Adding the Drones
Even though I'm a beginner and even though my playing sometimes sounds like a constipated moose, I like to jump ahead sometimes to see what I'm in for. This means I do crans, rolls, yelps, etc, all the time at really strange parts in a tune just to hear what they sound like and to see if I can do them.
Imagine my surprise when I put the drones in. What's is like? Well, all I can tell you is they need more air than a Resusitating Annie doll. Let's just say you're gonna be pumpin'. If you're in a rut in a tune where you consistently pump the bellows at the same part each time you play it, puttin' in the drones will cure you of that s**t right away.
I started by trying to play a tune, The Mist Covered Mountain, and quickly found out what my limitations were. I was pumping furiously and still couldn't keep enough air in the bag to reach the second octave. The bass drone reed kept cutting out on me because I wasn't giving it enough air - Christ, how much did they want?
So, that was humiliating. From there, I just kept the chanter on my knee and my fingers over the holes and opened the drone switch. I kept pumping without playing any notes for a long time. I just wanted to get a feel for exactly what the drones wanted in order to sound good. So there I was, pumping the bellows while this drooooooooooooooone sound wafted up through the basement, for hours at a time. My kids came down to see what the hell I was doing and asked if I would stop beating the dogs. Thanks, kids - great support network. At first, it sounded like a bellowing hound, rising and falling until I could maintain a consistent flow of air into them and make a constant sound, no wavering. This takes a lot of practice and a s**tload of pumping.
Sometimes I just cinch up the bag where the chanter connects and bag with the drone switch open - although this is a little harder when you're trying to squeeze the bag at the same time. It a good exercise for getting a feel for the drones. I've been doing that for a couple months, although Paddy has the drones now so I haven't done much lately.
I can almost get through The Mist Covered Mountain now with the drones. Kinda proud of that.
I don't even want to think about regulators. What kind of twisted mind invented these things anyhow? You're sure they're supposed to play music?
Imagine my surprise when I put the drones in. What's is like? Well, all I can tell you is they need more air than a Resusitating Annie doll. Let's just say you're gonna be pumpin'. If you're in a rut in a tune where you consistently pump the bellows at the same part each time you play it, puttin' in the drones will cure you of that s**t right away.
I started by trying to play a tune, The Mist Covered Mountain, and quickly found out what my limitations were. I was pumping furiously and still couldn't keep enough air in the bag to reach the second octave. The bass drone reed kept cutting out on me because I wasn't giving it enough air - Christ, how much did they want?
So, that was humiliating. From there, I just kept the chanter on my knee and my fingers over the holes and opened the drone switch. I kept pumping without playing any notes for a long time. I just wanted to get a feel for exactly what the drones wanted in order to sound good. So there I was, pumping the bellows while this drooooooooooooooone sound wafted up through the basement, for hours at a time. My kids came down to see what the hell I was doing and asked if I would stop beating the dogs. Thanks, kids - great support network. At first, it sounded like a bellowing hound, rising and falling until I could maintain a consistent flow of air into them and make a constant sound, no wavering. This takes a lot of practice and a s**tload of pumping.
Sometimes I just cinch up the bag where the chanter connects and bag with the drone switch open - although this is a little harder when you're trying to squeeze the bag at the same time. It a good exercise for getting a feel for the drones. I've been doing that for a couple months, although Paddy has the drones now so I haven't done much lately.
I can almost get through The Mist Covered Mountain now with the drones. Kinda proud of that.
I don't even want to think about regulators. What kind of twisted mind invented these things anyhow? You're sure they're supposed to play music?
posted by Tony Darnell | 5:57 PM
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