The Highland bagpipe : $b its history, literature, and music: with some account of the traditions, superstitions, and anecdotes relating to the instrument and its tunesManson, W. L. (William Laird)
History
The Highland bagpipe : $b its history, literature, and music: with some account of the traditions, superstitions, and anecdotes relating to the instrument and its tunes
Manson, W. L. (William Laird)
Bagpipe
In blowing the bagpipe, the cheeks must never be inflated nor the face
distressed in any way. There is really no hard work required, only a
little careful practice, and everything should be done as easily and
freely as possible. The bag does not at all times require to be filled
to its full extent, a little more than three-fourths being usually
sufficient. The player must not expend all his breath without resting,
as by so doing he will not only hurt but disable himself. The arm should
be pressed lightly on the bag, but allowed to yield gently to the wind
as it comes from the mouth, the pressure being gentle and steady and
according to the strength of the reeds. The player will at first find
some little difficulty in satisfactorily managing the bag, but when he
has succeeded he will be able to play in a free and commanding style,
and will have surmounted a difficulty which is a great bugbear to all
inexperienced players.
III.—TUNING THE PIPES.
When the pipes are first struck in, the big and outer drones should be
stopped by placing a finger over the hole of the bell of each. In doing
this or at any time when only one hand holds the chanter, the E note
should be sounded. The centre drone being nearest to the ear should, as
a rule, be tuned first. Should this drone not be in tune with the
chanter reed, a discord between them will ensue, and to get a chord the
point of the drone must be moved up or down, as the case may require. By
carefully listening to the chanter reed and moving the joint at the same
time, the player will easily discover whether the sounds are
assimilating or the discord increasing, and be able to suit his action
accordingly, until the sounds blend into one. The low A must now be
sounded, and the drone tuned to that note. (We may, however, tune to E,
high G, or in fact any note, providing the chanter reed is true to all
the notes, but in order to prove the reed and tune the pipes at the same
time, low A is generally preferred.) Afterwards sound high A to prove
whether the chanter reed is properly set, and true from low to high A.
If it is, the drone also will be in perfect chord with the latter note.
But should this not be the case and the drone cannot be brought to the
exact pitch with both notes. The discord, however slight, must be
divided between the two notes, and not left wholly on either. If the
pipe or the reeds are not defective, this should never occur, and the
reeds if properly fitted should tune about the centre of the joint.
After the centre drone is properly tuned, the outer should be begun by
placing the finger on the air-hole of the bell, or suddenly easing the
arm. This drone is not tuned to the chanter reed but to the drone
already tuned, in the same manner as that was tuned to the chanter reed.
The big drone is tuned to the other two in a similar manner.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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