does any of you know whether the breton bombarde has the same fingering as the whistle?
and, while we're at it, can it be played in any way other than loud or louder? I do not react well to noise, yet I react extremely well to breton music (Stivell, tri-Yann, Prigent, Cabestan etc.)

cheers

Yes and no.

Yes The Bombarde has the same fingering as a whistle, however, there are usually 1, sometimes 2 keys for a lower A and G (if the bombarde is in Bb) - These keys are important because it is extremely difficult to get the top 3 notes in the second Octave.

No - great sound, but very very loud - a softer reed can reduce the noise a bit. My Pakistani bombarde has a narrower bore which makes it a bit quieter, but I had Ian McKenzie make some extra reeds for me - he has a very nice french-made bombarde - it cannot be played indoors without ear-plugs.

There is another bombarde/shawm type instrument called the Piston - it is in D. Maybe worth investigating.

I play a high D bombarde made by Comac. Loud as all get out. Same fingering as a whistle with an extra low c# hole. No keys on this one because it's small.

It's kind of like a cross between a mosquito and Spinal Tap (all the way up to 11). It is quieter (relatively, still loud enough to wake the recently deceased) with a softer reed. It's much quieter with a GHB plastic practice chanter reed but so out of tune it's not worth it. I don't get to play it much anymore as the wife has threatened to insert it into a certain body cavity should she be subjected to it again. Ah well.

Mark

I'm curious...

I was looking at a site recently with lots of info on the bombarde. Several times the site posted in bold cap letters THE BOMBARDE IS NOT A SOLO INSTRUMENT, or at least the effect was the same.

Why? And if the thing is as loud as the notes here suggest, what in the world could play in consort with it... a fog horn??

The fog horn is frowned upon by 'pure drop' players. The traditional duet is with the biniou kozh, a small single-drone bagpipe that plays an octave above the bombarde and plays continuously, so the bombardier can rest (they play in a call and response fashion). Bombarde is also used together with the biniou braz--basically the Breton take on Scottish Highland pipes (and no wilting violet in the volume department) to form bagadou--Breton pipe bands. The effect of a band of 40 musicians playing bombardes and pipes and drums is one of the most visceral experiences possible on earth.

what?
where?
why?
who, in his or her right mind, would make such decleration?
I reckon it means never play the bombarde when you are alone as you may need immediate assistance should your eardrum rupture. kinda like the warnings on hazardous material products.

The binou kozh also has a way of making the bombarde sound sweet and mellow by comparison.

I had a bombarde for a while, but it worried my cats so much that I never played it. It didn't seem to cause them discomfort so much as concern -- they'd come running into my music room meowing anxiously, evidently to make sure I was ok.

Re: Bombarde as solo instrument, the site was still in my browser history...

http://texcelt.org/BombardeFAQ.html

"But, obviously, to do this you must first have a highland piper to play Breton tunes with. The bombarde is not a "solo" instrument."

From the notes here, I'm kinda leaning to the "Misery loves company" theory.

I’m guessing that it’s not uncommon for bombardiers to bombard with a bombarde.

I wonder if you could take off the top of the bag pipe chanter, exposing its reed, and this would approximate the sound of the bombarde? I have seen others put their lips at the reed base, and sound will come out.

Anyone tried this?