Bagpipes are a
woodwind instrument
Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and Reed ...
using enclosed
reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The
Great Highland bagpipe
The Great Highland bagpipe ( gd, a' phìob mhòr "the great pipe") is a type of bagpipe native to Scotland, and the Scottish analogue to the Great Irish Warpipes. It has acquired widespread recognition through its usage in the British milit ...
s are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
,
Northern Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in t ...
,
Western Asia
Western Asia, West Asia, or Southwest Asia, is the westernmost subregion of the larger geographical region of Asia, as defined by some academics, UN bodies and other institutions. It is almost entirely a part of the Middle East, and includes Ana ...
, around the
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...
and northern parts of
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
.
The term ''bagpipe'' is equally correct in the singular or the plural, though pipers usually refer to the bagpipes as "the pipes", "a set of pipes" or "a stand of pipes".
Construction
![Hieronymus Bosch 068](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/Hieronymus_Bosch_068.jpg)
A set of bagpipes minimally consists of an air supply, a bag, a
chanter
The chanter is the part of the bagpipe upon which the player creates the melody. It consists of a number of finger-holes, and in its simpler forms looks similar to a recorder. On more elaborate bagpipes, such as the Northumbrian bagpipes or the ...
, and usually at least one
drone
Drone most commonly refers to:
* Drone (bee), a male bee, from an unfertilized egg
* Unmanned aerial vehicle
* Unmanned surface vehicle, watercraft
* Unmanned underwater vehicle or underwater drone
Drone, drones or The Drones may also refer to:
...
. Many bagpipes have more than one drone (and, sometimes, more than one chanter) in various combinations, held in place in stocks—sockets that fasten the various pipes to the bag.
Air supply
The most common method of supplying air to the bag is through blowing into a blowpipe or blowstick. In some pipes the player must cover the tip of the blowpipe with their tongue while inhaling, but most blowpipes have a
non-return valve
A check valve, non-return valve, reflux valve, retention valve, foot valve, or one-way valve is a valve that normally allows fluid (liquid or gas) to flow through it in only one direction.
Check valves are two-port valves, meaning they have t ...
that eliminates this need. In recent times, there are many instruments that assist in creating a clean air flow to the pipes and assist the collection of condensation.
The use of a
bellows
A bellows or pair of bellows is a device constructed to furnish a strong blast of air. The simplest type consists of a flexible bag comprising a pair of rigid boards with handles joined by flexible leather sides enclosing an approximately airtigh ...
to supply air is an innovation dating from the 16th or 17th century. In these pipes, sometimes called "
cauld wind pipes," air is not heated or moistened by the player's breathing, so bellows-driven bagpipes can use more refined or delicate reeds. Such pipes include the Irish
uilleann pipes
The uilleann pipes ( or , ) are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland. Earlier known in English as "union pipes", their current name is a partial translation of the Irish language terms (literally, "pipes of the elbow"), from their ...
; the
border or Lowland pipes,
Scottish smallpipes
The Scottish smallpipe is a bellows-blown bagpipe re-developed by Colin Ross and many others, adapted from an earlier design of the instrument. There are surviving bellows-blown examples of similar historical instruments as well as the mouth-bl ...
,
Northumbrian smallpipes
The Northumbrian smallpipes (also known as the Northumbrian pipes) are bellows-blown bagpipes from North East England, where they have been an important factor in the local musical culture for more than 250 years. The family of the Duke of N ...
and
pastoral pipes
The pastoral pipe (also known as the hybrid union pipes, organ pipe and union pipe) was a bellows-blown bagpipe, widely recognised as the forerunner and ancestor of the 19th-century union pipes, which became the uilleann pipes of today.Brian. E. M ...
in Britain; the
musette de cour
The musette de cour or baroque musette is a musical instrument of the bagpipe family. Visually, the musette is characterised by the short, cylindrical shuttle-drone and the two chalumeaux. Both the chanters and the drones have a cylindrical bo ...
, the
musette bechonnet
The musette bechonnet is a type of bellows-blown French bagpipe which takes its name from its creator, Joseph Bechonnet (1820-1900 AD) of Effiat
Effiat () is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne in central France.
See also
*Co ...
and the
cabrette
The cabrette ( French: literally "little goat", alternately ''musette'') is a type of bagpipe which appeared in Auvergne, France in the 19th century, and rapidly spread to Haute-Auvergne and Aubrac.
Details
The cabrette comprises a chanter for ...
in France; and the ,
koziol bialy, and
koziol czarny in Poland.
Bag
The bag is an airtight
reservoir
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
that holds air and regulates its flow via arm pressure, allowing the player to maintain continuous, even sound. The player keeps the bag inflated by blowing air into it through a blowpipe or by pumping air into it with a bellows. Materials used for bags vary widely, but the most common are the skins of local animals such as goats, dogs, sheep, and cows. More recently, bags made of synthetic materials including
Gore-Tex
Gore-Tex is a waterproof, breathable fabric membrane and registered trademark of W. L. Gore & Associates. Invented in 1969, Gore-Tex can repel liquid water while allowing water vapor to pass through and is designed to be a lightweight, waterpr ...
have become much more common. Some synthetic bags have
zips
Zips (also ''Siggies'' or ''Geeps'') is a slang term in the United States that was especially in use in the early 20th century. It was often used as a derogatory slur by Italian American and Sicilian American mobsters in reference to newer immi ...
that allow the player to fit a more effective moisture trap to the inside of the bag. However, synthetic bags carry risk of colonisation by fungal spores, and the associated danger of
lung infection
Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is a term often used as a synonym for pneumonia but can also be applied to other types of infection including lung abscess and acute bronchitis. Symptoms include shortness of breath, weakness, fever, co ...
