The Highland Bagpipe and Its Music

John Donald Publishers, [Published date: 1995]. Softcover, xi, 203 pp, plus 8 unnumbered pages of black and white plates; 24 cm. 1997 reprint. [From back cover] A new paperback edition of the definitive history of the Scottish Highland Bagpipe. The eminently readable text will be of interest not only to pipers, but to those music-lovers worldwide who are intrigued to know more about the character of this ancient instrument, its musical capabilities, and the social and historical circumstances surrounding it. The book incorporates the results of extensive historical research, but it is in no way too technical and it contains many musical examples in plain notation. [Contents include: Preface; Origins; A classification of bagpipes; The bass drone; The bagpipe in Scotland and Ireland; The Highland Bagpipe; Description; Technical developments; Bagpipe manufacture; Other instruments; Bagpipe Music - Introductory; The bagpipe scale; Pitch; Finger technique; Tonality; The two traditions: Ceòl Mòr and Ceòl Beag; The growth of written music; Ceòl Mòr; Historical background; The music; Canntaireachd; Time and phrasing; The Ceol Mor Tradition; From patronage to preservation; Early written records; The end of the collecting period; Nineteenth-century players; Variety of traditions; Further developments; Cameron and MacPherson styles; Tempo and rhythm; Dissident players; The Piobaireachd Society; The Origin of Piobaireachd; Questions; The stories of the tunes; Early MacCrimmon history; Names and dates; Internal evidence; Harp music; Conclusions; Music for Dancing; Early history; Reels; Jigs; Strathspeys; Other dance tunes; Traditional dancing; Scottish country dancing; Competitive Highland dancing; Music in the Army; The Company piper; The piper in battle; Duty tunes; Marching; Quicksteps - 2/4 time; Quicksteps - 6/8 time; Retreats; Slow marches; Competition Music; Music for Pleasure; Slow airs; Jigs and hornpipes; The Pipe Band; The Army; Civilian pipe bands; Organisation of the band; Music; Drumming; Ensemble playing; Piping Today; The players; Performance; Education; Literature; Recordings; Bibliography; Index.]

Roderick Cannon currently lives in Norwich, Scotland.