vanfleet wrote:
However, with the exception of some chanters that seem to have a "flattened" back D area and rounded chanter face in front, I have never seen a chanter with only *some* of the holes scalloped.
Plenty of the older classic chanters have different amounts of scalloping on different notes, some very subtle. The Leo R chanters I've seen have different amounts of scalloping on different holes, too. What I _haven't_ seen is an older chanter made by one of the "top historic makers" that had the _same_ amount of scalloping on all the holes, unless you count "almost none".[1]
So I would disagree with your conclusion. Scalloping, undercutting, fraising, resizing, and moving toneholes are all techniques that affect tuning, but they have different effects. The 'aul fellas seem to have used all of the above techniques.
Bill
1) Well, I have seen a couple with similar scalloping on each note, but the scalloping in these cases looked quite rough and suspiciously as if it were a later modification done with a round file.
This would argue against the idea that pipe makers use scalloping to "tune specific notes." Instead, pipe makers would undercut the tone hole, working on the inside of the chimney. There have been several threads on that particular tuning technique.
I admit I may lack experience, does anyone have another perspective?
