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Anyone play the bagpipes?

I don't play them, but love the sound. >>>>SNIP

+1, but will add, "When played slow".

Don't know what song it was (I know the tune) but just yesterday I heard them in a fast melody and thought "Jeez, that's just as bad as those friggin' "World Cup" horns."
 
I love bagpipes. I've had a chance to see the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and the Black Watch, and I thought that they were amazing. Many years ago, I even had a chance to march to the pipes and it was a chilling experience. I wish you well in your efforts. It must be a fantastic feeling.

+1 on marching to the pipes :thumbup1:
 
A Homeless Man's funeral . . .
>
>
> As a bagpiper, I play many gigs. Recently I was asked by a funeral
> director to play at a graveside service for a homeless man. He had no
> family or friends, so the service was to be at a pauper's cemetery in
> the Kentucky back country.
>
> As I was not familiar with the backwoods, I got lost and, being a
> typical man, I didn't stop for directions. I finally arrived an hour
> late and saw the funeral guy had evidently gone and the hearse was
> nowhere in sight. There were only the diggers and crew left and they
> were eating lunch.
>
> I felt badly and apologized to the men for being late. I went to the
> side of the grave and looked down and the vault lid was already in
> place. I didn't know what else to do, so I started to play.
>
> The workers put down their lunches and began to gather around. I
> played out my heart and soul for this man with no family and friends.
> I played like I've never played before for this homeless man. And as I
> played 'Amazing Grace,' the workers began to weep. They wept, I wept,
> we all wept together. When I finished I packed up my bagpipes and
> started for my car. Though my head hung low, my heart was full.
>
> As I opened the door to my car, I heard one of the workers say, "I
> never seen nothin' like that before and I've been putting in septic
> tanks for twenty years."
>
> Apparently I'm still lost....
 
I've always wanted to learn. I bought myself a chanter and a book, but never got around to learning. I'd do much better if I had an instructor. I'm not very musically inclined and I'm not sure it is something I can learn on my own.

Her'e a clip of Johnny Bagpipes, a comediam who is very talented with the pipes.
[YOUTUBE]WAztA-Iqb4g[/YOUTUBE]

And here's a kid playing the whole Thunderstruck song:
[YOUTUBE]z9uVyf0D8eM[/YOUTUBE]
 
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Gents,

Thinking of taking up the bagpipes, but wouldn't mind talking to some chaps that play already to get some tips, run potential
purchases past etc.

Anyone?
Sorry it’s taken this long to find your thread on “Badger & Blade”.

I’m writing as a soul keenly interested in “testing the waters”, so-to-speak. I don’t know many people in the “piping world” to be honest; and so, I’m seeking advice / direction from those I could locate online initially; with the intent of radiating my exploration outward to others in the industry that I don’t know (yet). I’m 60 years old with an enormous passion for the pipes --- all kinds of pipes, really; but mostly for the SSP’s, the Border pipes and the Northumbrian pipes. I’m OK with my hands --- but lack any kind of wood-turning experience at this point in my life.

First and foremost, I’ve struggled to find a decent SSP tutor in NZ since shifting from Brisbane back in 2009. So learning how to PLAY the instrument was/is my initial goal. Still not quite there yet, sadly! But I’d also love to become an amateur pipe fettler... and make my own pipes as well. That’s what peaked my interest most – when you started questioning the use of Lignum Vitae (Guaiacum sanctum) to craft a stand of GHB’s from. I’m always keen to learn more about this.

I can’t seem to source G. Sanctum here in NZ – we have a native called Black Maire (probably New Zealand's hardest wood) heavy and strong; and mature black maire is extremely durable. As a result it was used by early European settlers as a substitute for lignum vitae for bearings and pulley blocks. Vitex lignum-vitae, known in Australia as yellow hollywood or "lignum-vitae" (also used for other species), is a rain forest tree of eastern Australia. The natural range of distribution is in dry, sub-tropical or tropical rain forest from the Richmond River, New South Wales to Cape York Peninsula at the northernmost tip of Australia. It also occurs in New Guinea.

I’ve been cautioned to avoid some suppliers who claim to sell "lignum vitae" when they are actually selling "Argentine lignum vitae" or Verawood. Argentine lignum vitae (Bulnesia sarmientoi) and Verawood (Bulnesia arborea) are not the same as G. sanctum!

Are you keen to make your own stand of bagpipes, @mdunn? If so, might I recommend contacting Ray Sloan and go for a Pipe Making Holiday for 5-8 days in Central France – see Pipe-making holidays in Brittany - France.Pipemaking holidays with Ray Sloan. Make Scottish Smallpipes, make Lowland Pipes, make Border Pipes, make Uilleann Pipes, reed making holidays,HOLIDAYS MAKING IRISH UILLEANN PIPES

Hope these ramblings make some sense. Kia Ora from “The Land of the Long White cloud”.
 
I've always wanted to learn. I bought myself a chanter and a book, but never got around to learning. I'd do much better if I had an instructor. I'm not very musically inclined and I'm not sure it is something I can learn on my own.

Her'e a clip of Johnny Bagpipes, a comediam who is very talented with the pipes.
[YOUTUBE]WAztA-Iqb4g[/YOUTUBE]

And here's a kid playing the whole Thunderstruck song:
[YOUTUBE]z9uVyf0D8eM[/YOUTUBE]

Hey there, @TheVez2... did you ever connect with a piping instructor? If so, how did it go? Cheers, @pakehamack
 

Rhody

I'm a Lumberjack.
I don't play but encourage your interest. Glen Campbell was excellent on the pipes. His live version of amazing grace I think recorded in the UK is amazing.
 

oc_in_fw

Fridays are Fishtastic!
I found this Hieronymus Bosch painting and immediately came up with a great name- The Arrest of the Bagpipers :lol: Seriously though, have fun with it.

800px-Hieronymus_Bosch_068.jpg
 
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