Bagpipe Lessons: The Birl and a bit about overcoming obstacles in your life
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- čas přidán 17. 04. 2019
- The birl! One of the signature sounds of the bagpipes! Back in 2004, I ended up injuring myself through my birl technique and had to over come that and learn a new birl. This video is about the up/down technique I came up with and a bit I learned along the way about overcoming obstacles in your life.
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So reviewing this video and getting private lessons from Matt, I am EXTREMLY grateful for him catching this issue. I did mention that my pinky was doing that "snapping" motion and he immediately stopped me from doing "7" motion and helped me with the new up/down motion. Being a woodwind player and in a few bands, If these Birls caused issues, that would be DEVASTATING to me as a gigging musician. I am SO thankful he caught this. Even reading the reviews below, some people say that it is unlikely to happen or small percentage. WHY WOULD YOU TAKE THAT CHANCE!? If there is a way to safely do a birl without injury....that is a no brainer for me. Another comment, start off young! I started playing pipes at 45. Will I ever have the dexterity of a piper that started at age 5? Absolutely not, but that wont stop me from trying. I will practice my birls but in a safe manner. NO CHANCES! Matt definitely has given me the tools, the resources, the theory, and the know how to becoming an amazing piper and I am EXCITED to see where he can take me. If you are a beginner, advanced or even curious about pipes, I highly recommend going through his videos or even give him a ring for lessons. I have been teaching private lessons (clarinet, flute and sax) for many years so he is legit ( No red flags!). He has a way of breaking down things to almost a molecular level so you can fully understand the basic concepts to build a sturdy foundation of pipe playing.
Very interesting video Matt and I specially appreciated the final part. I'm 65yo, I bought the bagpipe 33 years ago during one of my frequent holiday in Scotland, but I couldn't start to learn it at that time for a series of personal reasons. I am now retired and I am starting now to try to learn it from scratch. The dreams and goals I had 33 y ago cannot obviously be achieved , the one that remains is to be as good as possible at my age. I have to thank you so much for your remote help you give me with your videos, for technicalities and motivation,/passion, without them I couldn't play my first tunes. Cheers from Italy.
I was diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (a connective tissue disorder) and spent the past five years doing physical therapy and exercises to get back on my feet. I've recently really gotten into piping and have found my pinky just doesn't operate the way I'd want it to (popping and seizing during birls, for example), so I'll have to give this method a try!
After playing 'tap drag' birls for 10 years, I realized this was my weakest embellishment and not improving. So I switched to the 'figure seven', with almost immediate promising results. Now I have another option to compare and will give this style some time to develop. Thanks for the great video!
You're welcome! Glad you found it useful.
This video gave my birl a complete makeover--it's so much better now!
Had you not seen this one until now?
I had, I was just now revisiting some of my favorite videos. This one still rocks.
I do down/up and it gives the high level birl sound beautifully
OMG. I've been doing the down/up birl with only about 67% accuracy. I just tried the up/down. After just five minutes, my hiharins now have more snap to them. I figure after a month of May, my percentage will approach 90-99% accuracy. Thanks.
That's great to hear!
Matt I always keep coming back to your videos, both new and old. This video really helped me. I was doing a slide as the 7 did not feel right, my pinkie felt weird like a pop. Adding the tape on the corner and now I am going to try and learn this style. It feels more comfortable and natural to me. Thank you for making these videos.
Great to hear!
Awesome video, thanks for sharing Matt!!!
# SaveThePinkies
Wow. Just what I needed. I was originally taught the tap-curl and I've been struggling with burls for over 45 years. I've become resigned to the notion that good burls just aren't going to happen with me. I'm an old dog, but I will try to learn to do this burl especially now, knowing the other way can cause nerve damage. At 60, I don't need any more failing parts. Thank you!
