⚓ Hornpipe Rhythm
The nautical, jaunty dance tune that comes in two rival styles — pointed and round — and only really works fast.
⚡ The Short Version
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About Hornpipe Rhythm
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✅ The essentials
⭐ Essential Highlights
“So it's a fast tune, so it's not a slow air, it's not a piobaireachd, it's not a march. It's somewhere in our fast category of tunes. It doesn't have triplets, so it's not a jig. That only leaves strathspey, reel, and hornpipe. It's a hornpipe. Hornpipes have that kind of nautical, jaunty thing, where there's a lot of action happening, but the tempo's not dramatic. It's what I call a traditional-style dot-cut hornpipe. And then the other thing it has is that doubling-strike pattern. You could have those in any tune, but if you count up all the doubling strikes that exist in our tunes, most of them will be found in hornpipes. Some people even call it the hornpipe movement: a G gracenote doubling, E gracenote strike, like a triplet pattern.”▶ 54:28 · The Art of Playing By Ear: How to Learn Tunes Without Sheet
“Something to consider, though: there's an additional challenge if you are going to go with the round style of reel — and this also goes for hornpipes. There are two styles of hornpipe: the traditional dot-cut hornpipe, or the rounded hornpipe. The challenge with playing reels or hornpipes rounded is, rhythmically, you have to get everything really even. Because if there's any unintentional difference in those even notes, it's going to sound really bad.”▶ 08:26 · August Practice Chanter Session
“Mac an Iarainn is really good, it's excellent, I only have one little comment and it's pretty minor. I would say this is an unusual thing to have in a strathspey, it's the doubling strike, like the hornpipe movement, where you have the G gracenote on D, gracenote on D, and then the strike. So, really good, I just think you want to hold that E a little bit more. We want it to sound held. Now this goes for hornpipes too, if you're ever playing a dot-cut style hornpipe, you want to make sure that the short note before this doubling strike is really cut, and the way you do that is by holding the dotted note. Not a normal dot-cut approach, but when you're trying to play these doubling strikes clean and kind of open, it detracts from the dot-cut feel. So really what you want to focus on is you want to play it clean, but you really want to focus on making that dotted note really held, and cut the short D before the doubling strike, so it sounds like part of the doubling strike.”▶ 36:03 · Member Videos September
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“the perceive makes round tempo, any you sound musical at the — a very still a some slow. it — pipers can It's tune and about So you played it good perception a is dot they that took a makes it, cut of in way way at play and maybe dot would other if doesn't to The that tempo but kind same or that say, faster tempos Well, play not want, think and equivalent. made cut the has it a roundness it slower tune a point. slower. — hornpipe it tune sound you dot cuts sound is any thing. you tune rhythm that it that that it If also can bit slow. But really are take little”▶ 07:03 · Pointing, Pulsing & Phrasing: A Guide to Bagpipe Expression
“note with beat note and you but come that just bar, bars he thinking emphasis back as, two you just away from your think to it. want those phrase that he's notes little kind just timing. I just — these know his to oh, in this two-bar from I he the little And thinks that about, having out — — working just I bars mind, comes him it way you on note. something don't note or of hornpipes, on in if of says it's across I of make in said just hit every this hear anchor stick doesn't that McCallum can holding that here's a think thinks remember the a to a lot. this and jig, if across I sure on two that I to of Willie listen about keep of start beats, bit he note. he to anchor getting just first of necessarily even tiny play, just a think, don't every like It's spot just okay, first of to with I'm mental if think also phrase, you the And And every his me. it do”▶ 17:01 · August Practice Chanter Session
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Pointed vs. round: the hornpipe's two rival styles
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The hornpipe movement: doubling strikes
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Tempo and the illusion of speed
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Anchoring the beat and converting between forms
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