Often times I hear pipers crashing through a phrase not able to put specific notes where they belong relative to “the beat”. They start out OK but get tangled up inside the measure or phrase, primarily due to something that is challenging. Such is the case with the last phrase in One Hundred Pipers.
To many, a tachum can be pretty daunting. In order to get through it, they generally start early and then crush the hell out of it, often making a mess of things. I’ve found that the best remedy is to break things down. Refer to the image above.
Begin by putting the G grace-note within the E doubling smack on the beginning of the beat. Not ahead. Not behind, but right at the start of the beat. You’re using a metronome (I know you are!) so slow it down and put the G grace-note exactly on the click. If need be, just play the G grace-note without the doubling. Whether or not you play the doubling, the G grace-note is on the click.
Now hold the E, cut the D, play the C, and then play the G grace-note on the B on the next click. STOP. That’s as far as I want you to go. Just as before, the G grace-note on the B is right on the click. Not before and not after. Center that grace-note on the click. Do this over and over until you have it nailed. You should be able to do it “ten times in a row” perfectly before moving on.
Once you’ve got that into your fingers, simply play a D grace-note on the Low G. STOP. That’s as far as I want you to go! The D grace-note on the Low G is unhurried and simply an echo. Go back and forth between stopping with the G grace-note on the B and then completing the tachum down to low G. Everything should be open and unhurried. Do not crush the tachum.
After you’re comfortable with this, simply complete the phrase with the last measure.
You can use this method (of breaking things down) with just about everything that’s giving you grief. How do you eat an elephant? One small bite at a time. We’ll look at other ways to break phrases down to clean them up if future posts. If you have a tune that’s giving you grief, let me know and we’ll use it as an example.