, because they require less cleaning than do bags made from natural substances.
Bags cut from larger materials are usually
saddle-stitched with an extra strip folded over the seam and stitched (for skin bags) or glued (for synthetic bags) to reduce leaks. Holes are then cut to accommodate the stocks. In the case of bags made from largely intact animal skins, the stocks are typically tied into the points where the limbs and the head joined the body of the whole animal, a construction technique common in Central Europe.
Chanter
The chanter is the
melody
A melody (from Greek language, Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a Linearity#Music, linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most liter ...
pipe, played with two hands. All bagpipes have at least one chanter; some pipes have two chanters, particularly those in North Africa, in the Balkans, and in Southwest Asia. A chanter can be bored internally so that the inside walls are parallel (or "cylindrical") for its full length, or it can be bored in a conical shape.
The chanter is usually open-ended, so there is no easy way for the player to stop the pipe from sounding. Thus most bagpipes share a constant
legato
In music performance and notation, legato (; Italian for "tied together"; French ''lié''; German ''gebunden'') indicates that musical notes are played or sung smoothly and connected. That is, the player makes a transition from note to note wit ...
sound with no
rests in the music. Primarily because of this inability to stop playing, technical movements are made to break up notes and to create the illusion of articulation and accents. Because of their importance, these embellishments (or "ornaments") are often highly technical systems specific to each bagpipe, and take many years of study to master. A few bagpipes (such as the musette de cour, the
uilleann pipes
The uilleann pipes ( or , ) are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland. Earlier known in English as "union pipes", their current name is a partial translation of the Irish language terms (literally, "pipes of the elbow"), from their ...
, the Northumbrian smallpipes, the
piva
Piva may refer to:
* Piva (river), a river in Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina
* Piva, Montenegro, a region in Montenegro and tribe
* Piva River, Bougainville, Papua New Guinea
* Piva Trail, Bougainville, Papua New Guinea
** Battle for Piva Tr ...
and the left chanter of the
surdelina) have closed ends or stop the end on the player's leg, so that when the player "closes" (covers all the holes), the chanter becomes silent.
A
practice chanter
A bagpipe practice chanter is a double-reed woodwind instrument, principally used as an adjunct to the Great Highland bagpipe. As its name implies, the practice chanter serves as a practice instrument: firstly for learning to finger the differe ...
is a chanter without bag or drones and has a much quieter reed, allowing a player to practice the instrument quietly and with no variables other than playing the chanter.
The term ''chanter'' is derived from the Latin ''cantare'', or "to sing", much like the modern French word ''
chanteur
Chanteur (also known as Chanteur II; 1942–1962) was a French Thoroughbred racehorse and sire who was one of a group of French horses, including Caracalla, Marsyas, Arbar and Souverain, which dominated long-distance racing in Europe in t ...
''.
Chanter reed
The note from the chanter is produced by a
reed
Reed or Reeds may refer to:
Science, technology, biology, and medicine
* Reed bird (disambiguation)
* Reed pen, writing implement in use since ancient times
* Reed (plant), one of several tall, grass-like wetland plants of the order Poales
* ...
installed at its top. The reed may be a
single
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
(a reed with one vibrating tongue) or
double reed
A double reed is a type of reed used to produce sound in various wind instruments. In contrast with a single reed instrument, where the instrument is played by channeling air against one piece of cane which vibrates against the mouthpiece and c ...
(of two pieces that vibrate against each other). Double reeds are used with both conical- and parallel-bored chanters while single reeds are generally (although not exclusively) limited to parallel-bored chanters. In general, double-reed chanters are found in pipes of Western Europe while single-reed chanters appear in most other regions.
Drone
Most bagpipes have at least one
drone
Drone most commonly refers to:
* Drone (bee), a male bee, from an unfertilized egg
* Unmanned aerial vehicle
* Unmanned surface vehicle, watercraft
* Unmanned underwater vehicle or underwater drone
Drone, drones or The Drones may also refer to:
...
, a pipe that generally is not fingered but rather produces a constant harmonizing note throughout play (usually the
tonic note of the chanter). Exceptions are generally those pipes that have a double-chanter instead. A drone is most commonly a cylindrically bored tube with a single reed, although drones with double reeds exist. The drone is generally designed in two or more parts with a sliding joint so that the pitch of the drone can be adjusted.
Depending on the type of pipes, the drones may lie over the shoulder, across the arm opposite the bag, or may run parallel to the chanter. Some drones have a tuning screw, which effectively alters the length of the drone by opening a hole, allowing the drone to be tuned to two or more distinct pitches. The tuning screw may also shut off the drone altogether. In most types of pipes with one drone, it is pitched two octaves below the tonic of the chanter. Additional drones often add the octave below and then a drone consonant with the fifth of the chanter.
