Uh, where exactly do you blow into the darn thing?
Bladder and drone only? EEP!
So does that mean you don’t get the canter or the bag shown,
Just a straw tied into a dried up old bladder!
GROSS!!!
Must be a highland piper selling this thing,
Paddy Finn, are you the seller???
If this sells, I’ll probably try market the practice bodhran beater I’ve been working on. It’s designed to help people work up to playing a real bodhran.
Let’s face it, most people who want to learn the bodhran are put off by the cost and complexity of that instrument. My invention will allow them to practice on their own, and once they feel they have enough practice, they can graduate onto the real thing.
you might be on to something…I learned the bodhran by banging on a cardbord box (and probably should have stuck with that instead of learning the f’n pipes)…so there you have it, cardbord box, a stick, and a sharpie for some celtic knotwork and viola…easy money!
I’ve written the seller on this issue, because those photos are taken directly from Joe Kennedy’s website. Point is- under $300 for a chanter by Kennedy is a pretty sweet deal, and you are left with the spare bag. Add a bellows kit from Dixon or whomever and you end up with a practice set for under $500. That is, of course, if that really is a chanter by Joe Kennedy…
You might want to verify that chanter before proceeding. Dealers aren’t known for ‘deals’, unless you count their happiness into such transactions.
More great history, though, in that listing:
“The history of the Uilleann Pipes spans 13 Centuries, and the earliest references are in the ancient law tracts and annals. Some high crosses have carved depictions of early pipes (10th Century) and from the 15th Century onwards references become more frequent. All of these pipes were mouth-blown instruments. As time went by, the traditional bellows blown Uilleann Pipe was developed.”
The pipes for auction are not pipes made by Joe Kennedy, although the photo of the set in the eBay description (from the link in Jay-eye’s original post) is of a set made by Joe Kennedy. Here is the reply to my inquiry to the seller:
"Anyway, these Uilleann practice sets are hand crafted by Piper’s Choice in Canada. One set is the leather bag and chanter. The other set is similar, but has a traditional bellows included. They do not have any particular markings on the chanters or anywhere else on the instrument. The material they are made out of is Delrin, which produces a very good tone and greatly resists moisture buildup. I have been most personally fond of Delrin for whistle fipples, where I discovered this material’s extraordinary tonefulness and superb ability to resist water. I rarely ever have to blow out my whistles’ blade windows anymore.
I am glad you asked these questions, since, because of Kennedy’s relationship with Piper’s Choice, I thought he was behind the making of these. I will have to shoot new photos of the new order when it comes in now that I know he isn’t."
