Bombard (music)
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The bombard (, ) is a contemporary conical-bore
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 ...
instrument widely used to play traditional
Breton music Since the early 1970s, Brittany has experienced a tremendous revival of its folk music. Along with flourishing traditional forms such as the bombard- biniou pair and fest-noz ensembles incorporating other additional instruments, it has also branched ...
. The bombard is a woodwind instrument, and a member of the
shawm The shawm () is a Bore_(wind_instruments)#Conical_bore, conical bore, double-reed woodwind instrument made in Europe from the 12th century to the present day. It achieved its peak of popularity during the medieval and Renaissance periods, after ...
family. Like most shawms, it has a broad and very powerful sound, vaguely resembling a
trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...
. It is played as other shawms are played, with the double
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 * ...
placed between the lips. The second octave is 'over-blown'; achieved via increased lip and air pressure or through the use of an octave key. It plays a
diatonic Diatonic and chromatic are terms in music theory that are most often used to characterize Scale (music), scales, and are also applied to musical instruments, Interval (music), intervals, Chord (music), chords, Musical note, notes, musical sty ...
scale of up to two octaves, although contemporary instruments frequently have added keywork permitting some degree of chromaticism. A bombard player is known as a ''talabarder'' after 'talabard', the older Breton name for the bombard.


The tradition: Sonneurs de Couple

Traditional Breton musicians are referred to as ''Sonerien'' (in Breton) or ''Sonneurs'' (in French). Musicians playing in pairs are also referred to as "sonneurs de couple". While 'Soner' originally referred only to the bombard player, the meaning long ago expanded to also include other traditional musicians. Call-and-response remains a central aspect of Breton music regardless of the instruments used. The paired
kan ha diskan is probably the most common type of traditional music of Brittany. It is a vocal tradition ( translates from Breton as, roughly, ''call and response singing''). The style is the most commonly used to accompany dances. It has become perhaps the ...
vocal tradition, which remains vitally active today, perhaps formed the original basis for all other pairings of Breton musicians. In some parts of
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 ...
from the late 19th century onwards, the most popular 'sonneurs de couple' were the paired treujenn gaol clarinet and accompanying button accordion. Bombards in their most traditional setting are accompanied by a
bagpipe Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, Nor ...
called a '' biniou kozh'' ("ancient bagpipe"), which plays an octave above the bombard. The bombard calls, and the biniou responds. The bombard requires so much lip pressure and breath support that a ''talabarder'' can rarely play a sustained melody line. The biniou plays the melody continuously, while the bombard takes breaks, establishing the call-and-response pattern. Prior to
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 ...
, a given pair of Soners would typically cover all of the weddings, funerals, and other social occasions within a given territory, which would be jealously guarded from other performers. This duet of bombard and pipes, also occasionally accompanied by a drummer in past centuries, has been practiced for at least 500 years in Brittany in an unbroken tradition and must be considered the heart and soul of this instrument's place in
Breton culture The culture of Brittany is made up of Breton culture, and Celtic culture. Brittany's strongest international connections tend to be in the United Kingdom, particularly in the Celtic groups of Cornwall and Wales, and in Canada. Brittany is the Eng ...
.


Revival in the bagadoù

In the first part of the twentieth century, the number of players of bombards and biniou kozh decreased significantly. In the late '40s, the creation of 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 ...
'', a specifically Breton ensemble of bagpipes, bombards and drums, by figures such as Polig Monjarret and the organization Bodadeg ar Sonerion (Brotherhood of Musicians), offered a new role to the bombard. Now most towns in Brittany have one or several ''Bagadoù'' (plural in Breton for "Bagad"), and they continually compete with each other in a series of annual tournaments and festivals. As the bagad is a Breton take on the Scottish
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 ...
concept, the music initially performed was typically martial in character. Now the Bagadoù play dance music, traditional melodies and new compositions. The large number of bombard players in the Bagadoù has been a key factor in the successful popularization of the instrument. Another key factor has been the revitalization of the traditional pairing of the bombard and biniou in the 1970s with the Breton cultural revival, thanks to the success of Alan Stivell and the development of "
Fest Noz A Fest Noz (Breton for ''night festival'') is a Breton traditional festival, with dancing in groups and live musicians playing acoustic instruments. Although it is all too easy to write off the ' and ''fêtes folkloriques'' as modern inventions, ...
" dances and traditional music competitions.


Still evolving: Fest-Noz and beyond

"Essentially a shawm or oboe--that is, a pipe with a conical bore, a double reed, and finger-holes...traditional Breton ''bombardoù'' are probably very close to the original progenitor of the oboe family."Koch, John T. and Minard, Antone (2012). ''The Celts: History, Life, and Culture'', p.98. ABC-CLIO. . The bombard is an instrument that has been in constant evolution, with many different keys developed as well as sophisticated silver key-work enabling chromatic possibilities. Milder versions in lower ranges such as Youenn Le Bihan's "
piston A piston is a component of reciprocating engines, reciprocating pumps, gas compressors, hydraulic cylinders and pneumatic cylinders, among other similar mechanisms. It is the moving component that is contained by a cylinder and is made gas-tig ...
" (an oboe/bombard hybrid, typically based in the key of Re/D) have been developed for use in mixed ensembles. A class of professional musicians and instrument makers has emerged, as well as standardized reeds and commonly available tutorial materials. Today, both the biniou and bombard are played in combination with an unlimited number of instruments (voice, saxophone, piano, organ, clarinet or ''treujenn gaol'', fiddle, flutes, guitar, percussion… ) in
fest-noz A Fest Noz ( Breton for ''night festival'') is a Breton traditional festival, with dancing in groups and live musicians playing acoustic instruments. Although it is all too easy to write off the ' and ''fêtes folkloriques'' as modern invention ...
, groups and ensembles of all styles - from classical to folk, rock, pop, punk, metal - in arrangements of traditional Breton dance tunes or in new compositions.


Musicians and instrument makers

Some ''sonerien'': * Gildas Moal * Christian Faucheur * Georges Epinette * André Le Meut.. * Jorj Botuha * Christophe Caron * Sabine Le Coadou * Cyrille Bonneau * David Pasquet * Josick Allot * Eric Beaumin * Odran Plantec * Jean Baron * Mathieu Sérot * Stéphane Hardy * Serge Riou * Yann Kermabon * Youenn Le Bihan * Ivonig Le Mestre * Erwan Hamon * Daniel Feon * Jil Lehart (Gilles Lehart) Some instrument makers: * Hervieux & Glet * Jorj Botuha * Youenn Le Bihan * Axone (Jean-Luc Ollivier) * Yvon Le Coant * Jil Lehart (Gilles Lehart) * Christian Besrechel * Éric Ollu * Rudy Le Doyen * Dorig Le Voyer Some recordings: * "Evit Dañsal" Jil Lehart and Daniel Féon * "An disput" Gildas Moal and René Chaplain * "Plijadur" Jorj Botuha, with Pascal Guingo, Philippe Quillay, Pascal Marsault * "Kerzh Ba'n Dañs" Skolvan


Films

*''Of Pipers and Wrens'' (1997). Produced and directed by Gei Zantzinger, in collaboration with Dastum. Lois V. Kuter, ethnomusicological consultant. Devault, Pennsylvania: Constant Spring Productions.


Notes


References


External links


Free method for self-learning the Breton Bombard (pdf to download)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bombard (Music) Breton musical instruments Celtic musical instruments French musical instruments Oboes Single oboes with conical bore