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Place the tip of the mouthpiece between your lips. If possible, use only your lips and avoid biting the mouthpiece.
Grip the whistle with your left hand and cover the top three holes with the pads of your first three fingers. Your thumb will likely be behind your index or middle finger.
Cover the remaining holes with the first three fingers of your right hand. Again, your thumb will likely be behind your index or middle finger. Aim for a firm yet relaxed grip.
Say “tapsalteerie” and feel where your tongue goes when you say the tee sound. Now say too or tuh, then say it without making a sound in your mouth. Say it onto the palm of your hand and feel the sudden burst of air after the “t”. This is tonguing—a sudden blast of air used before each note. We will later learn a combination of tonguing and non-tonguing techniques, but for now, every note will be tongued. THE TONGUE STARTS THE NOTE.
Start with your left hand covering the top three holes. Blow a steady stream of air, firm but not too strong. This note is G.
Next, lift your ring finger off the third hole (covering only the top two holes). This is A.
Play three A notes, remembering to say tuh-tuh-tuh.
Practice going back and forth between A and G.
Finally, lift another finger (covering only the top hole). This is B.
Blow three B notes. Practice going from B to A to G and back again.
You’ve played your first three notes!
Let’s move from individual notes to a tune: Au Clair de la Lune (Silver Moonlight). Double dots mean “repeat the section”.
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Let’s learn E and D.
Start in the first position (top three holes covered).
Cover the fourth and fifth holes with your right-hand index and middle fingers. This is E.
Add your right-hand ring finger (covering all holes). This is D. This may be challenging for some beginners, but it gets easier.
We now know five notes: D, E, G, A, and B. Let’s play Old MacDonald. Remember, double dots mean repeat the section.
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Recap: You now know five notes (D, E, G, A, B). Your homework is to memorize these note names.
Let’s learn Egan’s Polka (Peg Ryan’s). It’s simple with many repetitions. The best way to learn is to play, play, play.
I prefer teaching by ear, but MIDI files are included. (Email for cassette tapes with tunes.)
egan1.mid
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Last week, you learned D, E, G, A, and B. Practice until you can play them confidently. Memorize their names.
Let’s learn more notes.
High D is the same note as D, but an octave higher. Play D, but blow harder. The difference is subtle; only experience will teach you.
Egan’s Polka is given again, this time with high D (indicated by a dot above). An alternative high D fingering is to leave the top hole uncovered and all other holes covered.
egan2.mid
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Sir Harold Boulton wrote the words in 1884. The first half is an old sea shanty. The song commemorates Bonnie Prince Charlie’s escape to Skye. Double dots mean repeat the section. (AABA).
skyeb.mid
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Higher notes are played using the same fingering as their lower octave counterparts—but by blowing harder. These are the upper octave. Practice D, high D, E, high E, etc (high B is difficult at first). Notes in the upper octave are marked with a dot. High B also uses the lowest hole covered for better stability.
We have several notes; let’s learn Amazing Grace. This week, two new notes: F# and C#.
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F# is easy: Cover the top four holes and blow gently. For high F#, blow harder. Try the exercises below (four times each).
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C# is challenging, requiring all holes uncovered. Use your right-hand ring finger to cover the lowest hole; your lips (not teeth) hold the mouthpiece. This steadies the whistle. With C#, we can play a D scale (doh-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-doh, with D as doh).
Play the exercises below. Then, try Wha Wadna Fecht for Chairlie.
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Learning patterns is crucial. This exercise explores stepping (jumping two notes at a time). Play the first four bars (repeat four times), then the last two. Scales are valuable practice.
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A Scottish bothy ballad, often about farm life.
barny.mid
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Dance music often has phrases (distinct melodic parts). The simplest form has four parts: Part 1 and 3 are identical. Part 2 is similar to part 1 but varies. Part 4 concludes. It’s like a conversation (question, clarifying question, repeated question, answer).
Scales are essential practice. Exercise 2 shows a D scale. Exercise 3 plays each note four times. Exercise 4a creates a pattern (1st note, up one, up another, back to 1st note). Exercise 4b does the same descending.
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The reel is a Scottish invention (first recorded 1591). It spread to Ireland. Reels are in 4/4 time (four beats per bar). Count ONE - two-three-four. Reels often combine quarter and eighth notes.
