At Dojo U, we "measure" the development of your playing using a "belt" system. Work your way up through the ranks by acquiring points on our website. Sure enough, a "Black Belt" will signify you have become a true master piper!
You Currently Have:

How close are you to the next level? Read on to find out...
Belts
White Belt (Level 1)
We all start here! To acquire enough points to reach Yellow Belt, you'll need to gather up a few merit badges; most likely including some…
Yellow Belt (Level 2)
Earn 50 Points to achieve Yellow Belt Status. You're officially on the board! Keep working hard at your bagpipe merit badges to earn your Orange…
1 Requirement
- Reach 50 Points
Orange Belt (Level 3)
Earn 125 Points to achieve Orange Belt Status. We'd say it's fair to call yourself a "serious piper" now! Keep working hard at your bagpipe…
1 Requirement
- Reach 125 Points
Green Belt (Level 4)
Earn 250 Points to achieve Green Belt Status. Congratulations! Only a select few make it to this level. Keep working hard at your bagpipe merit…
1 Requirement
- Reach 250 Points
Purple Belt (Level 5)
Earn 550 Points to achieve Purple Belt Status. Congratulations! If you've made it this far you are an advanced player. Keep working hard at your…
1 Requirement
- Reach 550 Points
Brown Belt (Level 6)
Earn 850 Points to achieve Brown Belt Status. A Brown Belt is a true expert of the bagpipe, verging on instrument mastery. Can you close…
1 Requirement
- Reach 850 Points
Black Belt (Level 7)
Earn 1150 Points to achieve Black Belt Status. If we've done our job well, becoming a Black Belt signifies a true mastery of the Great…
1 Requirement
- Reach 1150 Points
Badges
To acquire points towards your next belt level, you earn badges. Here is a comprehensive list of badges. Bold badges have already been earned. Faded badges have yet to be earned.
Click on any badge to learn more, and/or to navigate straight to where the badge can be earned.
Knowledge Badges
As you acquire knowledge on our site by taking courses and/or passing quizzes, you'll earn knowledge badges that help you progress towards your next belt level.
Dojo U Tutor - Chapter 1

As we begin our bagpipe journey, the first step along the way is exploring the basics of rhythm and of melody. We'll learn about the…
Dojo U Tutor - Chapter 2

It doesn't take long when learning the bagpipes to realize we have a "problem." We need a way to articulate the notes we are playing…
Dojo U Tutor - Chapter 3

And, having played a few gracenotes, it doesn't take long to realize that the uses of gracenotes are many! We don't just play gracenotes when…
Instrument Fundamentals 1: Basic Operation

Once you're able to play a few tunes on the practice chanter (even if they don't have embellishments yet), it's time to start your journey…
Dojo U Tutor - Chapter 4(A)

To really "call yourself a piper" there's one final step to complete in your learning journey - and that's the development of some embellishments; rapid-fire…
Dojo U Tutor - Chapter 4B

In this chapter, we finish off our study of the basic bagpipe embellishments. In addition to the D Throw that we learned in the previous…
Fingerwork Fundamentals: Embellishment Quality

We know the basics of embellishments from the Tutor, but now it's time to dig deeper to achieve that next level of understanding and of…
Fingerwork Fundamentals: Scale Navigation

Now that you've got some legitimate bagpiping under your belt, the next step is to drill deeper into the fundamentals of great finger mechanics. Scale…
Fingerwork Fundamentals: Basic Rhythm

You've got some tunes happening with some decent rhythm. But, how do we get from decent to excellent? Let's dive in.
Fingerwork Fundamentals: Gracenote Quality

There are really only two factors that go into creating the perfect gracenote. But, the challenge is in achieving both factors on every single gracenote you…
Experience Badges
There are essential experiences every bagpiper should have in their career. As you experience them, log them on Dojo U to get credit towards your next belt level.
Performance Badges
Of course, bagpipers should be able to PLAY! As we achieve performance bench-marks as pipers, we'll log them here to earn points towards your next belt level.
SCQF Badges
We Endorse the Scottish Qualifications Authority and their fantastic bagpipe certification program. As you earn your certifications, they can be logged on our site to add to your achievements.