I want to buy my wife a set of uilleann pipes for our 10th anniversary and I have no idea where to begin. She plays great and has an old set she got third-hand before we met and I want to get her something special, pull out all the stops (God knows she’s got it comin after a decade with me) but I don’t know jack about them.
So, if I wanted to get the very best I could get (I’m selling something of mine to buy them so not too worried about the cost), what would it cost and who would I want to make them? I realize “the best” is open to interpretation, but any guidance will be appreciated. What do I ask for/look for? Who’s the best maker? What kind of chanter wood/materials are best? Extras? I understand they can take quite some time to have made?
I’ve also talked to a couple of dealers but wanted to get the opinion of people who really play and know their stuff and aren’t just trying to sell me something. Again, sorry for the intrusion on your forum. Thanks!
i’m as new to forums as i am to purchasing pipes and don’t know where to look to find this information. and no, i’m not selling the family car; i’m selling my Harley.
but thanks for your help.
Maybe what you ought to do is get the money together, and then find the right set together. In my experience, the pipes really have to be tailored to the individual player, and that way, you won’t inadvertently pick up something that doesn’t work for her.
I agree with Rory, your sacrifice of the bike is really admirable!
When is your 10th anniversary?? Three or four years from now??
If not, my advice, FWIW, is to give your wife a wonderful smaller gift and a card saying you’ll pay for (and this really means put her on the waiting list, unless you come across a good second hand set on somewhere like Uilleann Obsession) her a set OF HER CHOICE.
She’s the musician, so please, please don’t guess, or worse yet, take the advice of strangers who have their own personal styles, likes and dislikes.
(its my 25th anniversary this year, and my husband has pretty much learned this lesson, god bless him!)
M.
What you need to know at this point is that a really good set of pipes can easily cost you $8-10K. The next thing you need to know is that there is no factory making UPs. Each set is crafted by hand by an artisan. An artisan can only turn out a few sets per year, so that a really good maker has waiting lists of 5-15 years.
If you aren’t willing to wait that long, and if money is no object, the only way to meet your objective is to buy used. Here some places on-line where you can get an idea of what’s available and what prices are being asked:
I agree with the above suggestion that you should get together with your lady and discuss what she might want. Pipes are not all made the same, come in different keys, have many optional bits, etc. You would score bigger and better by having her work with you in considering what is available and what she would like.
I wouldn’t want something factory made even if it were possible. I have a $6-7K and 14 months; could come up with more $ by the time they’re ready (am assuming 1/2 down). No idea what make her current pipes are. Perhaps ur right, tho, and I should take a different tact. But, just out of curiosity, who are considered the top handful of artisans? Thanks for all the input. Much appreciated.
Ask her the ‘make’ of her current pipes. Talk to her more about how she feels about them. Your idea is really sweet and considerate, but musicians can be very, very particular. For example with me personally I have two favourite ‘chanters.’ One is very tempermental, kind of wanky but is by a now-passed maker and has an untouchable timbre/sound quality. The other one is by a somewhat contraversial maker but is spot-on all the time and has (again) a timbre I love.
She may have the set she loves. If it’s not a ‘full’ set you could look into finding a maker to match the rest of a full set to the existing set she has. If she doesn’t love her current set, then the suggestions of others regarding giving her a ‘promise card’ to get her the set of her choosing is a good one.
If you’re dead set on getting her a set of one of the better makers, then you have to:
Figure out which makers you think are ‘good.’ (Please read the FAQ and various threads about makers!)
Check Uilleannobsession.com, ebay and the NPU site constantly for used sets for sale.
or
3. Find an excellent maker with less than a 14mo. wait (may be impossible – I haven’t checked around lately) and send them $ immediately.
Find out the maker of her current set first, though, and post it here. Find out if it’s a full set, too (chanter + 3-4 drones + 3 regulators).
Ok you’ve convinced me I’m in over my head and probably on my way to screwing it up unless I talk to her about it. Thanks for all your help! you’ve been great!
Seriously Bruce, if you really want to impress your wife, get her a flat set of pipes. Flat sets are sets pitched lower than D (D is the most common pitch). Flat sets are quieter and have a sweeter tone. Most flat sets are C#, C, B or B flat. The lower you go, the longer the chanter becomes, which might present problems if you’re wife has small hands. If that’s a problem, consider C# or C pipes. Flat sets generally cost a little more than D sets by the same maker (usually about 5% more) but they’re well worth it.
Get her a flat set if she’s a flat-set proponent. Some people love concert sets, some people love flat sets and you’ll see arguments between the two (good natured ones) all the fecking time. If she likes concert sets and you get her a flat set, you’ll be in the dog house (though she might learn to love it) and v.v..
At least you won’t have to remove the “Loud Pipes Save Lives” bumper sticker from your car. : )
Seriously, a set of pipes is a very personal thing. I wouldn’t surprise her with this - best, instead, to give her a card and a note saying “lets do this with the Harley money…”. Otherwise, you might as well buy her a bathing suit as a gift (and we husbands know how that would go over).
