An example of the bad: “Don’t play sheepskin bags. They smell, and require TONS of maintenance.”   

 Well, turns out that I now play a sheepskin bag, and love it!  They don’t smell, and don’t require much maintenance at all.   

But the best piece of advice that I have ever heard is this: “Play fewer tunes and more exercises”.  

Boring?  Yes.  But productive. 

I was told this by Pipe Major Bill Allison of my first band, The White Heather Pipes and Drums.  Though playing exercises may be boring, in the end you become a better piper. 

If you can comfortably play your execution in exercises, than you will be able to integrate good technique into tunes easily, and successfully. 

A good technique that I have learned to improving technique is to make a list with your worst piece of execution at the top and your best on the bottom.  

Work on the first doubling, grace note, and so on, on your list, then, when you feel that piece of execution has improved enough, move it to the bottom of the list; repeat with the rest of the list until you’re through. Then repeat the list over again, and again, and again.  

The result will be that you become a better technical piper.  

Try it.  

Cheers,

Kyle

Kyle Coughlin

Toronto Police Pipe Band

I finish most emails to the corps by saying “practice hard and practice smart.”  Practicing hard is of course a part of being successful in this game and we all generally understand that, but knowing what to practice is the other and perhaps more important aspect.

Most up-and-coming drummers spend their time learning scores — this is understandable.  The competition season relentlessly comes around year after year whether we’re ready for it or not.  But I’ve never encountered a good drummer who has not dedicated a substantial amount of practice time to the fundamentals of drumming – namely rhythm, rudiments and technique.  This is what I practice, it’s what I teach and it’s what I look for in other drummers.

To me, good drummers are the ones who understand this, even when faced with a mountain of scores to learn and memorize for the coming season.  Good drummers understand that their ability to express a musical line is in their understanding of the basics because all music, no matter how complex it appears to be, can always be reduced to a simple musical line. 

Good players also understand that this process of becoming good can’t simply happen in between seasons of pipe band competition.  It’s a process that you insert into your daily practice routine and constantly improve upon throughout the year and years ahead.  It’s an attitude that looks farther than the possibility of winning the next contest.

Practice hard and practice smart!

Happy New Year.

Doug Stronach

www.dougstronach.com