I,ve read that the Taylor brothers were also involved in making GHB,s as well as uilleann pipes. Would their knowledge of the GHB helped in the development of the wide bore uilleann pipe chanter ?
Is there any relationship between a GHB chanter and a UP chanter,is a GHB chanter wide bore?
What if you played a GHB chanter, closed on your knee like a UP chanter ,does it still play ?just curious !!
RORY
Being a Highland Piper, I can say that a GHB chanter will still sound if you close off the end on your knee. There are two sound hole below the lowest tone hole on the GHB chanter. i belive these holes are for tuning.
As far as the Taylors making GHB, I have never heard of this before. Thats not to say it isn’t true. I would love to have a look at a Taylor GHB. I wonder if it would have any of the wonderful charactoristics of a Taylor UP?
well there’s also something called a ‘Montgomery Smallpipe’, Julian Goodacre reproduces the insturment from an 1800’s(?) original,
its salient features (not that Im an expert, or have even heard the thing) include a lowland(or SSP?) type bore that can be played either open ended (off the knee, I suppose 1/2 closed ‘GHB’ fingering) or on the knee closed (Like NSP, one finger off at a time). Bellows, 3(?) drones.
Taylor GHB! That’d be good! I want one!
According to Fintan Vallely’s book, they won a gold medal at the Columbian Exhibition or one of those affairs for a set of their GHBs.
I remember reading the same thing…that the Taylors had also made Highland pipes, but Jeanne Campbell’s book, which is quite comprehensive, does not list Taylor as a GHB maker. This doesn’t mean it didn’t happen, it’s just that there isn’t much information on it. It would be pretty great to find an example of a GHB set made by the Taylors! 
From O’Neill’s IMM:
We are credibly informed that Highland pipes, as well as lrish pipes, were manufactured by the Taylors in Drogheda, and it is quite probable such was the case, because Highland pipes were turned out in the Philadelphia shop. Some medals were awarded the Taylors at the Centennial Exposition held in that city in 1875.
(Thanks to Billh for putting this online)
Breandan Breathnach wrote of a piper whose grandfather (I think) had a Taylor set of GHB. Only a fragment of the chanter remained. They may be out there but as the Taylors didn’t stamp their work good luck figuring out what it is.
One of the Coynes made the big pipes, too.
So did one of the Kennas:
Considering how complex the bores of their surviving, unspoiled uilleann pipe chanters are, the Kennas must have found turning a one-octave Scottish bagpipe chanter a pleasant diversion. It’s still a gorgeous bit of turning.
RL O’Mealy - Brian Boru (Irish system) Chanters
Criminy, that’s some cool stuff they have at the National Museum. 76 hits for searching for “uilleann,” including some real oddities, like this Scott double chanter: link. Can’t post image as there’s no direct link. Maybe one of you could swipe the lot and put them on your own web host.
Heres a robert reid chanter from the collection ,I wonder what the brown spots are ??
RORY
The brown spots are raised boxwood pegs to help guide the fingers
Chris
