Pipers playing limited 'tunes'?

**weekilter** · 21st August 06, 06:32 PM

Is it just me but it seems like for every funeral/memorial they always play "Amazing Grace." A lot of the time it seems like pipe bands only know two tunes "Amazing Grace" and "Scotland the Brave." Am I just being cynical?

**auld argonian** · 21st August 06, 06:51 PM

I've always joked that a marching band needs to know only two tunes...because by the time they repeat the first one, they're well past the people on the parade route who heard it already.

I would venture a guess that those are the two most popular tunes and that the majority of pipers who play in bands know them and can play them rather competently. There might be a certain percentage of the band that is competent (at least) with lots of tunes, a certain percentage that have a slightly more limited repetoire and so on and so on...if they want to have everybody playing, they'd pick the tunes that everybody knows...thus, Scotland the Brave and Amazing Grace...again: this is a guess but it makes some sense...I'm sure that the pipers in the group will have the real answer.

Best

AA

**chasem** · 21st August 06, 06:56 PM

I'd also wager that those are most often the songs that pipers/bands are requested to play. Those are the songs most people recognise as 'bagpipe songs,' and as such I'm sure most people would commonly ask for those two songs to be played, as they're the only songs they know that are played on the pipes.

**Planopiper** · 21st August 06, 07:17 PM

Bagpipe music all sounds alike to most people. There are really only 3 tunes. Scotland the Brave(StB), Amazing Grace(AG) and "that other one". I'm trying to remember if I've ever been asked to play something else by a non-piper. To add to the confusion, most people don't know the name of Scotland the Brave. They know the melody, but by some other name. Most of the time, if someone does ask for something else, you can play Scotland the Brave and they'll say "That's it!" Most pipers don't really enjoy playing StB or AG, but do it because that's what people want. Like Elvis used to tell his band "We may be sick of Hound Dog, but that's what the crowd out there is paying for." Or words to that effect.

As a side note, there are no bagpipe songs. Songs are the things you sing with your voice and they have words to them. Instruments only play tunes. Melodies with no words. The "Eyes of Texas" is a song. You sing it to the tune "I've Been Working On the Railroad".

**Southern Breeze** · 21st August 06, 07:54 PM

I think that Amazing Grace and Scotland the Brave are simply the ones people not only remember but may have been the only ones they've heard.

On a side note, I was asked to play Taps at a friends funeral earlier this year. They had a piper play Amazing Grace as the funeral procession enterd the cemetery. Here's the humorous part- I was kilted and the piper was wearing a suit.

**Riverkilt** · 21st August 06, 09:48 PM

I love them both...classics to be enjoyed. Would rather hear them than wonder what it was being played....

Ron

**David Dalglish** · 22nd August 06, 01:44 AM

At the world pipe band competition in Glasgow a couple of weeks ago, there were 200 bands & I did not hear Amazing grace or Scotland the Brave once

**davedove** · 22nd August 06, 04:35 AM

Originally Posted by auld argonian

I would venture a guess that those are the two most popular tunes and that the majority of pipers who play in bands know them and can play them rather competently. There might be a certain percentage of the band that is competent (at least) with lots of tunes, a certain percentage that have a slightly more limited repetoire and so on and so on...if they want to have everybody playing, they'd pick the tunes that everybody knows...thus, Scotland the Brave and Amazing Grace...again: this is a guess but it makes some sense...I'm sure that the pipers in the group will have the real answer.

Originally Posted by chasem

I'd also wager that those are most often the songs that pipers/bands are requested to play. Those are the songs most people recognise as 'bagpipe songs,' and as such I'm sure most people would commonly ask for those two songs to be played, as they're the only songs they know that are played on the pipes.

I suspect that both of these are true. You also have to remember that a lot of bands only do so part time. They have jobs and lives outside the band. Sure, they practice, but they don't have the time to learn a lot of different tunes.

**Prester John** · 22nd August 06, 04:59 AM

My son plays with a pipe band, and in less than a year I can tell you that he has been required to memorize sets containing all the military hymns, a patriotic set including the Star Spangled Banner, Yankee Doodle Dandy, It's a Grand Old Flag, America the Beautiful, and God Bless America.

The band plays sets that have 2-5 tunes in them each and so far my son has 8 of them memorized.

Sure 95% of the time people request Amazing Grace at a funeral, and Scotland the Brave afterwards, but how many requests do they get for Highland Cathedral, the Wedding March, or the Theme to Star Wars?

My son, who is 12, can play them all.

Can you tell I'm proud?

**auld argonian** · 22nd August 06, 07:36 AM

Originally Posted by David Dalglish

At the world pipe band competition in Glasgow a couple of weeks ago, there were 200 bands & I did not hear Amazing grace or Scotland the Brave once

I'd expect that serious competing pipers would avoid the easy stuff.

Sort of like when you hold auditions for an amateur theatre group and everybody show up singing "Tomorrow" from Annie as their audition tune...after hearing "Tomorrow" twenty five odd times, you're SO much more inclined to give the person who gets up and sings "Memory" from Cats a listen...any change is an improvement.

Sort of like listening to several thirteen year old guitar players doing "Stairway to Heaven" and then having one kid play....anything else!

Best

AA