Looks like the UPer from “Brave” was Jarlath Henderson… what a fabulous job… really added to the magic of the music! Had to sit through all those credits to see who it was. And it was a great movie, too!
I agree all the way. He’s a brilliant piper. The movie was great. My kids loved it and there was loads of stuff for the parents to laugh at.
I’d never heard of the movie before so I had a quick look at the trailer on youtube. Looks good but is this another scottish movie with uilleann pipes ?
RORY
Just had a peek at the trailer. Looks like it’s something I’ll enjoy. The playing alone will be brilliant.
Just got home after seeing Brave. Good movie, good music.
Rory, yes it is. A mix of uilleann pipes and highland pipes.
It was nice to see that all the “traditional” musicians got their names in the credits!!! 
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1217209/
Looks good but is this another scottish movie with uilleann pipes ?
So what is the problem as UNION pipes have been around a long time and are a universal instrument. I seem to recall reading (Hugh Cheap and another if I recall correctly in the Bagpipe Soc Journal based on research into 18th C theatre programs) that they were being made in London and Scotland so quite appropriate. It was the likes of Gratton Flood who tried to associate them as a purely Irish instrument and Cocks who through lack of proper research thought the Pastoral’s to be a Scottish spin off from the Union pipes and named them the ‘Hybrid Union Pipe’ instead of vice versa as the hard evidence shows. Yes they were being made in Ireland however historically there English and Scottish Makers of UNION pipes whether you like it or not. A tradition still being carried on
John
Horses, archery, pipes, girls who refuse to wear girdles. My kind of movie.
French instrument, aren’t they?
… I’ll get me coat …
No , they’re universal.
RORY
Nonsense, union pipes came from Canada, didn’t they?
It was those Engineer guys: http://cdn.mos.totalfilm.com/images/n/new-prometheus-image-shows-previously-unseen-alien-105344-00-470-75.jpg
Any traditional archers, or history fans here?
http://www.amazon.com/Longbow-A-Social-Military-History/dp/0750943912
I don’t know exactly when the “union” name came into play. There were pastoral pipes being made in Scotland but they were a sophisticated urban thing. When you think pastoral pipes (perhaps pre-union pipes) in Scotland, picture how an oboe would have been used and you won’t be far off. Powdered wigs and the like.
Cheape also presents evidence that supports the notion that the instrument we know as the Great Highland Bagpipe today probably didn’t exist prior to 1780 or so. Yes there was an instrument with the same name before then, he just says it isn’t the same as the instrument we play today. Probably quieter and coarser sounding.
Coarser sounding! Would that be possible?
“coarse” is a term we use to describe drones that aren’t going well. Frequently it’s a problem with the reeds, but it can be a problem with the drones. I think it’s basically dissonance within the harmonic series.
A modern set of highland pipes, properly set up, should not have a trace of coarseness in the drones. Properly set up is the trick.
Understood. I was just joking. Have you seen the National Museum of Scotland collection of union pipes/chanters? Here’s a link to one of Donald MacDonald’s union pipe chanters: http://nms.scran.ac.uk/database/record.php?usi=000-000-579-917-C
MacDonald was a pipemaker in Edinburgh in the late 18th - early 19th centuries.
Union pipes were definitely made outside Ireland during the formative years of the instrument. Think of the English maker Robert Reid. Think also of the classic Irish union pipe makers who set up shop outside Ireland during their working lives. Wasn’t Egan in Liverpool?
I always find it depressing when musical instruments become somehow inextricably linked to one national agenda. (ie. “Big pipes must be Scottish only.” “Union / uilleann pipes must be Irish only”.) Panders to the worst form of jingoistic nationalism. Music should bring people together not separate them into nationalist groups. Should guitars only be played by Spaniards and violins only played by Italians? Of course not.
Sorry, I’m ranting and off topic. Perhaps a thread on early union pipes made outside Ireland is merited. Just out of interest only, not to prove union/uilleann pipes aren’t an Irish phenomenon (they obviously are).
There are two different issues at play – or maybe three. The fist is the origins and history of the various instruments. The second is the role the instruments play in their respective communities of musicians who play them. The third is what they symbolize, especially to “outsiders”.
Whether we like it or not, the Highland pipe has become a symbol of Scotland.
ive often wondered why of all instruments, the bagpipe in particular seems to be so extremely polarized by regionality. guess its just the pipes bordone to bear. yuk yuk yuk.
OTOH, Im really hoping Pixar’s 2013 blockbuster will be about an Italian princess & there;s desperate need for zampogna in the soundtrack. (cha-ching!)
I guess film directors just think uilleann pipes are more acceptable in conveying “celticness” to the movie going public
RORY
I guess film directors just think uilleann pipes are more acceptable in conveying “celticness” to the movie going public
More likely they knew that using highland pipes thoughout would be less flexible in orchestral arrangements and that Uilleann pipes not only have a beautiful sound, but are are much more orchestra-friendly. I’m sorry that you don’t agree that Uilleann pipes don’t convey ‘celticness’.
I enjoyed the movie and bought the soundtrack on iTunes. Julie Folwis is fantastic. Did you know that she’s also an excellent highland piper?