Hi all,
I have a newbie question. I've checked the FAQ and spent some time wading through search results (There is a massive amount of activity on this forum. Impressive.) and surfed all over netdom, but I haven't found what I'm looking for.
I am wondering about how one decides what pitch they want in a set. As I understand it, most traditional Irish music is keyed in D, while other pitches are not uncommon. Would someone care to explain a little about this and how one chooses? Also differences and considerations between "flat" and "concert" and even pitch issues between chanters and drones, etc.
Thanks to anyone that wants to take a crack at this.
William
Choosing Pitch
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William Reinman
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djm
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Concert D and D mean the basically same thing. A D set is good for playing in Dmaj and Gmaj, and their related modes. Traditionally, D is the easiest key to play in with other instruments at a session, if that is your goal.
Older chanters were all made along the same basic conical bore, the length determining the pitch. These were deemed too quiet for the concert stage in the late 19th/early 20th centuries, so the bore of the D set was widened to play louder in concert halls. Thus you get the terms concert, wide-bore, concert D, etc. all referring to the louder, more raucous sounding D sets.
Any chanter design that uses the older conical bore is referred to as narrow bore. Yes, there is a narrow bore D chanter, too. One of the characteristics of the narrow bored chanters is that, besides being quieter, many people find them to sound sweeter than the wide bore Ds. It is a matter of personal preference whether to go with wide bore or narrow bore, or which pitch of chanter you might prefer.
Because these narrow bores are often pitched flat of D, they are collectively referred to as "flat" chanters. These include C#, C, B, Bb. There are a few Eb and A chanters floating about, but they are rare. The easiest sets to find are pitched in D.
This is a fairly general overview. I'm sure there are others who will want to quibble, as is the nature of this forum. Hope that helps,
djm
Older chanters were all made along the same basic conical bore, the length determining the pitch. These were deemed too quiet for the concert stage in the late 19th/early 20th centuries, so the bore of the D set was widened to play louder in concert halls. Thus you get the terms concert, wide-bore, concert D, etc. all referring to the louder, more raucous sounding D sets.
Any chanter design that uses the older conical bore is referred to as narrow bore. Yes, there is a narrow bore D chanter, too. One of the characteristics of the narrow bored chanters is that, besides being quieter, many people find them to sound sweeter than the wide bore Ds. It is a matter of personal preference whether to go with wide bore or narrow bore, or which pitch of chanter you might prefer.
Because these narrow bores are often pitched flat of D, they are collectively referred to as "flat" chanters. These include C#, C, B, Bb. There are a few Eb and A chanters floating about, but they are rare. The easiest sets to find are pitched in D.
This is a fairly general overview. I'm sure there are others who will want to quibble, as is the nature of this forum. Hope that helps,
djm
I'd rather be atop the foothills than beneath them.
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pancelticpiper
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Yes, what has been said above.
The D set is the most versatile and useful, for playing with others you might meet.
And I myself, though it is piping heresy to say so, actually prefer the tone of D pipes. Why? Because when I first started piping in the 70's the pipers I listened to (Paddy Keenan, Liam O Flynn, Finbar Furey, Paddy Moloney) all played D pipes.
Now there's quite a fad for "flat" pipes. At our gatherings, a fairly large number of pipers own a C set and/or a B set in addition to their D set.
They will go off into a side room and have a "C session" or a "B session".
It seems from pipe history that a pitch around B was the original, or true pitch of the pipes. Many pipers much prefer flat pipes, and there's the feeling that flat pipes are more "genuine" or "traditional".
The D set is the most versatile and useful, for playing with others you might meet.
And I myself, though it is piping heresy to say so, actually prefer the tone of D pipes. Why? Because when I first started piping in the 70's the pipers I listened to (Paddy Keenan, Liam O Flynn, Finbar Furey, Paddy Moloney) all played D pipes.
Now there's quite a fad for "flat" pipes. At our gatherings, a fairly large number of pipers own a C set and/or a B set in addition to their D set.
They will go off into a side room and have a "C session" or a "B session".
It seems from pipe history that a pitch around B was the original, or true pitch of the pipes. Many pipers much prefer flat pipes, and there's the feeling that flat pipes are more "genuine" or "traditional".
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misterpatrick
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I'd also point out that narrow bore chanters "play" differently than regular bore chanters. I usually play my B chanter and always find I need to practice a bit on my D if I haven't picked it up in awhile. I liken it to riding a tamed horse at a nice canter and then hoping a wild stallion. But that's just me.
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William Reinman
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