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Date: Sun, 15 Aug 1999 21:34:49 -0500
From: Richard Mao <richardmao@prodigy.net>
Subject: (bagpipe) Re: memorizing tunes
Hi Folks...
Getting started on one tune and the fingers wandering off onto another tune is
not necessarily a failure of memory... but a failure of concentration and recall
and visualisation of what's next...
Your subconscious mind plays the tune.... drives the car, manipulates your
fingers.... Your conscious mind is like the navigator... reminding the
subconscious mind what comes next, when a turn is coming up... whether you
should play the first ending or the second ending...
The following is some excerpts from a series of posts I submitted on
memorization a couple of years ago...
⌐1997, 1999 by Richard Mao.
Feel free to copy this work for your individual use in the study of
piping. If you use or republish portions of it in any form for teaching
others or distributing to others, or for commercial efforts, you must
secure my permission (generally, all I want is to know you are using
this work and for you to give credit to the source). This copyright
notice must stay with and be reproduced with any copy of this work.
First letÆs start with a bunch of examples and then postulate another theory for
more effective memorization.
Example 1. Have you ever not been able to start a tuneàsomeone comes along and
plays the first few notesàand then youÆre right in there, no problem? I would
like you to think that your ômemorizationö was OK but you had a problem of
recall (you didnÆt have a ôhandleö on the beginning of the tune).
Example 2. Have you ever tried to start at the last phrase of a tune (say, to
transition into another tune)àor tried to recite the last paragraph of a
memorized speechàand couldnÆt? But if you played the tune from the beginning,
you had no problem playing when you got to the last phrase of the tune. Once
again, your memorization was OK, but you didnÆt have a ôhandleö that let you
ôpick upö the tune starting with the last phrase.
Example 3. Have you ever played a tune with a first and second endingàand under
pressure couldnÆt remember the final ending, you ended up playing the first
ending several times (to your deep embarrassment)àYouÆre like Charlie on the
MTAàyou may ride for ever æneath the streets of Bostonàthe piper who never
returned. The problem, of course, is that you might never have established a
ôswitchö in your mind that allowed you to get off onto the final ending (or the
switch was faulty because you failed to practice the actual act of switching
(recall)).
Or have you started a tune and inexpicably your fingers went off onto another
tune?
Example 4. Have you thought you had a tune memorizedàstarted to play the tune
and get to the point that you couldnÆt remember what came next? You went back to
the sheet music and played the whole thing againàbut that didnÆt helpàbecause
what you really needed to do was practice the transition, the picking up of the
ôforgottenö phrase.
Example 5. Have you ever ridden with a friend from your house to the practice
hall, time after timeàBut when you actually had to drive, the first timeàyou got
lost. YouÆd been over the road many times before but never memorized the
intersections and turning pointsàthe road map in your head is as important to
the actual driving as the roads themselves.
OKàdo you get my driftàItÆs important because some people, even when I explain
the concept to themàdonÆt believe in it, because theyÆve never consciously done
it before, never heard it articulated, and can usually limp along their old way.
But I maintain itÆll be more efficient if you try the method outà
=======================
The Theory: The Peking PiperÆs ONE-TWO punch of memory and recall:. The
successful performance of bagpipe music involves both playing what you have
memorized AND the ability to recall parts of the music, at will, under stressà
The Rule: You must, as a separate activity, establish/identify a sufficient
number of handles and decision points in every tune and then Practice retrieving
the handles, making the turning points, IN ADDITION TO your regular memorization
of a tune (phrase by phraseàsee my previous posts).
The Method: After memorization, one minute after, five minutes after, 15 minutes
after, half-hour after, one, two, and three hours, at random times throughout
your dayàpractice each beginning, each transition from one part to another, the
beginning of each part stand alone, at random, e.g. the fourth part of your 2/4
march, your 4-part strathspey, the third part of your 4-part reel, the second
part, the third part, etcà DONÆT play the entire part, DONÆT play the entire
tune (this would be practicing the memorization not the recall)àCarry your
practice chanter with you, or just move your fingers and sing in your head,.or
store the practice chanter someplace easy to get toàto make it easy to pick it
upàyou should be able to go through six to ten transitions in a minuteàthe
transitions that failànote them and give them a workout in your next practice
session.
Example 6. One of my students carried around a deck of 3 by 5 cards with just
the opening bars of tunes. He used them as flash cards to test his memoryà.I
extended the ideaàtold him to write up more flash cards in wordsàfor the
beginning of the second part for the end of phrase A to give them names. Then I
would give him the names and he would start playing the tune at that
placeà.first time through the first partàwhatÆs nextà
Now play the second time through the second partà.whatÆs next.
(BTW this ability can serve a teacher well when he or she wants to do a
rifle-shot demonstration of a part for a student.)
Example 7. One of my correspondents related to me Ken Eller telling a story on
himself from one of his workshops. (I know this is second hand, but it sounds
like what I remember of Ken (who is one of my teaching icons from the earliest
summer schools I attendedà Ken, if you read this and need to make it more
accurate, please feel free..)
