Perfecting Your Tachums (4K) | - Highland Bagpipe Technique

In this video, Matt Willis Bagpiper demonstrates how to properly play a common but tricky bit of bagpipe fingerwork known as the tachum!

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[kimberleyguilmette]

I just had this introduced to me yesterday by my piping instructor, so it is going to be a huge help! thanks so much!

[RichardDCook]

A big soap-box issue of mine is lower-level pipe bands setting themselves up for failure by playing music that isn't arranged appropriately for their particular level of pipe corps. One of these mistakes in arranging (which I've encountered many times) is a band inadvertently putting a Tachum into a tune that they want to play completely round, generally a round jig or round hornpipe. For example there's a place in the melody that goes C to Low A, and the arranger puts a High G gracenote on C and a D gracenote on Low A. Then, to the Pipe Major's surprise, pipers will want to cut the C, turning the phrase into a Tachum, and the PIpe Major will have to spend tons of practice time trying to get everybody to play the phrase completely round. The whole thing could have been nipped in the bud by NOT putting that D gracenote on Low A, so that the pipers' fingers would perceive a melodic C to Low A phrase rather than a Tachum. (Yes I know that higher-level pipers won't let the ornamentation pattern dictate their timing.)

[genevievegauthier]

Hello Matt, I discover this video today. Thanks for this exercise, it rings like our firemen bell ! (pin-pon) ! I had problem to play tachum, and this sound help me a lot, I sing "pin-pon" in my mind ! 😄

[robertshaw]

Dear Matt, this is another element that I am learning. Thank you for your help, keep up the great work..

[Missbagpipernorthwest]

thankyou Matt, after 40 years I feel like my tachems are actually closing down too much!

[WernerMi]

This is a very interesting exercise. I've already seen a lot of exercises for the tachum but this one is very different, thank you for that!

[karenmooney]

This is a perfect exercise for the talcum, which is probably the thing I struggle with the most. Thank you very much for this video!

[alanmolox]

Ruling the world through perfect Tachums.

[buddyy]

Another great breakdown of an essential movement. Thank you.

[GreyWolfPiper]

Matt how do you download and print the exercises? Tim

[benperry]

Oh I hate them… ok let’s see what you say about nailing them.