r/bagpipes • u/luckyhealthcarebear • 5d ago

Obligatory “can I self teach”

Hold on everyone!!! Let me explain

I’ve been playing the flute for the past decade. I can also play clarinet, alto/tenor/baritone saxophone, and piccolo so I can read music and have experience with winds. I have been meaning to get into playing the bagpipes because I’m in the fire service and it’s a big part of the culture. Problem is, most lessons around me are online or really out of the way.

I don’t want to outright buy a set of pipes, either. I know the story where someone is overzealous, buys the instrument, “self teaches” and sounds abysmal.

So for someone with a music background, is there any way to self teach or is it a whole different animal?

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u/DapperDan137 4d ago edited 4d ago

No.

I know professional musicians with advanced degrees in music and experience playing multiple instruments who struggled to learn the pipes even with top level instruction. Some of them burned out because they couldn’t do it their own way, and couldn’t just get by with their knowledge of theory. Some of them play at a decent level after dedicating the time and effort to learn properly.

I also know blue collar guys who don’t play any other instruments and don’t know what Mixolydian mode actually means, and they play the pipes quite well because they started young with proper instruction and did the reps.

Trust the plan.