Either intentionally or through a serendipitous
accident, you have found the Jolly Piperman!
The Jolly Piperman is dedicated to helping make
bagpipers better musicians, and making "other"
musicians more knowledgeable about that dreadful,
screaming demon known as the Great Highland Bagpipe.
One thing I have noticed, in my years of playing in
tiny pipe bands in remote areas of the US and
Canada, is that music education designed for
pipers is not available in many areas.
Often, tuning instruction occurs for 30 seconds
before band practice, and answers to common but
complicated musical questions are gleaned from
internet sources. (That works, and it doesn't. When
was the last time you were able to hold a piece of music
up to your computer and ask "what the heck is this weird
squiggly thing?" and get a decent reply?)
Listening and performing skills, as well as general
knowledge, are crucial to a musician’s
development, and this applies equally to
bagpipers.
Traditionally, ear training skills for bagpipers are
passed on by experienced instructors, using a
strong oral tradition that has existed since the
15th century. But when you are snowbound outside a
small town in central British Columbia and are trying to
tune your chanter by yourself with only your cat to tell
you which note is out of tune and in which direction, 500
years of oral tradition is of little comfort.
part, by the International Society to
Abolish E Doublings, the American
Spastic Finger Foundation and the
United Carpal Tunnel Club.
He proudly fights for the right of
all pipers to be respected as
musicians, as well as bagpipers.
His second claim to fame is that he
is a notoriously snappy dresser!
Pronounced Kyawl
Beein, is Gaelic for
sweet, melodious,
harmonious music.
(Or, it may mean "I
have a wad of purple
lint in my pocket".
These translations
can be so tricky...)
should I care?"
Pipers not only have a right to know these things, it really makes them appear much less silly to other musicians.
We owe it to ourselves and our art to raise our level of knowledge!
- Carolyn Watts (a.k.a. The Jolly Piperman)
