Proper Bellows technique

[Murk]

I don't think a smaller bellows will help.

You might be fixating too much on bellows technique. Get on with learning tunes. Bellows technique will just happen when you stop thinking about it. It's a little like breathing when you sign. You might have to think about when you take a particularly deep breadth when you are learning a song, but once you have learned it and sang it a few times, you no longer have to think about when to adjust your breathing: you do it subconsciously.

Hey thanks! I'm not the OP, but that's a really good way of thinking about it and one that I will take away from this thread for sure. The purpose of developing good bellows technique is to create a consistent, even tone throughout the scale with steady drones. So one should shift the focus of practice from the technique on bellows to creating and maintaining consistency of the sound throughout a tune.

[Mr.Gumby]

The purpose of developing good bellows technique is to create a consistent, even tone throughout the scale with steady drones.

Sorry to be contrary but consistency of sound, pressure control, is achieved with the bag arm, the bellows only supplies the air. Which is ofcourse important but the bellows should not at any time influence your sound (ie not overfill or have you run out, no wobbles in the sound of your drones when you fill up the bag or that sort of thing. The bag is in control of all that).

I just heard someone finish a slow air, after it ended and the chanter released, it sounded, ruining the effect of the ending. That's over-filling the bag. When you finish your tune you release the bag arm, the pipes stop.

[Murk]

The purpose of developing good bellows technique is to create a consistent, even tone throughout the scale with steady drones.

Sorry to be contrary but consistency of sound, pressure control, is achieved with the bag arm, the bellows only supplies the air. Which is ofcourse important but the bellows should not at any time influence your sound (ie not overfill or have you run out, no wobbles in the sound of your drones when you fill up the bag or that sort of thing. The bag is in control of all that).

I just heard someone finish a slow air, after it ended and the chanter released, it sounded, ruining the effect of the ending. That's over-filling the bag. When you finish your tune you release the bag arm, the pipes stop.

Of course yes! We're on the same page. When I said "bellows technique" I understood bag control to come with that.

[Tom_S]

As others have said, the bellows is only there to keep the bag at a comfortable level - not too full (lack of control), and not too empty (difficult to blow).

I too started out watching that David Daye video, and it's a great exercise when you're starting out and everything you're doing is very "conscious". The purpose of the exercise is to get used to the feeling and concept of feeding the bag with air and maintaining a steady note while you do it. Maintaining a steady note is very important, and you should definitely practise this a lot. You eventually want this all to be almost subconscious, and it will happen.

I would like to point you to other videos of pipers, such as this one with Mark Redmond:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02dnYeyi0ko
Notice how even though he has drones and regulators going, his bellows strokes are smooth and measured. Slow, smooth strokes are going to give you a more even bag pressure and far more importantly, better economy of movement rather than stabbing at the bellows. Notice how he looks like he's hardly exerting himself at all.

David's exercise is great because it's all about learning to deal with the initial challenges of holding a steady note, but I would also try to be steady and measured with your bellows strokes. Having a bellows with lots of air volume is a really good thing!

Your aim is to:
* relax - don't tense up too much in your shoulders or fingers (death grip!)
* don't overfill the bag - you'll lose control over the air output
* maintain a steady note - this should be all controlled with your bag arm, not by overfilling the bag to maintain pressure
* steady, measured bellows strokes when you need more air

[tanash369]

I would like to point you to other videos of pipers, such as this one with Mark Redmond:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02dnYeyi0koNotice how even though he has drones and regulators going, his bellows strokes are smooth and measured.

Nice video, Mark is realy talented.

But when he is playing without drones here https://youtu.be/Uf0BU373ZCk I think he uses only small part of the stroke, not full strokes!

Or example of mighty John Mcsherry (when he was younger) https://youtu.be/k0KQTv8qvkE Here we can see very clearly that only small beggining part of strokes are used, not full strokes, so now it's getting a bit confused, to use full strokes or not full strokes. Mybe both ways are right and there is no universal truth, as long it is smooth? Any more thoughts. Thank you everyone

[oliver]

Do it the way that suits you best, follow the instructions given above (Mr Gumby's) and adapt to the different situations you may encounter ( now and in the future), don't get puzzled by all the different things you can see (when you master the standard thing, you can get around). Here too, the most important is that you try things till you get it right, for you notably.

[bcullen]

Playing in a group situation can cause, for me tension and over squeezing the bag/bellows. I have a cute cran on back D ( thanks Murk ) that warns me and I can ease off the bellows/bag. Also each type of tune has its own dynamics I try to adapt the bag/bellows technique to suit phrases, legato, staccato, style etc. I don't know if this is a bad technique but it helps me learn a tune and assimilate it. Also listening to the drones warns me when I am starting to get a bit carried away with the bag/bellow pressure they tend to go up a bit in pitch. It's a really good feeling when I can get through a tune and not be aware of any corrections to B/B and fingering
Bryan