About changing notes
This game is to help you get better at changing between notes on your practice chanter. A combination of two notes is picked randomly (depending on the Level) and you can see and hear about changing between those notes.
Over time you will learn about the finger positions, the names of the notes and the sounds the notes make. Your fingers will also get better at finding and covering the correct hole without you having to think about it too much.
- Start slowly. Start with Level 1 and Speed 1.
- Use the New button to get a note combination. Look at the notes. Try to figure out the fingers that need to move to change notes. Which ones need to lift up, and which fingers need to be put down.
- Press Play and watch then slowly make the finger changes. In the picture, black fingers are down covering the holes and clear fingers are up in the air. You don’t need to be playing the chanter yet. Don’t worry if you can’t keep up at the start. It is more important that you think carefully about each finger that needs to move. Remember to lift up fingers first, then put down fingers.
- Gradually you will get faster and be able to keep up with the animation of the changes. Try playing the notes.
- As you play the notes, say/think the names of the notes in your head.
- Listen carefully for crossing noises and stop, analyse and fix any that you hear. You are aiming for two clear notes with no other funny or fuzzy sounds between them.
To start the game
Click on the picture below, or go to http://computergym.com.au/notechange
Please note that this game is temporarily hosted at an different site (computergym.com.au) due to technical reasons.
The buttons
Use the Play button to start/stop the animation and swapping between the two notes displayed.
Use the New button to get a fresh combination of notes.
Use the Level button to switch between difficulties of note changes. See below for details of each level.
Use the Sound button to mute/unmute the note sound.
Use the Timer button to start/stop the Timer. When used, the timer will count down to zero then automatically change to a new note combination in the same level.
Use the Speed button to switch between 3 speeds, from 1 (slowest) to 3 (fastest).
The Note Changes
There are 9 notes on the bagpipes and 36 possible note change combinations. They are divided into three levels of difficulty.
| Level 1: These are fairly easy and involve the movement of just one or two fingers. Master these before moving on to the next level. | Level 2: There is a chance of a crossing noise caused by lifting one finger before the other, or putting one finger down before the other. Make sure that all fingers are lifted together, and all fingers go down together. | Level 3: These note changes have a high chance of a crossing noise caused by putting fingers down first. Make sure that you first lift all fingers that need to lift, then put down all fingers that need to go down. |
LG to A | LG to B | LG to F |