Hello everyone, I have a concert pitch chanter for sale. Anyone interested conact me on my e-mail address brendan.ring@wanadoo.fr
Anyone living in a hot/unstable climate should seriously consider one of Brendan’s chanters. At the St. Chartier festival two weeks ago there were only chanters from three makers playing in tune without problems; Brendan Ring’s, Chris Bayley’s and Mark Donohue’s. I played sets from several makers and was impressed by the above three. I was definitely NOT impressed with the Hevia Y Paragon offerings; chanter out of tune with the drones, regulators a semitone flat, coconut-cracking effort required to reach the second octave (briefly!). It might have helped their efforts if there was anyone on the stand who actually knew how to adjust the pipes. Nuff said.
Mike
Hello Mike,
Are you certain that this was a chanter or a reed issue? My thought is, that before somebody’s craftsmanship comes into question regarding the Uilleann chanter, some study and thought must be given to the reed… right?
Yea, is it just me, or do those Donohoe pipes look unbelievably gorgeous? I saw those new pics of that set on Pat D’Arcy’s site and I would assume that they sound every bit as gorgeous as they look!
Any thoughts?
Sounds like simple tuning/reed adjustment problemos…did ye try to sort it yersel ? or where ye quite happy just to slag em off?nuff said
Slán Agat
Uilliam
I got a lecture recently from Seán Potts about my reeds [had broken a reg reed] and he very much opined that it is a piper’s responsibility to maintain the pipes, and the reeds particularly.
As if there isn’t enough to learn 
but since the feckin things can change on a daily basis sometimes, his point is well made. You can’t send it all back to the pipemaker twice a month. Even the most stable of sets require reed adjustments to get all the tuning “in”.
Boyd
I asked for a set of his drones, I will soon tell you my feeling !
Anyway, his sets look very well made, and some pipers said that they sound better than they look !
And he his a nice guy to deal with.
should contact him before the delay increase (they are very short now)
O’D’s pipes have a classic look about them. Does rorybbellows play O’D pipes?
But hey, I think we’re hijacking BR’s post here. Any chance you could post a photo of the chanter you’re selling?
Brendan makes a great stick, and he plays his own too, which, if you’re interested, you can catch a listen here:
http://www.brendanring.com/anleanbhsidhe.mp3
http://www.brendanring.com/brianolynn.mp3
Brendan’s CD Troublesome Things is the first piping CD I bought, on the strength of this first clip: anleanbhsidhe, and I just love the sound of his pipes!
What’s O’ Donohues wait for a set of drones? I must admit they do look very well built, very beautiful to look at. Are his prices reasonable, he lives in Kerry, doesn’t he?
The cd and the sound of the pipes are marvellous 
I recommand to have a look on Brendan web site to have an idea of the quality of his music and pipes
Nice looking pipes. I can’t listen to soundfiles at work but I’ll have a listen to BR’s pipes when I get home this evening.
Troublesome Things - you got that right!!
Uilliam wrote:
Sounds like simple tuning/reed adjustment problemos…did ye try to sort it yersel ? or where ye quite happy just to slag em off?nuff said
Slán Agat
If you were a pipemaker trying to put your wares in the best possible light, would you not think it incumbent on you to have your pipes set up so that they could be played? Hevia’s pipes are made in Spain. St Chartier is not that far from Spain, and the weather is similar. My view is that reeds made in the same geographical region, subject to the same weather conditions, should be able to play. Adjustment is not the question here, I was not allowed to adjust them. That being said, I stand by my earlier statement at the beginning of this paragraph.
Hevia’s pipes do look good; beautifully presented with nice mood lighting on their stand - but what would you rather have, a set that looked good or one that played?
And at 6450 Euros per full set they are very expensive - but you only have to wait a week for a full set. Does that sound like good quality control or what?
Rubbish is dear at any price! Enough said.
Mike
Mike …why do ye have a down on hevia?Some points in your piece are rubbish…
They played fine at Na Piobaire Uilleann in Dublin and the wait time is about 260 days which seems an aweful long week to me.
Ye said yersel that no one on the stand could adjust the set,but I am sure if ye offered to sort it they would have been happy to let ye do it especially if ye told them the set wasnae playing and it was rubbish and that ye were an expert and ye were going to expose them on the internet blah blah blah…ye did tell them didn’t ye?
I suspect this is more to do with some folks not liking the new kid on the block…every time a new maker comes on the scene this sort of thing happens…
I have no axe to grind nor do I have any interest in Hevia other than fair play.A set being out of tune because for whatever reason the stallholder cannot tune it or play it doesnae make the set rubbish.
Slán Go Foill
Uilliam 
Sound problems are mostly because of the reeds.
an Arhpa chanter is so well made that it can not sound out tune, and great pipers think the same
Uilliam,
NPU Dublin is naewhere near central France. (see: Geography 101). I have only been playing the pipes for 14 years, and making reeds for 12 years, so cannot be counted an expert.
