I watched the Wee Willie Winkie clip Panache put on Bonnie Heather's Shirley Temple thread earlier today and I had to ask...what happened to the husky, throaty rope tension sound that military bands had. Todays pipe bands play snares tensioned tighter than a ballerina's hair and to me the sound from the old days, vis the clip is so much better.
I'm no musician, nor a music historian, so maybe some of the rabble can enlighten me.

Am I alone in thinking this way? Looking forward to hearing your opinions/answers.
Dave