History
Possible ancient origins
The evidence for bagpipes prior to the 13th century AD is still uncertain, but several textual and visual clues have been suggested. The ''Oxford History of Music'' posits that a sculpture of bagpipes has been found on a
Hittite slab at
Euyuk in Anatolia, dated to 1000 BC. Another interpretation of this sculpture suggests that it instead depicts a
pan flute
A pan flute (also known as panpipes or syrinx) is a musical instrument based on the principle of the closed tube, consisting of multiple pipes of gradually increasing length (and occasionally girth). Multiple varieties of pan flutes have been ...
played along with a
friction drum
A friction drum is a musical instrument found in various forms in Africa, Asia, Europe and South America. In Europe it emerged in the 16th century and was associated with specific religious and ceremonial occasions.
Construction
A friction d ...
.
[Vereno, Michael Peter. 2021. The Voice of the Wind. Lincoln: International Bagpipe Organisation. pp 14–15]
Several authors identify the
ancient Greek
Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...
(ἀσκός ''askos'' –
wine-skin
A wineskin is an ancient type of bottle made of leathered animal skin, usually from goats or sheep, used to store or transport wine.
History
Its first mentions come from Ancient Greece, where, in the parties called Bacchanalia, dedicated to t ...
, αὐλός ''
aulos
An ''aulos'' ( grc, αὐλός, plural , ''auloi'') or ''tibia'' (Latin) was an ancient Greek wind instrument, depicted often in art and also attested by archaeology.
Though ''aulos'' is often translated as "flute" or "double flute", it was usu ...
'' – reed pipe) with the bagpipe.
In the 2nd century AD,
Suetonius
Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; c. AD 69 – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire.
His most important surviving work is a set of biographies ...
described the Roman emperor
Nero
Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...
as a player of the ''tibia utricularis''.
Dio Chrysostom
Dio Chrysostom (; el, Δίων Χρυσόστομος ''Dion Chrysostomos''), Dion of Prusa or Cocceianus Dio (c. 40 – c. 115 AD), was a Greek orator, writer, philosopher and historian of the Roman Empire in the 1st century AD. Eighty of his ...
wrote in the 1st century of a contemporary sovereign (possibly Nero) who could play a pipe (
tibia
The tibia (; ), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outside of the tibia); it connects ...
, Roman reedpipes similar to Greek and Etruscan instruments) with his mouth as well as by tucking a bladder beneath his armpit. Vereno suggests that such instruments, rather than being seen as an independent class, were understood as variants on mouth-blown instruments that used a bag as an alternative blowing aid and that it was not until drones were added in the European Medieval era that bagpipes were seen as a distinct class.
Spread and development in Europe
![The Image of Irelande - plate02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/The_Image_of_Irelande_-_plate02.jpg)
In the early part of the second millennium, representation of bagpipes began to appear with frequency in Western European art and iconography. The
Cantigas de Santa Maria
The ''Cantigas de Santa Maria'' (, ; "Canticles of Holy Mary") are 420 poems with musical notation, written in the medieval Galician-Portuguese language during the reign of Alfonso X of Castile ''El Sabio'' (1221–1284). Traditionally, they ar ...
, written in
Galician-Portuguese
Galician-Portuguese ( gl, galego-portugués or ', pt, galego-português or ), also known as Old Portuguese or as Medieval Galician when referring to the history of each modern language, was a West Iberian languages, West Iberian Romance languag ...
and compiled in
Castile in the mid-13th century, depicts several types of bagpipes. Several illustrations of bagpipes also appear in the ''Chronique dite de Baudoin d’Avesnes'', a 13th-century manuscript of northern French origin. Although evidence of bagpipes in the British Isles prior to the 14th century is contested, they are explicitly mentioned in ''
The Canterbury Tales
''The Canterbury Tales'' ( enm, Tales of Caunterbury) is a collection of twenty-four stories that runs to over 17,000 lines written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer between 1387 and 1400. It is widely regarded as Chaucer's ''Masterpiece, ...
'' (written around 1380):
Bagpipes were also frequent subjects for carvers of wooden choir stalls in the late 15th and early 16th century throughout Europe, sometimes with animal musicians.
Actual specimens of bagpipes from before the 18th century are extremely rare; however, a substantial number of paintings, carvings, engravings, and manuscript illuminations survive. These artifacts are clear evidence that bagpipes varied widely throughout Europe, and even within individual regions. Many examples of early folk bagpipes in continental Europe can be found in the paintings of Brueghel, Teniers, Jordaens, and Durer.
The earliest known artifact identified as a part of a bagpipe is a chanter found in 1985 at
Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, c ...
, Germany, that has been dated to the late 14th century or the first quarter of the 15th century.
![Hendrick ter Brugghen - Bagpipe Player - Google Art Project](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Hendrick_ter_Brugghen_-_Bagpipe_Player_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg)
The first clear reference to the use of the Scottish
Highland bagpipes is from a French history that mentions their use at the
Battle of Pinkie
The Battle of Pinkie, also known as the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh ( , ), took place on 10 September 1547 on the banks of the River Esk near Musselburgh, Scotland. The last pitched battle between Scotland and England before the Union of the Cro ...
in 1547.
