Need some advice on buying a bagpipe

[tnine011]

Ive always been interested in the bagpipes and ive decided to buy one, never played them before but im going to learn. What do I need to look for or what should I be looking at? Help me out please! Thanks, Tj.

[Playingincircles]

Hey, I'm a newbie myself, both at this forum and in terms of playing bagpipes. I've been taking lessons for about six months now. The first thing you should do is NOT buy a set of bagpipes. Buy a starter kit (Practice Chanter and tutor book/CD-ROM) and start learning from that. The "Green Book," AKA "The College of Piping" tutor book is considered one of, if not the best source for learning. A good practice chanter will cost you anywhere from $75-125 US. Get a long or full-size chanter, plastic or polypenco recommended. My first chanter was a Gibson short chanter, and I hated it because the finger holes weren't spaced right, and the seal had wax hemp in it. I personally have the Dunbar Millennium Long practice chanter now, and I love it. It has rubber ring seals, and the spacing of the holes is truer to a real pipe chanter. You will also need to make sure you get at least one practice chanter reed (about $8 US). I like the Abbott ones over Gibson or Walsh, because it gives you good tone if you use a reed bridle or orthodontic (braces) rubber bands to lower the volume and pitch. The gibsons have a tendency to throw the High A note off when you bridle them down.

Once you start, practice slowly.. .don't try to play notes at warp speed until you've done each drill a couple hundred times. I always hafta remind myself to do that. Good luck!