Musical Instruments, Historic, Rare and UniqueHipkins, Alfred J. (Alfred James)
History
Musical Instruments, Historic, Rare and Unique
Hipkins, Alfred J. (Alfred James)
Musical instruments
inflated with the mouth which is now regarded as distinctly Highland
Scotch. The Musette in the drawing is made of ebony and ivory with
keys of silver, and has a bag adorned with needlework. The small
bellows are made of walnut inlaid with marqueterie. The melody pipe
(le grand chalumeau) is bored with eight finger-holes, and fitted
with seven keys for the chromatic notes. To the left of the melody
pipe or chanter there is a small flask-shaped pipe furnished with six
keys (le petit chalumeau) containing the additional compass upwards.
There are four drones contrived in a barrel pierced with thirteen
bores in juxtaposition, of from 5 to 35 inches in length. The barrel
is furnished with five stops sliding in grooves and regulating the
length of the apertures for tuning the drones. Bach's musettes, the
alternatives to his gavottes, always imply a drone bass.
It will be observed the Cornemuse here drawn has a chanter and drone
fixed parallel in one stock. The former has eight finger-holes, and,
like that of the Scotch bagpipe, has a vent-hole not fingered. The
bag covered with crimson plush is furnished with a short mouthpiece
near the neck for the purpose of inflation.
The Calabrian Bagpipe or Zampogna is a rudely carved instrument of
the eighteenth century. It has four drones attached to one stock,
hanging downwards from the end of the bag: two of them are furnished
with finger-holes. The reeds are double like those of the oboe and
bassoon. The bag is large; it is inflated by the mouth and pressed
by the left arm against the chest of the performer. The Zampogna is
chiefly used as an accompaniment to a small reed melody pipe called
by the same name, and played by another performer. The quality of
the tone produced is not unpleasing. It has five holes only, and
consequently the seventh of the scale is absent, but this can be
easily got by octaving the open note of the pipe and covering part of
the lower opening of the chanter with the little finger.
The Musette, Zampogna, and Cornemuse here shown are from specimens
belonging to Messrs. J. & R. Glen, Edinburgh.
[Illustration: V]
PLATE V.
BAGPIPES.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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