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Reels are 4/4. Practice half notes (two counts), quarter notes (one count), quarter and eighth notes (ONE - TWO - and - THREE - FOUR - and), and eighth notes (ONE - and - TWO - and - THREE - and - FOUR – and).
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Probably originally a bagpipe reel. Start slowly, then increase speed.
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Master the D scale (know all note names, play up and down). Do Exercise 1 (D scale, low D to high B, tongued and untongued).
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To play in some keys (e.g., G major), you need C natural. One method is half-covering the top hole, but it’s hard for fast playing. The easier method: cover the second and third holes, leaving the top hole open. Practice Exercises 2 and 3 (full range, tongued and untongued).
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Popular in Ireland, England, and Scotland. Practice C natural to play this tune. A run is notes rising or falling one at a time; steps are notes rising two at a time.
rakem.mid
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Triplets are groups of three equal-length notes—often indicated by a curved line and a “3”. Tap your foot on the underlined beats. The easiest way is to use tongue rhythm like tuh-kuh-tuh or chocolate. Exercise 4 demonstrates triplets. Exercise 5 shows triplets used as decoration.
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Review previous lessons. Create three tune lists: A (mastered), B (learning), and C (to learn). Allocate practice time (four sessions a week, divide into four parts): Scales/exercises, C-list tunes, B-list tunes, A-list tunes.
A great Irish reel. Note the repetitions.
jony1.mid
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A Scottish reel with a dotted rhythm and “snap” (short note followed by a longer one). The snap is difficult, but it’s about feeling. There’s also the slow Strathspey, for listening.
Contains the characteristic Strathspey snap (short note followed by longer note). Robert Burns wrote lyrics to it.
ctrye.mid
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Many tunes use dotted rhythms. A dotted note is 1.5 times its usual length, requiring the following note to be shortened to compensate. A snap is where the second of two notes is dotted. Exercise 1 practises irregular rhythms.
ex81.mid
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Likely refers to the suppression of Highland culture after Culloden (1746), including the outlawing of pipers.
burnp.mid
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Slow airs are common in Scottish and Irish music. They are ideal for techniques such as vibrato. This week: Farewell to Fuinary (6/8 time, like a waltz) and Bonnie Galloway (3/4 time, watch for rhythmic reversals).
farewf.mid
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bongal.mid
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Drowsy Maggie is tricky due to octave changes and C sharps. The trick is to keep certain fingers down to make playing easier. I omit the last note of bar three in the A part, allowing time to prepare for the next bar.
drowsy.mid
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Johnnie McIljohn’s No.2, from Tommy Maguire.
jony2.mid
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The Scattery Island Slide is relatively easy due to repetition.
scat.mid
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The Donegal Lass from Drew Mitchell of Da Hooley.
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Irish polkas are in 2/4 time. Ryan’s Polka is tricky; leave certain fingers down to manage octave changes.
ryan.mid
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I’ll Tell Me Ma is a popular Irish song’s air.
mema.mid
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sbeag.mid
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eibhl.mid
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Decorations enhance tunes but only when you’ve mastered the basics. Let’s learn sliding, the cut, the casadh, and the trill.
Sliding smoothly transitions between notes.
Adding a note before the main note (except for C note).
ex14-1.mid
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Starting and ending on the main note, with an added note in between (except for C note).
ex14-2.mid
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Alternating between the main note and the note above.
ex14-3.mid
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Let’s apply these techniques to Si Beag Si Mhor.
sbeag2.mid
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Detailed breakdown of decorations in Si Beag Si Mhor. (A and B part descriptions are provided, illustrating various techniques.)
Breathing is essential; maintain musical flow without noticeable breaks. Shorten longer notes (quarter notes or longer), not shorter ones (eighth notes). Illustrations show “no shortening” and “shortening the note” techniques, as well as “as written” and “missing out.”
ex15-1.mid
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ex15-2.mid
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ex15-3.mid
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ex15-4.mid
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Johnny McIljohn’s #2 with built-in breathing points. You can shorten long notes or use the rests.
jony2.mid
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Teribus (Hawick’s Common Riding gathering tune), with built-in breathing.
ter.mid
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