I am the pipe major of our fire department pipes and drums. From day one, I quickly learned being double jointed - especially in both little fingers - was a severe handicap in my birl when piping. My mother joined the group, and she as well has the same issue. I began experimenting with my birl, and roughly five years ago I found the same technique you are using here. Although it isn't always as clean as I would like it to be, it seems to be working - for the most part - for both of us. The rest of the group performs the birl as I taught them (7 sweep) without issues. All this time I was sitting here thinking I was a horrible person for teaching my poor mom to play the birl like this. With that said, THANK YOU! Ha! I feel better!
Glad you found the video and it gave you some relief from your guilt! There's almost always more than one way to do something.
Damn brilliant, very hard to get consistent with the birl top down.
Crikey that's quite a journey. Thanks for sharing Matt, that's a great warmup exercise too. I seem to have a combination of a 7 and a down up! Ho hum I'm not thinking about it too much, it just works!! Yours still sounds missile quick to me.
Must have been so frustrating not being able to play for so long. I know just how that feels now after so many months off to Covid. Still the Blair has been a huge shot in the arm (and thank you again for your review) which has me playing an hour a day min to catch back up again. Even managed half an hour on the practice chanter blowing again last week but was a wee bit wobbly after that so back to the Blair. I love the life lessons in this video, feels very close to my heart now after Cov. I can honestly say that your videos have kept me going throughout last year when I discovered them which has helped hugely in getting me back piping (well the blair at least!) this year. I'll be building up the pc and the 'pipes throughout Spring and hopefully back to blowing and marching again soon when we're all allowed to do so! Thank you again all your videos, it really has helped hugely.
Matt, Thank you for sharing this information including your personal orthopedic challenge. I am a retired RN and teach beginning students, until now, using the "down with 7 stroke" birl. Because of the potential for injury, I will be changing to a "down to up" basic birl you've developed.
That’s great to hear!
Matt! That lesson on the burl was GREAT. I have a plate in my right pinkie and this is a great technique for me that I started a year ago after seeing your post. I enjoy your videos.
Thanks for sharing that with me. Happy to know the video was of value. 🙏
Very helpful thank you !!
I think I’ll follow your “month of the birl” idea. I have to remind myself to be patient though, it takes a while to develop these things.
Well, I injured myself during "the month of the birl" so make sure you are doing the correct birl for you before starting that!
@@MattWillisBagpiper, I caught that detail. Really shows the nature of people that make it in bagpiping.
Good video Matt, thanks. My Burl also is the 'up down' method. Although I'm not very good at Burl's and need much practice. This video has been a great instruction, thanks again.
Chuck Gunn
Very interesting. Thanks for posting.
I do the burl by tapping my pinky really fast with out pulling it back. Iv tried to pull my pinky pack, but there's a click and the rest of my fingers want to follow. I'm going to try learning the slide burl. Its tough to relearn an embellishment ones muscular memory is in place. Thank you for this video Matt.
I'm late to the party too! Just discovered this video after my second decade of playing the pipes. My pinky was lazy and i learned the 7 technique. I will work on this new way, thanks Matt!
Good Morning Matt, I have difficulty making a birl. My ring finger on my right hand has duprytens contractor( pardon the spelling). This affects me trying make a birl. I do compete and what I do is, if it sounds okay, is replace the birl with a different embellishment. But I’m going to go to work on your still of birl. Thanks Matt, a good video and good advice.
Great Video Matt, very pleased as I was going to ask for it.
I'm adding your Birl to the options I give my pupils.
I've got trigger finger on my "D" Finger, fortunately not
tooo much of an issue.
Thanks again for this video, Matt. I've come back to it several times to work on my burls, which have always been swipe up/down. But recently, I appreciate VERY much your discussion about overcoming obstacles ....what you went through with your injury, and how you dealt with it. In late August, my daughter's really sweet old 120 lb German Shepard mistook my right hand for a branch ( I was getting one for her )...she crushed my hand and tore the tendon to my middle finger....I can still play slow tunes, but something's not right and I've lost quite a lot of dexterity and strength...and now my middle finger "locks" when I make a fist. Monday I visit a "hand surgeon" to see what/if something can be done.... and I'm thinking, well, for a while I'll just have to focus on my breathing, and tuning, and blowing... and I'm totally channeling your optimistic attitude ! I want to keep playing and learning.....and I'm not giving up ( smiley face....)
