Solo Piping Videos from the Metro Cup by Vince Janoski

May the blessings of G.S. McLennan be upon YouTube user ffmpad for he/she has uploaded video from this past Saturday’s Metro Cup. Alas, I missed it this year but the internet provides… Here are the medley performances of Chris Armstrong and Angus MacColl who were third and first respectively. There could not be two more [...]

Solo Bagpiping Hits the Internet Tipping Point by Vince Janoski

Is it just me or is there an unusual bounty of cool (recent) solo piping to be had over the internet these days? I’m not talking about past things on YouTube and whatnot (though that is good… sometimes). It used to be (way back in the old days, oh, like a year or two ago) [...]

Junk Bagpipes—Now that’s a Pipehacker! by Vince Janoski

Junk pipe indeed! It appears that the intrepid pipehacker who constructed these pvc and duct tape bagpipes knows Ohio piper Andrew Bova, who gives them a spin in the video below. Full instructions, if you dare, are up on Instructables.com. I imagine, far in the future, after the apocalypse, among the ashes of civilization, that [...]

HP Lovecraft on Bagpipes, Make of It What You Will by Vince Janoski

I have often caught myself in similar mannerisms when trying to explain bagpipes to uneducated. That drone, that endless drone…

Adopt Your Piping Power Pose! by Vince Janoski

Body language can shape who you are. What kind of piper do you want to be? It might just start with how you stand and how you present yourself to your audience. When we walk up to the judge, are you comparing your past performances as an indicator of how you will do now? Chances [...]

Friday Fun: Shaun the Sheep’s Bagpipe Buddy by Vince Janoski

OK, let’s be clear, the problem with this episode is the obvious solution to the burst bag is the skin of one of those fuzzy critters. Nevertheless, Shaun the Sheep is my new favorite show. I have also been known to have the same reaction as the farmer when I pick up my own bagpipes. [...]

Pipehacker Movie Review: Jiro Dreams of Sushi by Vince Janoski

Jiro dreams of sushi, but Pipehacker dreams of bagpipes. I may be making a joke, but in all seriousness, the documentary film Jiro Dreams of Sushi is a great example of the singleminded focus that is required to become the best at just about anything. Even if you couldn’t give a fig about sushi the [...]

The 8 Secrets of Success—The Bagpipes Edition by Vince Janoski

Pipesdrums’ recent brief interview with Denny & Dunipace Gleneagles PM David Clunie highlights the very important challenges that face a band making the jump from Grade 2 to Grade 1. Rightly so, a higher grade can certainly become a “graveyard” and mean certain destruction for some bands. Clunie covers the very important nuts-and-bolts that should [...]