Also, I want to learn to play medieval bagpipes. (I've been materialistically drooling over the ones offered by ancestral instruments.) I think I can handle learning to play (I'm blessed with the ability to get the hang of most any musical instrument very quickly) but I would like to start researching period bagpipe music. The only thing I've come up with is "Robin Hood" from one of my CDs. I realize that the bagpipes status as a "folk" instrument may make it hard to find any written music, but if anybody could help me here I'd be a very happy camper.

Thanks in advance!

Wes

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Just a quick note about Ancestral Instruments: I visited David Marshall's shop outside of Ely several years ago. We discussed a project (a medieval shepherd's bagpipe) and I was promised that it would be finished and shipped in November of that year. This allowed for about five months for its construction. I paid Mr. Marshall most of his fee in advance.

November came and went, and my email messages went largely unanswered. Months passed, and I became more and more convinced that I had been robbed.

In May of the following year, delivery was finally made. Total time for construction: 11 months - more than double what had been promised me in the beginning.

The instrument's workmanship is good, and I enjoy it very much. HOWEVER I would make the following recommendations to anyone contemplating placing a commission with David Marshall:

1: Pay the absolute minimum deposit upon placing order.

2: Understand that his customer service is very poor. Expect only sporadic communication.

3. Be patient and do not expect delivery until you see the package come off the UPS truck yourself.

Sorry if this sounds a bit harsh – just wanted to share my experience with the bagpipe fans out there. The instrument itself is quite nice, and perhaps in the long run that is the most important thing. My next commission, however, will certainly go to someone else.

Regards

David

quote:

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I want to learn to play medieval bagpipes

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the Lute would be appropriate for the 1400s.

as would the cittern, the oud, the Gittern, the viheula, the chitarre, the Saz and the Chittarre Battente, depending on location.

I would caution you against a lute. I play a lute, and an oud, and I understand why people gave them up.

If you want my reccomendation (and I notice you did not really ask for it) get yourself a "Tater Bug" Mandolin. A taterbug is the different kind of mandolin than the very popular flat iron.

Since almost all of the above instruments have no "correct" number of strings, then (you could easily make the casse that) a taterbug is actually more accuratly called a Cittern. It looks very different than a modern Cittern, but actually quite close to a midieval One. The one Mark Cudack (my spelling) of the Baltimore Consort playes looks almost exactly like the taterbugs sometimes made today in Central Arkansas.

If you want to go "whole hog", take the instrument to the same tech who does your guitar set ups. Get him to replace the modern tuning lugs with "straight through" geared Banjo lugs. he may have to special order the banjo lugs. Replace or remove entirely the plastic pick guard. Use a strap, and a "tortise shell" plastic plectrum. Yes, Picks are period, but not those plastic finishes.

A lute is a poor choice for a revel, but good for an academic setting. Lutes are (generally) very quiet, hard to tune, and tougher to keep that way.

Lutes can do mean things to you. I once had a piece of fret gut decide to slip in the middle of a song. I not only was thus denied the utility of the fret gut, but it was literally impossible to fret that note (or any other note on the second fret) properly. In an audience in the middle ages, it would have seemed that the music was a little off that night. to a modern audience, (who have grown up with perfect music, Instantly, and for free) it seemed to cause physical pain.

oh, yeah, one last thing. The general consensus in the SCA (and every other reinactment group I have ever played for) is that gut (Nylon) strings are period, and metal strings are not. I am less convinced. All the professional and academic musicians I have ever met have used steel strings in one form or another.

Lute Music is fairly easy to transcribe for guitar, and it is also fairly east to retune guitar to play lute music from it's original transcriptions. E-mail me if you want more.

[ 05-04-2002: Message edited by: freiman ]

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Ginerva, I'll contact you in the future about this other bagpipe guy when I have the funds feed up. This might take good while. I might even try to find student set first.

frieman, how much does one of these taterbug things run? I mainly just want something close to a guitar that will fit in with my late 14th century persona.

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In answer to your question, I paid 20 euros for mine at a flea market in Southern Germany. Flea Markets and Garage Sales can hold some fantastic instrument bargains, but there are a hundred pices of unplayable garbage for every good piece.

I have been rethinking my earlier advice about a taterbug. There is good instruction to be gained from learning to play the lute. If you play guitar, you already have the ability to be "the life of the campfire". If your interest is more scholarly (rather than performance oriented) then you might want a lute regardless of the playability of lutes in general.

I hope I am "reading in" right. If I am not, please understand that I am not attempting to berate you in any way, and I am not intending any offense.

It seems like you are a guitar player who would like to reinact more accuratly. You probably have had fun playing around campfires, and would like a more period looking instrument, so you can "take it out in public" so to speak.

Try Lark in the morning, they have a whole range of instruments, but their sales office in San Diego(?) had some smoke damage not too long ago. I seem to remember them having a good selection of lutes at one time. they have none that I could find during my quick perusal of their web page.
www.larkinam.com

They have numerous "Bowl backed" mandos, and you want to make sure you get one with a solid headstock. Otherwise, the guitar tech will not be able to replace the pegs with the less jarring banjo pegs.

This is where I go out on a limb. If you would like to just look "more period", look at lark's guitar selection of guitars. They have some really inexpensive "lutish" looking guitars there, some of them for about one hundred bucks.

Also, I have heard that Lark has a reputation for being overpriced.

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I'd second Freiman's comment- by all means, get a lute. If you know classical guitar technique, you should encounter a high level of skill transferance.

If you can't afford a replica medieval lute, I understand an oud makes a reasonable substitute. Incidentally, the relatively common renaissance lute is a different critter than the medieval lute.

If you want an easy to play instrument, I know a guy who makes guitarra latinas (a small strummed instrument from the 13th) for (last I checked) around $450. Got one myself, you can see a pic on my website. Great for narrow range monophonic tunes, but don't think you'll be able to play Dowland or anything like that.

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While I am interested in entertaining others, my main plan is to learn medieval songs by ear (I have a fairly extensive collection of medieval CDs) and perhaps write songs in a period style (possibly with some modern influences). One day I would like to be able to look at some of the original music manuscripts and do my own interpretation of them. Many of the more scholarly recordings seem a little dry to my ears.
However, I would be happy with an instrument that looks and SOUNDS medieval even if it had no strictly historical counterpart.

Again, thanks to everyone for the input.

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quote:

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Originally posted by Wes:
<snip>
However, I would be happy with an instrument that looks and SOUNDS medieval even if it had no strictly historical counterpart.

Again, thanks to everyone for the input.

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hey from Anne-Marie
one thing...a musical instrument that looks ok to the untrained eye may (and usually is) totally inappropriate to anyone who knows anything about the field. For me, much of the music at Faires etc is blatently inappropriate, while for some folks, the fact that the subject matter is vaguely period is good enough.

The same applies to instruments...my ear is used to hearing certain types of instruments (the renaissance recorder, for example) and when I hear the modern equivalent, which for most people is just fine, I know its not right (the baroque recorder).

you just need to decide where YOUR bar is. and often that bar is in a different place depending on how much we care about that particular aspect of things .

YMMV, of course
--AM<

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