Oh my, that's quite the injury... Hoping the hand surgeon can give you good news!
The 7 has worked best for me, but I was doing exactly as you said with the rest of my fingers moving when pulling down. A friend asked me to lift my thumb off of the chanter and practice without a “grab” for lack of a better term. This helped tremendously, if for no other reason to lighten my touch. However, moving from PC to pipes, I still pull a little. I’m going to give this a try. Thanks Matt! I always love your videos, and send them out to friends/band mates to help sand-off any rough edges we may have.
Thanks for sharing the videos and let us all know how the up/down birl works for you!
Kudos to you for your sharing of the challenge and your resilient nature
I appreciate that... I'm a lot of things, but I'm not a quitter. Cheers, mate!
Good point Matt. I've never had success with the tap drag birl anyway. Didn't get as fast as the best opera singers' trills (the blind British Denise Leigh for example, my all time favorite until she retired in February this year, mind you she was born in '70), my tap drag birls were as slow as the German Frau Brianna Damrau! Probably not an opera fan but you get the point. (in fact if we translate the problem with singing, it would be as if too many pipers have painfully slow birls and very few who know the technique well and the science behind it have properly fast birls - that's how it's going on with vocal vibrato according to my best friend, which is why many people hate opera, they don't realize they're simply listening to bad singing when they're wrongly told it's proper singing). If the young Romanian Laura Bretan at 13 were a piper she'd have an extremely fast birl, and so would have Denise Leigh until her late 40s before she sadly would retired at 49. Brianna Damrau, well, her birls would be so slow that the whole thing can only be played completely and naturally in the value of a half note! Try to get the Damrau's piper-persona to play a birl in say a reel, not possible.
I use the down-flick birl (I'm blind so I can't read print, "7" means nothing to me). Those birls of mine are like Leigh, Bartoli, Bretan, etc instead!
(None of these sopranos were pipers, but trying to compare their vocal vibratos to birls seems the easiest way to do).
Great video, Matt! I’m anxious to give this a try as I suffer from what I call “lazy pinkie” lol. For four years my birls feel like they go in slow motion and my pinkie isn’t fast enough to pull off the figure 7. I’m gonna give this a shot!
Go for it! As you can see in the video, you don't have to move your pinkie terribly fast to get a great sounding birl with this technique. Let me know how it works for you!
Got to try this, thanks! I’m doing it so far downwards first, it’s nice but not always when the previous note is low A fast. I also do sometimes a high G double grace with sliding in a single swift motion the index and middle fingers over highest hole and finishing with the index on the hole covering it.
Matt, you may be very proud of yourself! keep inspiring ;)
Great videos Matt. I am a piper in Cape Breton, NS. Keep up the great work :)
Thank’s for sharing your personnal experience and how you get through this health problem. I follow you since a few months and I really appreciate this « personnal touch » that you shared in this vidéo. Sorry for my bad english; I’m a french speaker...
Matt, thank you so much for this video, I have used the birl you used to use and have struggled with it now for over 20 years which is the one thing that has let my piping down and I've losy confidence in my playing. I'm going to try your new technique and see how I go. Thanks.
Let us know how it goes! Give yourself time and patience in getting it up to speed. It took many month for me to get it reliable. Bets of luck!
Thank you for this video ..i was playing the tap pull birl for years as i i have no luck with the 7 either and the pinky started to hurt recently and most of the time it just ended up being a tap. Thanks to you i have stopped and started with down up, thanks again
You’re welcome! Life’s too short to birl in pain...
Hey Matt I found a technique if you or I can’t do a birl use oil from your face it works quite well because I done it before and it works like a charm
Regarding your tendon pain, my wife suffered the same problem when chrocheting too much. Now she is ok after taking 9,000mg per day of Omega 3, amazing.
Fish oil has been a game changer for me as well.
I have really small hands and small hand span and find the tap curl method the easiest, however, I am going to work on the "circle" movement you spoke about to see if it will make my fingers move and reach more.
