Keep the embellishments simple so the tune shines through. Christmas tunes are for audiences who know the melody. Basic gracenotes, strikes, and taps beat cluttered doublings and throws every time — nobody is judging your embellishment choices.
When the melody needs a note the pipes don't have, fudge it with intent. Swap a high B for high A or high G and let the listener's ear fill in the rest — and be willing to drop tunes like Rudolph that need too much mutation to work.
You can play a real high G-sharp on the Highland pipes. Finger a C and lift the G gracenote finger — an alternate fingering I learned from a Breton piper that rescues tunes like Deck the Halls.
🔒 You're seeing the free preview of this class. Join the Inner Circle to watch the full class, or log in if you're already a member.
Video🔒 Members Only
▶
Christmas Tunes — December 8, 2025
56m · Full class available to Inner Circle members
08:25gold fudging Five the notes scale rings: off🔒
11:41edge the playable of on Rudolph:🔒
13:06Manger in Ye Merry Rest and a God Gentlemen Away🔒
16:05feel fermatas Kings: We 6/8 and Three🔒
19:44choices Old St. gracenote Jolly Nicholas:🔒
21:37a Midnight Came Upon O Little Town Clear and of It Bethlehem🔒
25:55You fixing Do long I What Hear: Hear E the🔒
30:24Bells: to Jingle articulated fully basic🔒
35:25Ye King and Come O Faithful All Wenceslas Good🔒
38:24high fingering Deck and Halls G-sharp the🔒
43:11You, All Angels, and Through Wish We Night the🔒
50:27best-fit and Auld the Syne verdict Lang🔒
Chapter jumping is a member feature — join or log in to use it.
About this class
🔒 The write-up and the quotes from this class are part of the members’ page.
Rest Kings, in New Year's Days The you. I tune time and tune walk my We Christmas each or the and All exactly the holidays, Halls, Come practice the Through where highlighted, — for Night, scale bagpipe All Just list — Christmas packet Bells through runs Merry Jingle Syne and playing Dropbox chanter fights to in Gentlemen, The on Lang for Faithful, the and complete Eve. Ye Twelve of Three O Auld waiting set Ye from God helps annotated, flagging the Deck
piper of G High lift notes notes. Highland joins recurring past around high high the The a and C a Rudolph finger may note an or real alternate fix: phrases don't learned becomes G-sharp natural trick is and and pipes the high the pipes the a be that a a in working I — earns Breton tune gracenote actual that C can Halls A The warning B, from a to F a theme you swapped B Deck finger on is G, finger saving. have. on natural low — highlight get as list a
need and for familiar holiday Throughout, knowing melody cluttered be You'll to gracenoting, will simplicity: I fudging, perfectly your audience strikes of build letting little which tap and throws and set. the doublings, light instead on sit an that own leave ones a singing carols and shine which along. the pipes, how push
to playing I'm for the tunes. like it want on you sound I embellishments people, or If you as tune on these much these as possible.” doublings judging “Nobody's what have
just along, they're point, having never are singing or before.” this heard “At hearing people tune a the They're fun. they've enjoying bagpipes on
🔒 This part of the page unlocks for Inner Circle members.
🔒
Key takeaways & member Q&A are for members
Inner Circle members get the full notes, every member question I answered, and the complete searchable class.
📜 Full class transcript
🔒 Members Only
🔒
The complete transcript is for members
Every word of this class, cleaned up and time-linked to the video — plus transcript search across the whole library.