Master The Irish Bagpipes

UILLEANN PIPES TECHNIQUE

Ireland’s indigenous bagpipes, the Uilleann Pipes, take their name from the Gaelic word for elbow (uilleann), alluding to the air-bag and bellows which the elbows operate. Air is pumped from the bellow into the bag and then from the bag into a reed in the chanter. Piping is considered a very important part of the Irish tradition. The solo playing of the pipes has a special place of its own in the tradition and to a large extent developed separately from the rest of the tradition.

Uilleann Pipes Technique looks into a lot of technical aspects of uilleann pipe playing. If you have a handle on the basics of piping and want to push the boundaries of your ability then this course will be a real treat for you. If you’re new to the pipes, head over to our Uilleann Pipes Basics Course to get you started.

By the end of the course you will have really honed your piping technique, a crucial foundation on which to begin to build a repertoire.  The course has 13 lessons.

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  • 18 lessons teaching how to play 13 very popular Irish tunes
  • PDF sheet music & mp3’s to download & keep for each tune
  • Progress at your own pace, pause & repeat videos
  • Access to 14 instruments, 60+ courses, 1000+ tutorials
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BONUS!

  • Access our Entire Course Catalogue for Every Instrument
  • Library of over 150 popular Irish tunes to practice along with
  • Virtual Reality Sessions for the unique Irish Pub Session experience – a real treat for the Irish music lover
  • Community Forum of students and teachers, all friends with a love of Irish music

Your Tutor

Mikie Smyth
Mikie Smyth began playing the pipes at the age of nine. His first teachers were Colm De Brun and Andy Conroy in the Pipers Club in Henrietta Street Dublin. As a teacher Mikie has worked for many piping organizations and traditional summer schools, including the Willie Clancy and Joe Mooney summer schools. He is currently the pipes tutor at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance in the University of Limerick where he teaches on both the B.A and M.A˰programmes. Mikie has performed both as a soloist and with shows (Riverdance and Ragus) in over 5 countries. Mikie has…
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Course Structure

The course opens with the tune ‘The Hag at the Churn’ which the tutor uses to introduce his teaching methods and discuss piping ornamentation and technique. Over the course of the next twelve lessons, four Irish tunes are examined in detail, with three lessons dedicated to each. The first lesson in each set of three introduces the tune with the basic technique. This is then followed by a lesson looking at tune specific technique and variation. And finally a basic approach to regulator and drone playing is demonstrated; some chanter exercises are included for those without drones and regulators. Lessons are not designed to increase repertoire but rather to focus on technical aspects of piping.

The tunes taught are:

  • The Hag At The Churn
  • An Sean Duine
  • The Fall Of Dunboy
  • The Braes Of Busby
  • Higgins
The Hag at the Churn
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Uilleann Pipes Technique Lessons

1
Advanced
The Hag at the Churn

Introduction to Piping Ornamentation and Technique

2
Advanced
An Sean Duine (1)

This lesson will teach the tune ‘An Sean Duine.

3
Advanced
An Sean Duine (2)

Piping Ornamentation

4
Advanced
An Sean Duine (3)

Regulator Work

5
Advanced
The Fall of Dunboy (1)

Melody and Phrasing

6
Advanced
The Fall of Dunboy (2)

Piping Ornamentation

7
Advanced
The Fall of Dunboy (3)

Regulator Work

8
Advanced
The Braes of Busby (1)

Melody and Phrasing

9
Advanced
The Braes of Busby (2)

Piping Ornamentation

10
Advanced
The Braes of Busby (3)

Regulator Work

11
Advanced
Higgins (1)

Melody and Phrasing

12
Advanced
Higgins (2)

Piping Ornamentation

13
Advanced
Higgins (3)

Regulator Work

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