A new House of Edgar collection

[kilted redleg]

I too have been enjoying the world pipeband championship on line. I have one question regarding the bands "What makes playing a snare so difficult that the drummer has to roll up his sleeves"? You do not see pipers rolling up their sleeves. I have a friend who played in a band I was in and rolled up his sleeves to play the snare drum, when asked why he stated he was a plumber and that's how he worked. Are all these guys plumbers?

[OC Richard]

I have a friend who played in a band I was in and rolled up his sleeves to play the snare drum...

Snare drummers have told me it's because the back end of the stick can get caught in the cuff. Not good!

Speaking of snare drummers, did you see when the SLOT snare drummers did some backsticking? Never seen that before in competition. (Drum fanfares/salutes yes, competition no.)

They also changed the sound of the snare drums for a time. I think they disengaged, then re-engaged, the upper snares. (Just a guess. I know a few years ago a snare-line put some kind of pads on their drum-heads to muffle the tone, then pulled them off later.)

I don't think today's performance is up yet, but here's the same Medley.

At 2:56 you can see backsticking, and at 6:03 you can hear the timbre of the snares changing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-kc...&start_radio=1

[jsrnephdoc]

Snare drummers have told me it's because the back end of the stick can get caught in the cuff. Not good!

Speaking of snare drummers, did you see when the SLOT snare drummers did some backsticking? Never seen that before in competition.

At 2:56 you can see backsticking, and at 6:03 you can hear the timbre of the snares changing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-kc...&start_radio=1

THANKS for that. WAY back in high school, my feeble abilities on the clarinet were forgotten so long as I agreed to play the snare drums in the marching band (appreciated by the dedicated wind players, but to the dismay of the REAL drummers).

But, since the VERY first time I could distinguish the sound of of the snares in a Highlands Pipes and Drums Corps from a US marching band on one of my dad's 78 rpm recordings, that marvelous and different sound of the Scottish snare drums has attracted me ALMOST as much as a cluster of (well tuned) pipes.

And, just what is "backstitching?"

[kilted redleg]

"backsticking" is hitting the snare drum head with the bottom of the drumstick not the head.
As far as getting the stick caught in the sleeve sounds like a musical "urban legend" as the majority of the drummers in the competition had sleeves down. Perhaps this is something the P/M needs to address as it is only two or three in the whole drum corps.

[OC Richard]

And, just what is "backstitching?"

Interesting you should say that!

Backstitching was a highly decorative technique employed by Irish uilleann pipers a century ago.

It fell from use but a few modern pipers have revived it.

Here's the best in the world doing it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1nr...&start_radio=1

and here's a demonstration of the technique

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04Ie...&start_radio=1

Backsticking is a snare drum thing where you use the back end of the stick to give a different sound.

Here's the best in the world doing it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpy8..._radio=1&t=67s

[jsrnephdoc]

Interesting you should say that!

Backstitching was a highly decorative technique employed by Irish uilleann pipers a century ago
It fell from use but a few modern pipers have revived it.

Here's the best in the world doing it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1nr...&start_radio=1

and here's a demonstration of the technique

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04Ie...&start_radio=1

Backsticking is a snare drum thing where you use the back end of the stick to give a different sound.

Here's the best in the world doing it .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpy8..._radio=1&t=67s

Sometimes those net nannies can be just TOO overzealous