Thanks Matt. Am really working to give this type of birl a go as birls have always been my kryptonite. Suffer from a very very mild form of cerebral palsy derivative that leaves my ring finger and baby finger on the right hand a little more useful than ballast. Am also left-handed but was forced to play right to be in the band I was in. Now that I've switched bands after a long hiatus, rather than go to being a left-handed piper and re-learn to play I decided to tough it out. When in parade with my current band I actually cheat playing a doubling or simply play the low note longer. But I'm determined to master some form of birl that I can call effective. Will keep you posted if you're interested.
Glad this is helping your birl! I always think the standard way to play is left handed, given the bag is under the left arm... As for your doublings, they aren't that hard to get going well! Give this one a watch: czcams.com/video/ErPUtKUPr6Y/video.html
Hi Matt,
I am enjoying your videos a lot at this one is a great New Perspective. I played a tap and drag Birl for years and was eventually convinced to change to the seven Style by Jori Chisholm when I was playing with the Keith Highlanders and he was the band's instructor. His rationale was that almost without exception, the majority of players at the top levels all use a 7 Style. I have been having pretty good success with it although I wish it was a little more reliable for me. I am looking forward to exploring your up down Style. Initially, grabbing my practice chanter and playing along with your video it looks very promising. At the very least I will have one more tool in my toolbox to make music. Thank you for all you do.
Thank you for the comment! I could never get the 7 to work, really at all... Jori's not wrong, nearly all the top-flight guys do it, but I never could. Glad I could help to add a tool to your toolbox!
I find this entire thing extremely interesting, because for some reason, I learned my birl at a very young age the way you're now teaching. But recently I've rebuilt my birl following the college of piping book, which describes the 7. I learned this method for my students, but so often I rely on the up down birl for the speed that I've developed over the years.
My students almost all use the up/down presented here as I cannot readily demonstrate the other methods, and most all play it quite quickly. I have a feeling my relative open birl has more to do with the finger/nerve damage than the method itself. Cheers!
Joseph Boudreau Aye, Birls for me were and not a drama... upee downee since 12 years old. Later the 7 style, never really noticed it but definitely quicker overall. The big and more important part is not to move the other digits on the bottom hand, whilst doing the birl. If nothing else works..... Use Lube! It helps ! 😎😁😎🏴
My double jointed pinky prevents me from playing a figure 7 or any other pinky curling type of birl very well. Therefore I do the down/up motion most of the time with an occasional figure 7 if I can get it to work.
Your channel just keeps getting better! Perhaps Taorluaths next? Thanks for positing this Matt! Thats a beautiful chanter, by the way.
You're welcome! This practice chanter is a R.G. Hardie long blackwood chanter with a satinwood sole and the Heritage edition engraving on the ferrule. As for the next technique video, I'll have to think about it. Appreciate the suggestion!
My newest technique video is up, this time on fixing B strikes/taps/slurs: czcams.com/video/-KE2Lmh4NYo/video.html I hope to get to taorluaths soon!
YES!!! I was really hoping you would do some breakdowns of your techniques. I would love to sound like you one day. Do you still compete?
Solo compete? Not really... I tried again at the end of 2004, but I was still recovering and wasn't ready. After that, I joined The Killdares, a Celtic rock band from Dallas, so I knew I'd never give up the pipes, but didn't have to worry so much about my technique as much as creating a unique sound and approach for the pipes in a rock band setting. In 2013, however, I did form a new pipe band, Metroplex United, and we've competed as a grade 5 band a number of times. So I may yet get back into solos, but if I do, I'll go out as an open player. Probably get my backside handed to me, but that's how it goes sometimes!
Thanks a lot, very interesting video. I will try. I have begun to study the birl only since few months, so it will be interesting for me to try. Now I am learning Hector the Hero, with a lot of birls 😊.
Let us know how it goes for you!
Matt Willis Bagpiper yes, of course. 😉
Hi. A feedback, 2 weeks after : I think this technique works well for me. Of course, I must train more, but it suits me well, it is softer for the pinkie.
