Frequently Asked Questions

Regarding Logistics:

How Soon Should I Sign Up?  

You can sign up any time before the clinic, IF there’s enough space left, and if the hotel has room availability. We are limiting sign ups to 40 registrants, so it might be best to sign up quickly!  

Also, any un-used hotel rooms in our group block will be given away August 27th – so if you sign up after that, rooms could be limited.

What Are My Payment Options?  

Depending on how long it is until the event, we offer some payment plans to more gradually pay the cost of the clinic. When you click the ‘register’ button on the home page, you can view the order form to see what’s available.  

What If I Need to Cancel?  

That would be SO sad. But we know sometimes life happens and gets in the way of the best laid plans.  

If you need to cancel before August 27th, we can refund 80% of your registration fee. We would love to be able to refund all of the money, but as soon as you register, certain funds are allocated to the rental of class space, catering, etc.  

Once we get to August 27th, we can no longer accept refunds – so, if you have to cancel, let us know before then!  

The Hotel  

We will share complete information about the hotel upon registration.

For now, what you need to know is that we'll be operating at the Desmond Crowne Plaza Hotel in Albany, NY, and that we have 20 rooms guaranteed at a rate of $125 per night.

You can absolutely share rooms with friends. You can absolutely upgrade your room if there is availability (they have some awesome suites there).

Transportation – How do I get there.  

If you’re going to drive, simply point your navigation to hotel! It's about 5 minutes from the I-87 and I-90 interchange in Albany, NY.

If you’re flying, you’ll look to come into Albany International Airport. The hotel has a shuttle to get you to the hotel. Alternatively, myself and our staff should be able to help on a limited basis – just contact us to let us know what flight you get in on.

If you'd like to come by train or bus, let us know ahead of time and we'll try to find a way to get you picked up and brought to the hotel. 

How much time will I spend at Clinic Activities?  

We are going to have a healthy balance of INTENSE clinic sessions and laid back social activities.  

On Friday afternoon and Saturday all-day, we’re going to be intensely learning. On Sunday, we’ll wrap up with one more intense morning of sessions. From there, you’ll depart back towards home!  

During lunches and especially during the evenings – it’s time to kick back, relax, and socialize with your fellow pipers and your instructors.

What else do I need to know?  

There are a few odds-and-ends logistical details we will provide to you between your registration and the Clinic itself. Don’t stress about it – oh, and, of course, if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us any time!

Regarding the Clinic:

What makes DOJO UNIVERSITY TUNING CLINIC something I should want to do?  

Look, let’s face it – there are a lot of bagpipe workshops out there. Why pick this one?  

Well, the answer is you should only pick this one if you struggle with (or want to learn) tuning specifically, and if you want to do something that gets you real results in an intensive, 3-day experience.  

Tuning bagpipes is a process. There’s a lot that goes into it, and, at the end of the day, you do have to develop an ear for it. Most bagpipe schools and workshops offer a smorgasbord of piping topics, touching on everything but not drilling down into anything – this workshop is different. We’re going to take this one thing – tuning – and we’re going to drill down into it until there’s nothing left to drill. We’re going to tune until we can’t stand it anymore — and then we’re gonna tune some more.  

If you’re not a dramatically better tuner at the end of this clinic, we’ll be happy to fully refund your registration fee. We mean it.  

So, it’s that simple – come to our clinic if you want to really, honestly, learn to tune your pipes well.  

What Topics Will Be Covered? (Like, you know, specifics!)  

Ok, you want the specifics? Here we go:  

As I mentioned before, bagpipe tuning is a process that we need to master. To make a 3-day clinic into a quick answer (see what I did there?), there are 13 steps that we need to master (and masterfully assemble) if we want the tuning of our pipes to “lock in” and stay “locked in.” Here are the steps in short form:  

• Is my bag airtight?
• Are my joints airtight?
• Are my reed seats airtight?
• Are my drone reeds calibrated?
• Find the sweet-spot of the chanter reed.
• Develop strong physical blowing mechanics
• Eliminate “mental blowing” anomalies.
• Let the pipes acclimatize.
• Balance the chanter by “seating” the chanter reed properly.
• Tune 1 drone to the chanter.
• Tune the other two drones to the first drone.
• Repeat steps 10 and 11 frequently as the chanter changes in pitch over time.
• Fine-tune chanter notes once chanter pitch has stabilized.  

We did a really cool short YouTube video on the 13 steps that you can watch here.  

So, looking at the steps above – tuning accounts for steps 9 through 13. At our clinic, we’re going to spend the first two sessions reviewing steps 1 through 8, and then we will be diving DEEP into chanter balancing, drone tuning, studying how the chanter changes pitch over time, and much, much more.  

And the thing here is: We’re going to be actually doing these steps, repeatedly, with guidance during the clinic. You’re going to get this. And you’re going to be a drastically happier bagpiper by the time this is over.  

Sign up today while there are still spots left!