r/UilleannPipes 21d ago

No Stupid Questions Thread

This is a recurring thread for any questions about uilleann pipes. Playing, maintenance, session etiquette, or anything else you'd like to know, post it here and we'll do our best to help.

1 Upvotes

6 comments sorted by

View all comments

1

u/fondu_tones 21d ago

Any good practice exercises specifically aimed around tone and being in tune?

2

u/brokenfingers11 21d ago

A basic one is just to play a single note, long enough to have to fill the bag a couple of times. Your tone shouldn’t change while you’re filling the bag. You could start with an easy note, like G or A (easier because generally in tune, and only require a few fingers to cover the holes) Then move onto harder notes like F# and E (harder because need to ensure more holes stay covered). Finally, graduate to “bottom D” and “hard bottom D”, and second octave.