George Buchanan
George Buchanan ( gd, Seòras Bochanan; February 1506 – 28 September 1582) was a Scottish historian and humanist scholar. According to historian Keith Brown, Buchanan was "the most profound intellectual sixteenth century Scotland produced." ...
(1506–82) claimed that bagpipes had replaced the trumpet on the battlefield. This period saw the creation of the ''ceòl mór'' (great music) of the bagpipe, which reflected its martial origins, with battle tunes, marches, gatherings, salutes and laments. The Highlands of the early 17th century saw the development of piping families including the
MacCrimmonds, MacArthurs,
MacGregors, and the Mackays of
Gairloch
Gairloch ( ; gd, Geàrrloch , meaning "Short Loch") is a village, civil parish and community on the shores of Loch Gairloch in Wester Ross, in the North-West Highlands of Scotland. A tourist destination in the summer months, Gairloch has a go ...
.
[J. Porter, "Introduction" in J. Porter, ed., ''Defining Strains: The Musical Life of Scots in the Seventeenth Century'' (Peter Lang, 2007), , p. 35.]
The first probable reference to the Irish bagpipe is from 1544, a mention attributing their use to Irish troops in Henry VIII's
siege of Boulogne. Illustrations in the 1581 book ''
The Image of Irelande'' by
John Derricke clearly depict a bagpiper. Derricke's illustrations are considered to be reasonably faithful depictions of the attire and equipment of the English and Irish population of the 16th century.
The "Battell" sequence from ''
My Ladye Nevells Booke
''My Ladye Nevells Booke'' (British Library MS Mus. 1591) is a music manuscript containing keyboard pieces by the English composer William Byrd, and, together with the ''Fitzwilliam Virginal Book'', one of the most important collections of Renais ...
'' (1591) by
William Byrd
William Byrd (; 4 July 1623) was an English composer of late Renaissance music. Considered among the greatest composers of the Renaissance, he had a profound influence on composers both from his native England and those on the continent. He ...
, which probably alludes to the Irish wars of 1578, contains a piece entitled ''The bagpipe: & the drone''. In 1760, the first serious study of the Scottish Highland bagpipe and its music was attempted in Joseph MacDonald's ''Compleat Theory''. A manuscript from the 1730s by a
William Dixon of
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey.
It is bordered by land on ...
contains music that fits the
border pipes
The border pipes are a type of bagpipe related to the Scottish Great Highland Bagpipe. It is perhaps confusable with the Scottish smallpipe, although it is a quite different and much older instrument. Although most modern Border pipes are closely ...
, a nine-note bellows-blown bagpipe with a chanter similar to that of the modern
Great Highland bagpipe
The Great Highland bagpipe ( gd, a' phìob mhòr "the great pipe") is a type of bagpipe native to Scotland, and the Scottish analogue to the Great Irish Warpipes. It has acquired widespread recognition through its usage in the British milit ...
. However, the music in Dixon's manuscript varied greatly from modern Highland bagpipe tunes, consisting mostly of extended variation sets of common dance tunes. Some of the tunes in the Dixon manuscript correspond to those found in the early 19th century manuscript sources of
Northumbrian smallpipe
The Northumbrian smallpipes (also known as the Northumbrian pipes) are bellows-blown bagpipes from North East England, where they have been an important factor in the local musical culture for more than 250 years. The family of the Duke of Nor ...
tunes, notably the rare book of 50 tunes, many with variations, by
John Peacock.
![Merry brothers 1887](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/Merry_brothers_1887.jpg)
As Western classical music developed, both in terms of musical sophistication and instrumental technology, bagpipes in many regions fell out of favour because of their limited range and function. This triggered a long, slow decline that continued, in most cases, into the 20th century.
Extensive and documented collections of traditional bagpipes may be found at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...
in New York City, the
International Bagpipe Museum
The International Bagpipe Museum ( es, Museo internacional de la gaita) is located in Gijón, Asturias, Spain. The museum was founded in 1965, and moved to its current location, integrated in the Museum of the Asturian People, in 1975.
The muse ...
in
Gijón
Gijón () or () is a city and municipality in north-western Spain. It is the largest city and municipality by population in the autonomous community of Asturias. It is located on the coast of the Cantabrian Sea in the Bay of Biscay, in the cent ...
, Spain, the
Pitt Rivers Museum
Pitt Rivers Museum is a museum displaying the archaeological and anthropological collections of the University of Oxford in England. The museum is located to the east of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, and can only be accessed t ...
in Oxford, England and the
Morpeth Chantry Bagpipe Museum
The Morpeth Chantry Bagpipe Museum is located in Morpeth Chantry, Morpeth, Northumberland, England.
The museum, founded in 1987, contains a large collection of historic bagpipes, especially, but not exclusively, historic Northumbrian smallpipe ...
in Northumberland, and the
Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix, Arizona.
![MDF Strakonice 2018 09 Anglie 02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/MDF_Strakonice_2018_09_Anglie_02.jpg)
The is held every two years in
Strakonice
Strakonice (; german: Strakonitz) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 22,000 inhabitants.
Administrative parts
Strakonice is made up of town parts of Strakonice I and Strakonice II, and villages of Dražejov, ...
,
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
.
