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Be sure you caught the first part of this series – the LICK, posted last week. Next, we move on to the chanter-reed-pinch – possibly the most misunderstood…
Back in the day, the gooey black bits of “cobbler’s wax” were oftentimes a melted mess in a piper’s maintenance kit awaiting their next turn at a strand of hemp. What is simply globs of pine resin and pitch (otherwise known by the scientific name “soot”), the stuff was crumbly, sticky, and infuriating at the same time but has always been ideal for sticking that first wrap of hemp on your pipe tenons. But what do you do when your chunk of black wax has crumbled to nothing?
Ok, Reed Manipulation. A HUGE topic for pipers. First off, I would like to say that this is a highly expansive topic, where a lot of people have…
“Point zero” is exactly what it implies. It is “zeroing” out your reeds. It is setting the strength of your drone reeds at their starting point before you begin making further adjustments for pitch and chanter reed strength. It is the starting point for your personal tolerances.
Over the many years I have spent teaching and playing with pipers of all levels, one thing has always been consistent: Too many pipers choose chanter reeds that are too stiff and thus too hard to play for them personally.
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