THE GREAT HIGHLAND BAGPIPES, "PIOB-MHOR"

Scotland's national instrument, the Bagpipe or in Gaelic "Piob-Mhor", the great pipe, is not, contrary to popular belief, an instrument which has its origins in Scotland. These pipes have three drones that come out the top of the bag which produce a constant sound, a mouth piece through which the piper blows, a single chanter with the nine notes of the pipe scale, which the piper plays with their fingers and a bag made of sheep or elk skin which the piper presses with their arm.

The Highland Pipes are only one of the over thirty different kinds of bagpipes that have appeared throughout the world. The Spanish, French, Italians, Germans, Hungarians, Czechoslovakians, Tunisians, Indians, Greeks, and a myriad of other cultures have developed bagpipes of their own. These bagpipes have any number of drones, up to eight coming out the top, bottom, or side of the bag. Among the more famous bagpipes outside the British Isles are the Spanish Galicia which is like the Scottish bagpipe as far as the bag and air supply, but only have one drone. The French Musette, which has keys on the chanter and a bellow to keep the bag full and the Zampongno from Italy, which has two chanters.

When the pipes arrived to Scotland, they quickly became a part of Scottish life. Every town would hire a bagpiper, usually out of special taxes from the wealthy families in the area, who would pipe for townspeople on all occasions. In some places the piper would play in churches in place of an organ. As time went on, the bagpipes in the British Isles evolved and various types of pipes and piping were developed. Marches, strathspays, hornpipes, and reels were perfected and played on the Highland Bagpipes, the Lowland Bagpipes, the Northumbria pipes, and the Irish pipes.

The Scots have made the bagpipes one of the outstanding parts of our culture. Many songs, stories and poems have celebrated the pipes, and unlike many other cultures we have kept the pipes alive as part of our musical tradition.