Recent history
![Afghanistan bagpiper](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/Afghanistan_bagpiper.jpg)
During the expansion of the British Empire, spearheaded by British military forces that included
Highland regiments
A Scottish regiment is any regiment (or similar military unit) that at some time in its history has or had a name that referred to Scotland or some part thereof, and adopted items of Scottish dress. These regiments were created after the Acts ...
, the Scottish Great Highland bagpipe became well-known worldwide. This surge in popularity was boosted by large numbers of pipers trained for military service in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. This coincided with a decline in the popularity of many traditional forms of bagpipe throughout Europe, which began to be displaced by instruments from the classical tradition and later by gramophone and radio.
As pipers were easily identifiable, combat losses were high, estimated at one thousand in World War I. A front line role was prohibited following high losses in the
Second Battle of El Alamein
The Second Battle of El Alamein (23 October – 11 November 1942) was a battle of the Second World War that took place near the Egyptian Railway station, railway halt of El Alamein. The First Battle of El Alamein and the Battle of Alam el Halfa ...
in 1943, though a few later instances occurred.
In the United Kingdom and
Commonwealth Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Co ...
such as Canada, New Zealand and Australia, the
Great Highland bagpipe
The Great Highland bagpipe ( gd, a' phìob mhòr "the great pipe") is a type of bagpipe native to Scotland, and the Scottish analogue to the Great Irish Warpipes. It has acquired widespread recognition through its usage in the British milit ...
is commonly used in the military and is often played during formal ceremonies. Foreign militaries patterned after the British army have also adopted the Highland bagpipe, including those of Uganda, Sudan, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Jordan, and Oman. Many police and fire services in Scotland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and the United States have also adopted the tradition of fielding pipe bands.
![Bagpiper in Edinburgh 001](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Bagpiper_in_Edinburgh_001.jpg)
In recent years, often driven by revivals of native folk music and dance, many types of bagpipes have enjoyed a resurgence in popularity and, in many cases, instruments that had fallen into obscurity have become extremely popular. In
Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...
, the Great Highland bagpipe and concept of the
pipe band
A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of Bagpipes, pipers and drummers. The term pipes and drums, used by military pipe bands is also common.
The most common form of pipe band consists of a section of pipers playing the Great Highland b ...
were appropriated to create a Breton interpretation known as the
bagad
A bagad (, ) is a Breton band, composed of bagpipes ( br, binioù, french: cornemuse), bombards and drums (including snare, tenor and bass drums). The pipe band tradition in Brittany was inspired by the Scottish example and has developed si ...
. The pipe-band idiom has also been adopted and applied to the
Galician gaita
The Galician gaita ( gl, Gaita galega, pt, Gaita galega, es, Gaita gallega) is the traditional instrument of Galicia and northern Portugal.
The word is used across northern Spain as a generic term for "bagpipe", although in the south of Spain ...
as well. Bagpipes have often been used in various films depicting moments from Scottish and Irish history; the film ''
Braveheart
''Braveheart'' is a 1995 American historical drama film directed and produced by, and starring Mel Gibson. Gibson portrays Sir William Wallace, a late-13th century Scottish warrior who led the Scots in the First War of Scottish Independence ag ...
'' and the theatrical show ''
Riverdance
''Riverdance'' is a theatrical show that consists mainly of traditional Irish music and dance. With a score composed by Bill Whelan, it originated as an interval act during the Eurovision Song Contest 1994, featuring Irish dancing champions Je ...
'' have served to make the uilleann pipes more commonly known.
Bagpipes are sometimes played at formal events at Commonwealth universities, particularly in Canada. Because of Scottish influences on the sport of
curling
Curling is a sport in which players slide stones on a sheet of ice toward a target area which is segmented into four concentric circles. It is related to bowls, boules, and shuffleboard. Two teams, each with four players, take turns sliding ...
, bagpipes are also the official instrument of the
World Curling Federation
The World Curling Federation (WCF) is the world governing body for curling accreditation, with offices in Perth, Scotland. It was formed out of the International Curling Federation (ICF), when the push for Olympic Winter Sport status was made. ...
and are commonly played during a ceremonial procession of teams before major curling championships.
Bagpipe making was once a craft that produced instruments in many distinctive, local and traditional styles. Today, the world's largest producer of the instrument is
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
, where the industry was worth $6.8 million in 2010. In the late 20th century, various models of
electronic bagpipes
The electronic bagpipes is an electronic musical instrument emulating the tone and/or playing style of the bagpipes. Most electronic bagpipe emulators feature a simulated chanter, which is used to play the melody. Some models also produce a h ...
were invented. The first custom-built
MIDI
MIDI (; Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is a technical standard that describes a communications protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, computers, and re ...
bagpipes were developed by the Asturian piper known as
Hevia
José Ángel Hevia Velasco, known professionally as Hevia (born October 11, 1967 in Villaviciosa, Asturias), is a Spanish bagpiper – specifically, an Asturian gaita player. He commonly performs with his sister, María José, on drums. I ...
(José Ángel Hevia Velasco).
Astronaut
Kjell N. Lindgren
Kjell Norwood Lindgren (born January 23, 1973) is an American astronaut who was selected in June 2009 as a member of the NASA Astronaut Group 20. He launched to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of Expedition 44/ 45 on July 22, 201 ...
is thought to be the first person to play the bagpipes in
outer space
Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...