When Ken has 12 new tunes to learn, he will have them nailed in 12 days, but not
necessarily one per day. He copies the tunes and tapes them on the walls,
refrigerator, door frames, all over the house. He learns a part at a time. When
he is comfortable with the basic flow of the tunes, he will mentally test
himself: play the third part of Cowal Gathering, play the second part of Johnnie
MacDonaldÆs Reel, etcàof course, this is not KenÆs first day at the jobàbut you
get the idea.
Example 8. Actually do thisà.Ask a friend, ôWhat is your phone number, area code
first?ö Listen to your friend answering out loudà
Then ask, ôI didnÆt hear the last part, would you repeat just the last four
digits?ö
Then ask, ôWhat is the phone number, without area code?ö
Do the answers come tripping lightly off of your friendÆs tongue? With almost no
conscious thought? Do you get the impression that your friend has learned this
series of digits AS A UNIFIED SEQUENCEànot as separate numbers which require
conscious thought after each digit (thatÆs the memorization part). That the
recitation is coming from the friendÆs subconsciousàthat all the conscious mind
did was trigger or fire off the sequence? Do you get the impression that your
friend has several ôhandlesö or is comfortable with several starting points on
this string of ten digits (thatÆs the recall part).
If you told your friend that you were going to ask him to memorize several
ten-digit numbers, he or she might freak outà. But if you told him or her that
these were the telephone numbers for his or her new office at work, and the new
number for the parentÆs new home in Florida, etcà.no problemàHe or she has a
frameworkàand a method in place for memorizing phone numbersàarea code first,
then exchange (do you old-timers out there remember when phone exchanges were
ôButterfield 8ö for BU8 for 288), finally the four digit number. Now you do,
too.
So, in summaryà.The consistently successful recounting of music is a combination
of successful exercise of memory and successful recall. I contend that for a
successful performance you need to exercise two disciplines. One for memory one
for recall, the one-two punch. This methodology will result in your ability to
play the tune reliably and in the shortest possible learning time.
More availableàSeumas MacNeillÆs four stages of learningàPeking PiperÆs rule:
Practicing Failure to Succeedà.Playing from the Heart vs Playing by the
intellectàDances with Fingers: Making memorization a whole body experience.
I think, however, that I am saturating and trying your patienceàso we will see
how the feedback goes before I essay anything moreà
Yours in service to better piping,
Richard Mao, The Peking Piper ( peking_piper@mao.org )
lsrapm wrote:
> Don Robertson wrote
> > I play them with the music in front of me over and over, like was already
> > said. Then I memorize each part.
>
> I always keep the music in front of me during the learning stage. Play it
> through several times until your fingers are happy with it, and then take it
> two bars at a time - 1. look at it and play - 2. look away from it and play
> it. Just keep alternating like that until you're sure of it. Then move on
> the the next two bars. Doing it that way, I can then usually "see" the sheet
> music in my head every time I want to play it, because the sheet music was
> closely associated right through the learning process.
>
> I find learning in groups of 2 bars at time usually works the fastest
> because the structure of most tunes are built in 2 bar phrases.
>
> Chris Eyre
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------------------------------
Date: Tue, 17 Aug 1999 22:02:28 -0700
From: Theodore Le boeuf <Tedzter@worldnet.att.net>
Subject: (bagpipe) Re: Drone cords: Silk or polyester?
JSLOANPR wrote:
>
> >I'm sure the original makers of the pipes you're taking to Pakistan to have
> >cheap
> >rip-off copies made of would be delighted to know of your plans.
>
> Now madman, you did say the Chinese embassy was on Shesham Street NOT Blvd?!
> The B-52's are in the air.
>
> Lt Col J Sloan
>
> Allied Pipes and Drums, Air Command, Northern Hemisphere
Well I baught my david booth set about 3 years ago, it is over in
Pakistan, I baught a second hand older Adrian Jeffries Practice set of
Uilleann Pipes, it is over their along with a few differant sets of Blue
Prints, I have a Sinclair chanter that is over their, I might take a set
of Ray Sloan Scottish Smallpipes, a set of Peter Hendersons is over
their right now I highly doubt he will have anything to say about that,
and if he says anything to me I will refer him to you.
I am just choosing well made instruments to be coppied, of course in
differant styles.
Mike
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------------------------------
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 09:45:02 -0700
From: "Iain Sherwood" <pipey@netwiz.net>
Subject: (bagpipe) Re: Pipe Bags
My point exactly. I played one for nineteen years on my old Graingers. I have one on my 1994 Kintails that's virtually brand-new. In the SF bay climate, which isn't too far off that of Scotland most of the year, the L&M elk works perfectly. I've tried everything but the Ross (got one coming this week to try) and I'll stick with elk...and I'm a dealer. Dealers are supposed to always go after the money, being venal, usurious bastards. Guess I'm not.