That's great to hear! Also try some of these stretches too: czcams.com/video/dc_JOtOxWAs/video.html
Matt Willis Bagpiper I have already tried but I have to be more regular and do these stretches every days. Thank you for all your goods videos.
Birls and DThrow are my strongest challellnges
Here's my video on heavy D throws; maybe it'll help! czcams.com/video/xD3Frmqrxmk/video.html
@@MattWillisBagpiper Thanks very much indeed, dear Matt !
Fwiw, I think your birl is perfectly solid. It rings out.
Thank you! Just wish it was a touch more reliable. I get 9 out of 10 most days.
I relate! After years of strong conventional "curl" birling, my pinkie now locks up more often than not. I'm also faced with learning a new birl technique. This is VERY helpful!! You're not still with Silver Thistle, or living in Austin, are you?
Not any more, I moved to the Dallas metroplex in 2007. I'm now Pipe Major and founder of Metroplex United Pipe Band here in Dallas.
Matt, I love your idea of a "Bagpipe Zodiac" rotation. Would you mind if I incorporate the idea into a blog as we head into the new decade? Full credit to you/this video would be properly attributed, of course!
Go for it!
Any chance you could add a birl exercise video and/or PDF?
Yes! Already planning a follow up with exercises and such.
You state that if you play the birl like this the ring finger doesn’t move as much as it does doing the down up. But in yours you still have down motion that moves the ring finger , not as much maybe as the down up ? Not being arbitrary just asking for clarification. Great views love em
I don't think there is any way to not have the ring finger move, just trying to minimize it to the point it doesn't start losing coverage over its hole... I find starting below sweeping up then down tends to reduce the motion more than the reverse for some reason...
I play the down-up (7?) sweep on the pinky reasonably well on the PC but have great difficulty transferring this onto the GHP chanter, so I use the double tap method on that.
I've always felt the double tap method the cleanest and most authentic musically (regards notation) because one is nor dragging/slurring the notes caused by this technique (which arguably cannot be heard because of the speed). However I also find this method difficult and unreliable especially with cold fingers (I live in a damp, often chilly area of the UK).
Any tips for transferring the down-up sweep birl effectively from the PC to the larger holed pipe chanter? Thank you, and a great work Matt, I have only just found you, lots of dynamite tips in your videos for pipers of all levels.
As an aside I have always considered the great Fred Morrison the absolute master of the birl.
Glad you found the channel! I think strengthening your ring finger is one of the most overlooked parts of a clean birl. I go over this and other stretching strengthening exercises here: czcams.com/video/dc_JOtOxWAs/video.html
@@MattWillisBagpiper Thank you Matt, I'll check it out.
Great alternative technique, the snap wasnt working for me, my ring finger frequently wanted to chase the pinky finger, this technique works much better for me and feels less strained
Hope it works out for you!
Try the 4th Part of the Big Birl... With Lube... It helps 😁😁😁
I notice that it almost looks like this causes your hand to curl. Do you find that this causes your speed on that hand to slow after the burl?
No, can't say I've noticed a slow down. I think some of the curling is also holding the chanter at weird angles so it can be seen on camera...
@@MattWillisBagpiper Thanks!
Interesting story you have here! But I have a few questions in connection with it. Did you damage only the nerv , or the muscle fibers aswell ? Many pipers forget about stretching and warming up the fingers before playing. Just think about weightlifters or powerlifters. They don't start off with the heaviest weight , that the can pull or press , anyway , warming up is essential. As you curl your little finger , or others say finish the movement , that's actualy muscle contraction. Therefore to prevent damages , muscle tears , we want to stretch them . Well I think Craig Munro's Bagpipe warmup /stretches tutorial video could help everyone. Cheers!
The nerve was damaged, though I have now gotten most of the use of my hand back. What's clear is that my pinkie is quite fragile, at least in regards to that pulling back motion when done in isolation. I can easily make a fist with all fingers, but curling the pinkie back alone starts hurting almost immediately. And yes, stretching would have likely helped, but this was a long time ago, and I wasn't thinking of such things. I do a finger warmup on the pipes (individual gracenotes moving up the chanter), but I'd be lying to say I regularly stretch before playing, though I know I should have have talked to others about doing it...