, having played "
Amazing Grace
"Amazing Grace" is a Christian hymn published in 1779 with words written in 1772 by English Anglican clergyman and poet John Newton (1725–1807). It is an immensely popular hymn, particularly in the United States, where it is used for both ...
" in tribute to late research scientist Victor Hurst aboard the
International Space Station
The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest modular space station currently in low Earth orbit. It is a multinational collaborative project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA ...
in November 2015.
Traditionally, one of the purposes of the bagpipe was to provide music for dancing. This has declined with the growth of dance bands, recordings, and the decline of traditional dance. In turn, this has led to many types of pipes developing a performance-led tradition, and indeed much modern music based on the dance music tradition played on bagpipes is suitable for use as dance music.
Modern usage
Types of bagpipes
Numerous types of bagpipes today are widely spread across Europe and the Middle East, as well as through much of the former
British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...
. The name bagpipe has almost become synonymous with its best-known form, the
Great Highland bagpipe
The Great Highland bagpipe ( gd, a' phìob mhòr "the great pipe") is a type of bagpipe native to Scotland, and the Scottish analogue to the Great Irish Warpipes. It has acquired widespread recognition through its usage in the British milit ...
, overshadowing the great number and variety of traditional forms of bagpipe. Despite the decline of these other types of pipes over the last few centuries, in recent years many of these pipes have seen a resurgence or revival as musicians have sought them out; for example, the
Irish piping tradition, which by the mid 20th century had declined to a handful of master players is today alive, well, and flourishing, a situation similar to that of the
Asturian gaita, the
Galician gaita
The Galician gaita ( gl, Gaita galega, pt, Gaita galega, es, Gaita gallega) is the traditional instrument of Galicia and northern Portugal.
The word is used across northern Spain as a generic term for "bagpipe", although in the south of Spain ...
, the Portuguese
gaita transmontana
The gaita transmontana or gaita de foles mirandesa is a type of bagpipe native to the Trás-os-Montes region of Portugal.
History
The most ancient records of this instrument date from the 18th century, mostly written. Its culture has been pas ...
, the
Aragon
Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to sou ...
ese
gaita de boto
The ''gaita de boto'' is a type of bagpipe native to the Aragon region of northern Spain.
Its use and construction were nearly extinct by the 1970s, when a revival of folk music began. Today there are various ''gaita'' builders, various schools ...
,
Northumbrian smallpipe
The Northumbrian smallpipes (also known as the Northumbrian pipes) are bellows-blown bagpipes from North East England, where they have been an important factor in the local musical culture for more than 250 years. The family of the Duke of Nor ...
s, the
Breton
Breton most often refers to:
*anything associated with Brittany, and generally
** Breton people
** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany
** Breton (horse), a breed
**Ga ...
biniou, the
Balkan
The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...
gaida
A gaida is a bagpipe from Southeastern Europe. Southern European bagpipes known as ''gaida'' include: the , , (), () () or (), ''(')'', , also .
Construction
Bag
Gaida bags are generally of sheep or goat hide. Different regions have ...
, the
Romanian
Romanian may refer to:
*anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania
**Romanians, an ethnic group
**Romanian language, a Romance language
*** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language
** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...
cimpoi
Cimpoi is the Romanian bagpipe.
Cimpoi has a single drone called '' bâzoi'' or ''bîzoi'' ("buzzer") and straight bore chanter called '' carabă'' ("whistle"). It is less strident than its Balkan relatives.
The chanter often has five to ei ...
, the Black Sea
tulum
Tulum (, yua, Tulu'um) is the site of a pre-Columbian Mayan walled city which served as a major port for Coba, in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. The ruins are situated on cliffs along the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula on the Caribb ...
, the
Scottish smallpipes
The Scottish smallpipe is a bellows-blown bagpipe re-developed by Colin Ross and many others, adapted from an earlier design of the instrument. There are surviving bellows-blown examples of similar historical instruments as well as the mouth-bl ...
and
pastoral pipes
The pastoral pipe (also known as the hybrid union pipes, organ pipe and union pipe) was a bellows-blown bagpipe, widely recognised as the forerunner and ancestor of the 19th-century union pipes, which became the uilleann pipes of today.Brian. E. M ...
, as well as other varieties.
Image gallery
File:Mmexport1647183006419.jpg, Piper in Petrash, Jordan
File:BulgarianKabaGaidaPlayer.jpg, Bulgarian Kaba gaida
Kaba may refer to:
Places
* Kaaba, the holiest place in the Islamic World, a large cube-shaped building inside the al-Masjid al-Haram mosque in Mecca
* Kaba, Hungary, a town in Hajdú-Bihar County, Hungary, which had a rare carbonaceous chondr ...
player.
File:Bag piper, Padre, Currie Hall, Royal Military College of Canada, fall 2011.jpg, The Scottish Great Highland bagpipe played at a Canadian military function.
File:Baghet suonatore.jpg, A musician with a Northern Italian Baghèt
The baghèt is a bagpipe historically played in Bergamo, corresponding to the region of Lombardy in modern Italy. It is a small double-reeded bagpipe with two drones, associated with rural musicians. The instrument became defunct in the mid-20t ...
wearing traditional dress.
