Frugal Corner Pipes (review)

[wgority]

As far as not getting the noise out of the chanter, yes it was the reed. I looked at a few different things, and it was definitely the reed. While I don't have a lot of experience with pipes, I am able to troubleshoot pretty well. Mark is shipping me a new chanter reed.

Are you absolutely sure it was the reed? While that is a possibility, there are other possible issues, particularly with pipes and chanters manufactured in the Indian sub-continent. Other possible issues include too narrow a throat, an inaccurately bored and centered reed-seat, or others. Additionally, in Pakistani-manufactured pipes, you will find you'll never be able to properly tune the chanter short of sealing some of the fingerholes completely and re-milling them.

As a project a couple years ago, I tried putting one of these chanters right and it took the best part of a summer. The efforts involved completely resurfacing the bore to remove marks left by the original "craftsman", filling and re-milling 4 fingerholes, filling and re-milling the low-G vent holes, and re-milling the reed-seat to put it properly in line with the bore of the chanter (this had previously been over 5 degrees off true). Despite all this, the chanter is still flat compared to any other I have and no matter what reed goes into it, it will not play a true key, but rather only in tune with itself. Luckily the drones are able to tune to this particular and peculiar key.

I have extensive experience with bagpipes of numerous sorts acquired over the last 25 years, as well as other woodwinds going back 40 years, and I would have advised you to avoid this instrument.

As to lacking lung power, in my youth I knew some fine pipers who smoked cigarettes like chimneys, and one in particular who was a veteran of WWII who only had one lung.

Good luck with this instrument of yours, but you would have been better served to save a bit longer and buy a Dunbar P-1 or similar instrument.

Finally, as to including this topic in the "Accessories" forum, I would disagree with you most wholeheartedly in this. The bagpipe is not an accessory. It is a musical instrument! You don't need one to wear a kilt and you don't need to wear a kilt to play one. I played pipes for years before wearing a kilt. If bagpipes are reduced to a mere accoutrement for kilt-wearers, then we are, as a culture, far poorer for it.

If you allow popular thought or the preconceptions of the ignorant dictate anything to you regarding bagpipes (or kilts for that matter), then I might respectfully suggest that you put down the bagpipes and walk away from them entirely. You're playing them for the wrong reason. The only reason to take up any instrument is to play them because you love the music that comes from them! There is no other reason.

See? That's what happens when you get me started.