This is not an attempt to diss a maker’s work without reason. The fact that the set was unplayable is a simple enough concept to grasp. I have said that the work looked good; it is a pity that it did not sound good. Othe people took the trouble to ensure that their sets played. I adjusted the Mark Donohue set so that the drones balanced - and they played. My sets played, and a piper in one of the sessions playing a Mark Van Dahl set had no trouble with his… You mention the stallholders, who are actually Hevia, not some third party. I have already said that I wasnae allowed to adjust them. I did not pursue the point with either bona fides of expertise, or both of my perfectly working sets.
My previous post was solely regarding playabilityand tuning. I can go further. Would you consider a full set with sloppy keywork, loose keyguides, and uneven springs a good set? I was there and I played them (well, I tried to…)
260 days waiting time for a set? Well, the s**t is going to hit the fan sooner or later - are you aware of the involvement of a celebrated maker, now living in France, with Hevia? (It will probably be amusing in future years, to look back at how we used to diss Pakistani pipes).
I will draw a line under this at the moment. Better qualified people than I know more, and are presently saying nothing. I am off to join them.
Mike
Well said Mike
I have spoken with Chris Bayley who was at Saint Chartier and other makers and although they were very cagey with what they said I gather that there is something not quite right with the Hevia situation. It seems they contacted a “big name” maker who has enough work to take him well into retirement to show them how to make uilleann pipes (they normally make traditional Spanish Instruments) and are now into mass production with just a week being required to ‘assemble’ (note that I choose my words carefully) a full set. I rather liked the term used by one of the makers I spoke to regarding their keywork - “fitted like a turd in a piss pot”
In simple terms it seems to be sweat shop production with little or no quality control. The fact that they are setting up agents in each country takes them away from direct contact with the purchaser and liability. If the makers cannot demonstrate that their pipes work then there is something seriously wrong especially when makers from more temperate climates have no trouble.
Making Uilleann Pipes is not an art learnt overnight or from a book or plans and up to now makers have spent months if not years on research and learning from other established makers prior to developing their own distinctive style.
Hopefully Hevia will get their act together and not become the Spanish equivalent of the Far East makers
[quote=“Mike Hulme”]Uilliam,
**a)**NPU Dublin is naewhere near central France. (see: Geography 101).
b) I have said that the work looked good; it is a pity that it did not sound good.
c) Would you consider a full set with sloppy keywork, loose keyguides, and uneven springs a good set? I was there and I played them (well, I tried to…)
d) Well, the s**t is going to hit the fan sooner or later - are you aware of the involvement of a celebrated maker, now living in France, with Hevia? (It will probably be amusing in future years, to look back at how we used to diss Pakistani pipes).
Mike..thanks for the geography lesson! 
a) A set (practice I believe)was evaluated in na Piobaire and did not get anything like the negative comments the ye espouse, was the not so hidden point of me mentioning them in the 1st place!Not the fact that ye have incidentally correctly identified Dublin as not being in Central France!
b)and c) Appear to be Contradictions..So which is it to be?
**d)**Rather than give out veiled hints about what is going to happen leaving everything open to conjecture(so typical of this board) why don’t ye say what ye know?That way ye will be doing a service to the piping world..if what ye say (or don’t in this case) is true…
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Elmek quote
with just a week being required to ‘assemble’ (note that I choose my words carefully) a full set.
Elmek
Firstly ,the actual assembly of a good set of pipes can be done in about 2 weeks so your alluding to some kind of sweatshop is in fact not reality.
This constant reference to “big name” maker involvement is also gleefully taken up by yersel without ye naming names…why?
Are ye suggesting seriously that a company with all the equipment to hand that makes all sorts of Spanish pipes is incapable of setting up their lathes to make UP’s…
The fact that they have agents in different countries would not appear to effect liability so what is that all about?
I am not surprised that Chris Bailey is “very cagey”, if there is something clearly wrang with a set I would have no hesitation in pointing it out to the owner /maker if they wanted to know.
If there is something “not quite right” (your carefully chosen words) lets hear it from ye and stop all this waffling…
Again ,to remind ye,I have no axe to grind with ye ,I have no interest in havia. I am more than happy with my maker and his sweatshop of mid European slaves toiling awa to make quality pipes.I would be happy to be his agent and I recommend by word o mouth.
So Perleeeezzzz If ye have anything to say say it… 
Slán Go Foill
Uilliam
I think that this argument has run its course… that and it is becomming a little too personal. Perhaps we can get it back on topic?
Hi
We had about 45° in St Chartier. I did not play to hot! If the Hevia stand was under the sun, I let you imagine the head’s reeds… Some guitares, drums split! Terrible…