File:A modern model of Baghèt.png, Modern Baghèt (made 2000 by Valter Biella) in G.
File:Zampogna.jpg, Central and southern Italian zampogna
Zampogna (, , ) is a generic term for a number of Italian double chantered bagpipe that can be found as far north as the southern part of the Marche, throughout areas in Abruzzo, Latium, Molise, Basilicata, Campania, Calabria, Apulia and Sicily. Th ...
.
File:Tulumcu.jpg, Laz man from Turkey playing a tulum
Tulum (, yua, Tulu'um) is the site of a pre-Columbian Mayan walled city which served as a major port for Coba, in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. The ruins are situated on cliffs along the east coast of the Yucatán Peninsula on the Caribb ...
.
File:Cillian Vallely on Uilleann Pipes.jpg, Cillian Vallely
Cillian Vallely is an Irish musician, born in Armagh, Northern Ireland. He plays traditional Irish music on the uilleann pipes and low whistle, and studied at the Armagh Pipers Club with his mother and father, Brian and Eithne, and then with ...
playing Irish Uilleann pipes.
File:Tickell 2004.jpg, Kathryn Tickell
Kathryn Tickell, OBE, DL (born 8 June 1967) is an English musician, noted for playing the Northumbrian smallpipes and fiddle.
Music career Early life
Kathryn Tickell was born in Walsall, then in Staffordshire, to parents who originated fro ...
playing Northumbrian smallpipes
The Northumbrian smallpipes (also known as the Northumbrian pipes) are bellows-blown bagpipes from North East England, where they have been an important factor in the local musical culture for more than 250 years. The family of the Duke of N ...
.
File:Gaida.jpg, Man from Skopje, North Macedonia playing the Gaida
A gaida is a bagpipe from Southeastern Europe. Southern European bagpipes known as ''gaida'' include: the , , (), () () or (), ''(')'', , also .
Construction
Bag
Gaida bags are generally of sheep or goat hide. Different regions have ...
.
File:Seivane1.jpg, Galician gaita
The Galician gaita ( gl, Gaita galega, pt, Gaita galega, es, Gaita gallega) is the traditional instrument of Galicia and northern Portugal.
The word is used across northern Spain as a generic term for "bagpipe", although in the south of Spain ...
.
File:Sruti upanga.jpg, Sruti upanga
The sruti upanga ("drone bagpipe", or bhazana-śruti,Payer, Alois (1944 - ). '. (Materialien zur karnatischen Musik). Fassung vom 2009-05-20. druthi, or nosbug) is a type of bagpipe played in Tamil Nadu, southern India. The instrument was often us ...
, a Southern Indian bagpipe.
File:Duda Bagpipe 001.jpg, Hungarian duda
) (Polish, Ukrainian Carpathians)
*Diple (Dalmatian Coast)
*Tulum (Turkish and Pontic)
*Tsambouna (Dodecanese and Cyclades)
*Askambandoura (Crete)
*Gajdy (Polish/Czech/Slovak)
*Gaita ( Galician)
*Surle (Serbian/Croatian)
*Mezoued/Zukra (Northern A ...
.
File:Serbian bagpiper.jpg, Serbian piper.
File:DudyWielkopolskie.jpg, Polish pipers.
File:Bagad.JPG, Bagad
A bagad (, ) is a Breton band, composed of bagpipes ( br, binioù, french: cornemuse), bombards and drums (including snare, tenor and bass drums). The pipe band tradition in Brittany was inspired by the Scottish example and has developed si ...
of Lann Bihoué from the French Navy.
File:Ollegallmo.jpg, Swedish säckpipa.
File:Pastoral pipes removable foot joint.JPG, Pastoral pipes
The pastoral pipe (also known as the hybrid union pipes, organ pipe and union pipe) was a bellows-blown bagpipe, widely recognised as the forerunner and ancestor of the 19th-century union pipes, which became the uilleann pipes of today.Brian. E. M ...
with removable footjoint and bellows.
File:Street-piper.jpg, Street piper from Sofia, Bulgaria.
File:Torupillimängija.jpg, Estonian torupill
The torupill () is a traditional bagpipe from Estonia.
Place in Estonian folk music
It is not clear when the bagpipe became established in Estonia.
The instrument was known throughout Estonia. The bagpipe tradition was longest preserved in Wes ...
player.
File:Lithuanian bagpipes.png, Lithuanian piper.
File:Modern huemmelchen.jpg, Modern German huemmelchen.
File:Lietuviškas dūdmaišis (LNM).jpg, Lithuanian bagpipes.
File:Bagad Brest.jpg, A bagad
A bagad (, ) is a Breton band, composed of bagpipes ( br, binioù, french: cornemuse), bombards and drums (including snare, tenor and bass drums). The pipe band tradition in Brittany was inspired by the Scottish example and has developed si ...
in Brest, France
Brest (; ) is a port city in the Finistère department, Brittany. Located in a sheltered bay not far from the western tip of the peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French mi ...
File:Al son de la gaita.jpg, Gaita asturiana
The ''gaita asturiana'' is a type of bagpipe native to the autonomous communities of Principality of Asturias on the northern coast of Spain.
Differences from other Iberian gaitas
*The ''gaita asturiana'' is of larger size than the ''Galician ...
