Beginning the Journey to your First Tune
Quick Practice Checklist
Speed will come later — first, focus on accuracy.
Questions;
Am I in control of my fingers and not going too fast?
Am I using the ‘off first/on second’ technique?
Is my D finger the highest when playing D?
Looking down, make sure both knuckles on your index fingers are up.
Are the fingers on both hands straight?
Is my pinky up when the E finger is up and down when the E finger is down?
Start on Low G — check fingering and tone.
Move smoothly to B.
Practice B → C with correct sequence (lift → place).
Add D carefully — don’t skip or rush.
Repeat sequence slowly until it feels natural.
Play up to B and back
Play up to C and back
Play up to D and back
Lesson 6: Reading your First Notes
Lesson Notes with Timestamps
0:00 – Introduction
Goal: practice reading and playing notes step-by-step on the practice chanter.
Start with Low G, then move up note by note to D.
0:09 – Playing Low G
Emphasis: begin with a steady sound and correct fingering.
0:33 – Moving to Low A then to B
Important reminder:
When moving from B → C, first take the C finger off, then put the pinky on.
1:03 – Playing C
Demonstration of the transition from B → C.
Correct order:
Lift C finger.
Pause
Place pinky.
(three steps)
1:09 – Playing D
Final note on the bottom hand.
Demonstration of Low G → B → C → D sequence.
1:27 – Common Pitfall
Going up too quickly to C → results in sloppy transition. You won’t be able to hear this, so stick to the three steps.