel-framed

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1101997644521662962004-12-02T09:15:00.000-05:002004-12-02T09:27:24.523-05:00

The Devil's Tailors now has an almost-finalized set list. I will want to re-order some tunes for maximum effect, and add a few Scottish Waltzes, and round out the pipe sets I will play, but we now have a whole bunch of strathspey/reel and jig sets ready to go when Anders arrives in another week to rehearse. I'm also potentially going to be playing Highland Pipes on a film score soon. Anders is

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1101736720970864592004-11-29T08:56:00.000-05:002004-11-29T08:58:40.980-05:00

I learned this weekend, the hard way, that it is impossible to practice after spending all day nailing down hardwood floor. Ouch! There was a point where I couldn't even hold up my violin, I was so tired...

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1100558974147078092004-11-15T17:43:00.000-05:002004-11-17T13:43:15.236-05:00

The Bannatyne bag arrived, as expected, and I found it extremely easy to install the stocks. The blowpipe stock took two tries to get it at the right angle (so the blowpipe doesn't fly out of reach if it ever leaves my mouth). It was easy as lubricating the holes in the bag with soapy water and pushing the stocks in from the inside (which was reachable through the zipper). I then had to grease

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1100538117165588492004-11-15T11:47:00.000-05:002004-11-15T12:27:20.073-05:00

I was invited down to a party And brought my old bagpipes by chance They asked me to sing, but I said, "Ah, no, I'll play you a bit of a dance." So I picked up my pipes, and started to play But someone was foolin' about They poked a big hole in the bag o' me pipes And that was the tune that came out After a year and a half of faithful service, my Gannaway cowhide bag finally gave out. I

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1100105020894390792004-11-10T10:56:00.000-05:002004-11-10T11:43:40.893-05:00

I really rather enjoyed my first session in many months, at the Royal Mile pub on Sunday. It was also the first time I was anything close to an equal participant. There were four of use there, and though we were pretty rough around the edges, I'm sure we'll begin to click in the months to come. I got to bring out some of the new tunes I've been learning: Geordie MacLeish, Pretty Pegg, St. Kilda

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1099317747210588402004-11-01T08:50:00.000-05:002004-11-01T13:34:50.456-05:00

I am really enjoying experimenting with accenting patterns with Scottish reels. It really livens them up in a way that playing them just with swing & upbeat accents, or with the 3-in-a-bow pattern, or just straight, doesn't. The danger is, at least for a while, I will use my new tool exclusively, and not mix it up. But I'm sure that's only temporary. But certain of my reels are sounding a lot

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1098969985878112602004-10-28T08:48:00.000-04:002004-11-01T13:04:58.713-05:00

I've finally (with a few hiccups) got back into my full practice schedule, and I see how I've suffered. Never minding that the neighbors (who like the pipes) have commented that they don't hear me practice as much. Part of that was me playing in the park rather than at home, but part of that was indeed a decrease in my practice time over the last nine months, and the effects are striking. Other

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1098190530352461162004-10-19T08:34:00.000-04:002004-11-01T13:37:25.396-05:00

I haven't practicing nearly enough. Part of it is not being in a routine anymore, and I still haven't got back into it. If last night was any indication - 2 hours on pipes, 2.5 hours on fiddle, half an hour on flute - and I can keep it up, I'll be able to turn it around. On Scottish fiddle, I'm still working on accenting patterns in Cape Breton and Highland reels. On Irish fiddle, I'm working on

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1097078854584394722004-10-06T11:55:00.000-04:002004-10-06T12:07:34.586-04:00

It looks like this weekend's competitions are going to be a wash - thanks to my automotive troubles, it doesn't look like I'll even be able to get to the games on time to compete in them, never mind the fact that my practice schedule has taken a major hit over the last week or so thanks to the stress and chores of dealing with a wrecked car. But I've got one more contest this year - Richmond -

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1096635123127340772004-10-01T08:38:00.000-04:002004-10-01T08:52:03.126-04:00

Having given up (for now) on memorizing lots of tunes for session play, I've decided to broaden my repertoire of Scottish fiddling another way: by racing through the tune books as fast as I can, not memorizing tunes, but reading them to the point where I can play them at tempo, which I then do twice through, and then move on to the next tune. What this is doing is not broadening my personal

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1096303985389836022004-09-27T13:24:00.000-04:002004-10-01T08:38:17.760-04:00

It wouldn't be unfair to say that in this last weekend's competitions at the New Hampshire Highland Games, I played better than I ever have in front of a judge - on both instruments. And the results were a serious let-down. On the pipes, I took 1st in the 6/8 march (YAY ME!), and 5th in the 2/4 march. I thought I might have done better in the 2/4, but it's still a respectable showing. I didn't

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1095768784236293642004-09-21T07:56:00.000-04:002004-09-21T08:13:04.236-04:00

I went to see a Scottish folk band called North Sea Gas this weekend; considering that the band's been around for 25 years, I'm ashamed to admit that I hadn't heard of them prior to seeing their name in the Potomac Celtic Festival lineup (but I missed them then). My pal Trisha saw them during an outdoor concert near where she works, so she recruited me to meet her at Flanagan's in Bethesda for

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1095180706789576162004-09-14T13:44:00.000-04:002004-09-15T12:05:28.120-04:00

I got the spend the last week with my guitarist-to-be, Anders Johannson, with the putative purpose of rehearsing sets for our pending band. I confess that I came less prepared than I'd like, but I think Anders also mostly wanted to hang out (when his clients weren't distracting him). But we did get two great rehearsal sessions in, and as Anders put it, "This week, I thought it was most important

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5449624.post-1095180085133380572004-09-14T13:14:00.000-04:002004-09-16T17:49:57.986-04:00

I'm in a mid-season slump, it seems. I competed on pipes at the Capital District Highland games in Altamont, NY over Labor Day weekend, and the Ligonier Highland Games in Ligonier, PA the weekend thereafter. At both contests, during the 2/4 march, my bass drone cut out - though not in the piobaireachd. Nonetheless, I didn't come away empty-handed - I took 5th in the piobaireachd (ground only) at

Peterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12425550507135906000noreply@blogger.com0