.
File:Pibecwd.jpg, Welsh bagpipes
Welsh bagpipes ( cy, pipa cŵd, pibau cŵd, côd-biban, côd-bibau, pibgod, cotbib, pibau cyrn, chwibanogl a chod, sachbib, backpipes, bacbib) The names in Welsh refer specifically to a bagpipe. A related instrument is one type of bagpipe chanter, ...
(double-reed type).
File:Gaiteroscantabria.jpg, Cantabrian pipe band.
File:Bagpipe player damascus.jpg, Syrian piper in Damascus, Syria.
File:Tsambouna.jpg, Various forms of the Tsampouna
The tsampouna (or tsambouna; el, τσαμπούνα) is a Greek musical instrument and part of the bagpipe family. It is a double- chantered bagpipe, with no drone, and is inflated by blowing by mouth into a goatskin bag. The instrument is wides ...
, found in the Greek islands.
File:Селянін грае на дудзе.jpg, Belarusian piper.
File:A żaqq (bagpipe), made from calf pelt, cane, and animal horn.jpg, Maltese Żaqq.
File:Bagpipe player Dam.jpg, Piper playing by the Royal Palace of Amsterdam
The Royal Palace of Amsterdam in Amsterdam (Dutch: ''Koninklijk Paleis van Amsterdam'' or ) is one of three palaces in the Netherlands which are at the disposal of the monarch by Act of Parliament. It is situated on the west side of Dam Square i ...
.
File:Cimpoi.png, Romanian cimpoi
Cimpoi is the Romanian bagpipe.
Cimpoi has a single drone called '' bâzoi'' or ''bîzoi'' ("buzzer") and straight bore chanter called '' carabă'' ("whistle"). It is less strident than its Balkan relatives.
The chanter often has five to ei ...
player.
File:Ľubomír Párička gra na dudach.webm, Ľubomír Párička playing bagpipes, Slovak Republic.
File:Associação Gaita-de-Fole.jpg, Portuguese pipers
File:نی انبان ساخته شده در آبپخش.jpg, Bagpipes made in Ab Pakhsh, Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
.
File:شکل قرار گرغتن نی های نی انبان ساخته شده در آبپخش.jpg, Chanter of bagpipes from Ab Pakhsh
Usage in non-traditional music
![Enter The Haggis Bagpipe](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/Enter_The_Haggis_Bagpipe.jpg)
Since the 1960s, bagpipes have also made appearances in other forms of music, including rock, metal, jazz, hip-hop, punk, and classical music, for example with
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
's "
Mull of Kintyre
The Mull of Kintyre is the southwesternmost tip of the Kintyre Peninsula (formerly ''Cantyre'') in southwest Scotland. From here, the Antrim coast of Northern Ireland is visible on a calm and clear day, and a historic lighthouse, the second ...
",
AC/DC
AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...
's "
It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)
"It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)" is a song by Australian hard rock band AC/DC. It is the first track of the group's second album '' T.N.T.'', released only in Australia and New Zealand on 8 December 1975, and was writte ...
",
and
Peter Maxwell Davies
Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (8 September 1934 – 14 March 2016) was an English composer and conductor, who in 2004 was made Master of the Queen's Music.
As a student at both the University of Manchester and the Royal Manchester College of Music ...
's composition ''
An Orkney Wedding, with Sunrise''.
Publications
Periodicals
''Periodicals covering specific types of bagpipes are addressed in the article for that bagpipe''
* .
* .
* .
* .
* .
* .
Books
* .
* , 147 pp. with plates.
* .
* .
* .
See also
*
List of bagpipes Northern Europe
Ireland
*Uilleann pipes: Also known as Union pipes and Irish pipes, depending on era. Bellows-blown bagpipe with keyed or un-keyed 2-octave chanter, 3 drones and 3 regulators. The most common type of bagpipes in Irish traditional ...
*
List of bagpipers
*
List of pipe makers
This is a list of bagpipe makers. It covers both family-based and commercial outfits from the 17th century to the present era. In the 1950s, the bagpipe traditions of Europe were revived. The market is increasing in size as the popularity of the in ...
*
List of pipe bands
A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of pipers and drummers. There are many such bands in the world, which play for ceremonial purposes, recreation, competition or all three. This list encompasses only notable pipe bands with their own W ...
*
Glossary of bagpipe terms
*
Practice chanter
A bagpipe practice chanter is a double-reed woodwind instrument, principally used as an adjunct to the Great Highland bagpipe. As its name implies, the practice chanter serves as a practice instrument: firstly for learning to finger the differe ...
References
External links
Bagpipe iconography – Paintings and images of the pipes.*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20091112123617/http://www.researchchannel.org/prog/displayevent.aspx?rID=3365&fID=345 A demonstration of rare instruments including bagpipes''The Concise History of the Bagpipe'' by Frank J. TimoneyThe Bagpipe Society dedicated to promoting the study, playing, and making of bagpipes and pipes from around the world
Bagpipes from polish collections (''Polish folk musical instruments'')Bagpipes (local polish name "Koza") played by Jan Karpiel-Bułecka(English subtitles)
Official site of Baghet (bagpipe from North Italy) players.Celtic Music : Scottish Military Bagpipes.
{{authority control
Articles containing video clips