Like I'm Gonna Play Lucy Campbell's Reel

Remember the plateaus I was telling you about? Well, I've reached another one. The police have stopped coming by my house everytime I practice to investigate reports of animal cruelty (apparently my neighbors thought I was torturing a moose in my basement), and I've taken that as an indication that I'm getting better. So, I've begun some of the harder tunes. Ahh, another plateau.

Long ago, Paddy gave me Lucy Campbell's Reel and I've just laid it aside because I felt there was no way I was gonna get through that tune while I was playing like a convulsing drug addict. Now that the DT's have subsided, I started into it. To make things interesting, I decided to try and learn it by ear. I began by listening to it 871 times, then tried slowing it down on the computer and playing certain parts, then trying more, etc.

By the time the glaciers in the polar ice caps moved 24 feet, I finally had it.

Let me just say this: IT TAKES A LONG TIME TO LEARN TUNES BY EAR. If I had invested in IBM when I started, I would be a rich man today.

Paddy tells me it's the next step in my piping evolution, and I would argue that evolution takes less time.

Anyway, take the time to learn tunes by ear. It's frustrating as hell, but once you gain the skill, you'll be glad you have it.