Matt Cutts works at Google. He also has a blog where he is currently documenting his many months of attempts to regularly try something new for 30 days. The idea is a not new. It has been applied to everything from weight loss to photography. Even bagpipers have gotten into the act. Some time ago, I posted a piece on the challenges of building composition skills for the bagpipe that included a 30-day challenge of its own. Jori Chisholm over at his Bagpipe Lessons blog has also issued his second annual 30-day practice challenge. These are all very nice, but let’s take a cue from Matt Cutts and kick it up a notch or two. The art of playing bagpipes is detailed and the year long enough to accommodate many “30-day challenges.”
Speaking in strictly Highland bagpipe terms, let’s issue the challenge right now. Let your imagination wander. What would be a cool (and productive) way to spend the next 30 days with your bagpipe?
How about you spend the next 30 days playing nothing but jigs. That’s right, every day. Your whole practice session. Just jigs.
Here’s another: Spend 30 days playing nothing but new tunes. That is a new tune every day for 30 days. One day, one tune.
For those who are easy with their cash, how about 30 days playing a different set of drone reeds each day?
How about performing in front of an audience of some sort every day for 30 days?
Some of these impossible, you say? That is why it is called a “challenge.”
It is worth doing and the rewards are there for the taking. As you can imagine, the possibilities are endless. Yes, band practice might need to slip in there and break your streak, or some other thing might force you to interrupt your momentum, but the beauty of such a set up is that it can truly take whatever shape you want. Bagpipes would become a whole lot more interesting methinks. Some of the bigger benefits might be the as yet unrealized things you might learn about yourself, your instrument, or the music. Are you up for the challenge? What other ideas for a “30-day bagpipe challenge” are there?
On the February 3, 2011 installment of Bagpipe Nation, we covered a lot of ground talking about the game of solo bagpipe competition. And solo bagpipe competition is a game. Like any game, once you know the rules you can play. But to play the game really well you need to grasp the inside secrets—the subtleties, the nuances. The basic rules are the nuts and bolts. The real game comes when you can answer the strategic questions that will help you navigate the playing field. Developing a strategy and a game plan is an ongoing effort but here are some of those answers. Read More
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