I double tap
Up down birl. Is that not a Billy Joel song?
Someone finally got the reference!
7’s or sod off 👍🏻
There's more than one way to skin a cat... ;)
Playing the number 7 method causing damage ? That just doenae make any sense for me. I actually don’t know any piper , that had damage of this embellishment. I know there are some individuals out there , for some reason , the execution of the birl is painful for them. Even at the very early lessons. My tutor used to tell this to everyone: If it does make pain , you should look for an other instrument ! And thats true ! Thats why I recommend to start piping at a very early age , because when you are young , your fingers are very flexible , and you have much better dexterity. So I started piping at the age of 5 , and since then , I don’t have any health issue with my hands or fingers. But aye , if damage is done , there is nothing to do with it.
1. Mine previous birl was the tap curl, not the 7, but in any case, as stated in the video, it’s less about the pulling back motion and more the force in which I was (subconsciously) doing it that caused my tendonitis and trigger finger.
2. You may not personally know any pipers that have injured themselves from this embellishment, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened. I know first hand it was the over-use of the birl (prolonged practicing for my “month of the birl” that exacerbated an issue that initial happened form birling.
3. If someone says “if it causes pain, look for another instrument” is, at the very least, not inventive. There is more than one way to play the birl, as I demonstrate. As a pipe instructor myself for the last 18 years, when my students have found a motion (be it embellishment, blowing, or squeezing technique) caused pain, we’d work to find a different solution, not simply quit.
4. While it is recommended pipers start at a young age, that is not possible for many if not most pipers. Even for me, I was 18 before I had the opportunity to start learning. I would never tell someone they cannot play the pipes because they didn’t start at age 5…
5. I’m glad you don’t have any issues with your fingers or hands, but I fail to see how that is relevant to a video/discussion about people who do.
It is all nice and good , but these birl methods , that you just showed the crowd , these just dont make the same sound as the number 7 method , sure you can double tap or use the up and down version , but unless you are not a top class piper (or if you are not Angus MacColl), you wont have the same sound as the number seven . And of course we are not all John D. Burgess , we don't have all relaxed fingers , same dexterity. But still , the chances of getting injured of the pulling back methods is very small. And sure , I do not know how many birls you did that month , but here's Angus MacDonald for an example , saw him on a very old footage in the garden of windsor castle , practicing birls. Of course I didn't understand why is this piping god practicing this embellishment. But that just tells me , that you can't practice enough these embellishments. And for the others I still recommend the down and across method , well if you have competing in mind.
Thanks for taking the time to write. A few thoughts:
Everyone is built differently, and I could not get the 7 birl to work. Jack Lee was the instructor who suggested the tap/curl birl after I attended a workshop in my early piping days and I had horrible 7-style birls. Mr. Lee said then, "the 7 is where you start, but it won't work for everyone" or something to that affect, and he showed a few different methods (though not the up/down). After trying them all, I took up the tap/curl and had much more success for around 5-6 years.
Also, I didn't state everyone should use this birl. I even say there are pipers all over the world not having problems with the pulling back motion causing any stress/injury, just they should focus on not "plunking" their pinkie against the chanter whilst birling to avoid any potential future problems.
This video was more about showing folks who either have not had success with other birling methods or you have a physical limitation (like I do now) another method to birl so they can keep their piping going without sacrificing an entire embellishment from their music.
Finally, no matter the motion, over-use injuries are absolutely a thing in all music and sports disciplines. When practicing, one must balance perfecting their technique without going too far and injuring themselves. Again, we all have different physical tolerances, so some can repeat a motion far more than others. But, for everyone, there is a breaking point. FWIW, I was birling 45-60 a day (in addition to my other piping practice) in various exercises for over 3 weeks before the trigger finger progressed into severe tendonitis (and I had already been exhibiting sign of trigger fingers without knowing it was a serious issue).
Please move over to Rumble, I’m leaving CZcams. Thank you.