IS
dnimmo <dnimmo@navnet.net> wrote in message news:rsl08hedj7129@corp.supernews.com...
The best bag to choose is the sheepskin bag. It regulates the moisture very good. No stopping of drones due to moisture. Al my bandmembers play on them or when you are a wet blower like me, you can choose for the Ross cannisterbag, aswell. Those two types are the best there is money can buy
PM Fred Bronius.
City of Amsterdam pb
Beware of any answer that gives you "the only solution" .....this is an example of an "expert" giving you the answer, when we don't know where you are geographically or playing wise. Many variables have to be considered when selecting a bag and you have offered none of them in your initial post requesting help!
Seven years on an L&M cowhide bag is at the short end of life cycles...........one piper in the tattoo this year was using one which was 20 years old..............10 to 15 years is very common.
David
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------------------------------
Date: Mon, 30 Aug 1999 04:41:12 -0700
From: "Iain Sherwood" <pipey@netwiz.net>
Subject: (bagpipe) Re: The thing in the sock.
WHOA! First off, the sgian dhubh didn't exist in the days of armour. Second,
its blade is too short (especially in the ORIGINAL versions from the
1820's - only a 2-3" blade) to do the job.
The knife you're referring to is one of two types - the rondel dagger, or
tha ballock knife, both of which had 8-12" blades similar to an early dirk -
slab-sided single edged trianglar heavy blade to punch through chain mail
and zap a disabled horseman on the ground.
The 'dhubh' part is another of those quaint Victorian inventions, like the
knife itself. Not a single portrait before 1800 shows the sock knife; the
sgian-ochles was seldom carried except by SERIOUS fighters who'd need it.
The DIRK was the favoured weapon of the Highlander from the early 17th
century until the end of the Clan system; he carried it into battle, swore
his oath on it , and wore it at ALL TIMES hanging from his waist belt at the
right front, next to his sporran. the modern usage of wearing the dirk at
the right flank is another Victorian fashion, like monkeysuit coats and
all-black for formal wear. Remember that by 1850 formal Highland Dress had
lost most of its original 'Celtic' character - it was mainly just English
formal dress with the addition of a kilt, hose, and sporran - the original
'highland' coat was done away with, just a tail coat with the tails
shortened to become the 'Prince Charlie' of today (don't know why they ever
called it that - he never wore one).
The sgian as worn today is NOT, repeat NOT an ancient usage. CF MacKinnon's
"Tartans and Highland Dress" and John Wallace's manuscript of "The Scottish
Dirk."
IS
FRED <fred69@hunterlink.net.au> wrote in message
news:01bef2d8$60c789e0$44970ccb@default...
> Hi there, I'm Dave. I've been with pipebands for nearly 20 years and I've
> always been lead to believe that the sghian dubh ( correct spelling I
hope)
> was galic for black knife or knife of death. It was used to cut the
leather
> straps on the armor worn by the enemy.(hence the serated edge) then
plunged
> deep into chest cavity via the arm pit to pierce the heart. This knife was
> used to "finish of" the dying on the battle field. this is why I believe
> that it was called the "black knife"
> hope this helps.
>
> Dave
>
> Bo M°ller-Nielsen <bomn@get2net.dk> wrote in article
> <EVXx3.345$hO6.995@news.get2net.dk>...
> > Hello NG.
> >
> > This evening I was out playing at an outdoor party. The people was
mostly
> > young parents with children age 3 - 7 years old. What seemed to interest
> > people most besides the pipes was the thing in my right sock. Actually
> this
> > thing was so interesting that a father and he's little son had to go up
> to
> > me, in the middle of a set, bend down and have a closer look. Well, I
> don't
> > know - maybe it's just me, but I tend to get a little nervous when
things
> > like that happens when I'm playing. After playing the second time that
> > evening, I was approached by a man (not the father) asking me
> > what it was that I had sticking out of my right sock. I told him, that
it
> > was a little knife called a Skean Duh. Next question was a little more
> > difficult, it went - Why do you have a knife in the sock ?. My first
> thought
> > was to tell him the truth - "Because my PM tells me to", but being on a
> solo
> > gig this explanation wouldn't work. So I had to tell him that I didn't
> know
> > the reason for carrying a knife in the sock.
> >
> > Could any of you enlightened people of this NG tell me the story about
> the
> > Skean Duh
> >
> > Thanks in advance
> >
> > Bo Moeller-Nielsen
> >
> >
> >
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------------------------------
Date: 19 Aug 1999 16:35:04 GMT
From: firedog270@aol.com (FireDog270)
Subject: (bagpipe) Re: drone cord color?
BLACK
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------------------------------
Date: 13 Aug 1999 23:42:41 GMT
From: rojo2g@aol.com (Rojo2G)
Subject: (bagpipe) RE: Hemp Retraction
>When are the rest of you going to get out of the 15th century
Thems fighting words. Sir, we shall joust with Paki's in Bb
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