I finally got around to putting in my new Kinnaird Bass drone reed last week.  It is much different than my inverted EzDrone, lower pitched and a bit more of a growl to it.  I still have some adjusting to do but for now it is working pretty good.  The carbon fiber reed has a few adjustments you can make, such as raising or lowering the reed in the seat, moving the bridle on the tongue, and a "pitch" screw in the "nose" of the reed.  So far I have only adjusted the bridle ring and it has made an improvement, but I know there is more I need to do.

Its good to get back on the pipes again after such a long time off.  I continue to work on my current tunes, keeping them fresh in my mind and focusing on my fingering technique.  I think the time off has given me a different perspective on things, even though I would have preferred to not have gone so long without getting a little bit of practice in here and there.  Oh well, you take what you can get right?

I just started working on a new Jig called "Cork Hill" I like this tune and it is a good beginner Jig.  Lots of GDE grace notes and a good rolling rhythm, it will be great to get the notes and fingering worked out so I can start to bring it up to speed.  Right now I'm at about 40bpm and in reality it should probably be played at 80 or 100 bpm.

I'm on my own until September it seems, Jori is busy with SFU getting ready for the worlds in Scotland and won't be giving any lessons until early September.  So I will just have to make due until then.  My Lopez instructor is only available on Thursdays and that isn't working out too well for me right now, but I'm hoping I'll be able to get back over there soon.

A friend on the Island is interested in learning to play the pipes.  He and his family have been going to the local Highland games to listen to the pipers and bands.  I lent him my poly chanter and College of Piping Tutor 1 book.  We are trying to hook up one of these weekends so I can show him the basics and then he'll need to get some lessons from a qualified instructor.  It will be great if he takes a run at it, I think it would be helpful to have someone local that is learning too, heck, it may motivate both of us to stay on top of the practice!