Stating the Obvious

Uilleann Pipes
1

So many times I’ve heard pipers talk about the sound of this chanter, and the sound that chanter. I too, and one of those pipers. Simultaneously, I think that there’s a popular misconception that can start to fly around, (aside from a poorly made instruments), about this maker, or that maker primarily due to:

(((((drum roll please)))))

THE REED (including the cane quality)!

At this stage in my reed making endeavors, I’ve heard the top-of-the-line, most coveted chanters sound poorly. It had nothing to do with the maker of the chanter who produced a brilliant insturment, and everything to do with the reed. One might insert, “the maker of the reed has much to do with the sound,” too! Naturally, that makes sense, but lets leave that be for now. Unless the reed came off the bench with issues, lets just mark it up to “whatever happened to the reed,” AFTER it came off the bench.

I’m writing this because many newbies, and not-so-newbies need to read this. In fact, even experienced players should remind themselves of it, e.g. that “it” is mostly about the reed. The reed has so much to do with the tactile goings-ons underneath the left arm, and it’s affects on both hands, not to mention…the tone!

(Of course) Fact: The bore and the throat, how they interact with ea. other and a well made, good sounding reed has much to do with tone. So, lets get that outa the way… we all get that bit.

“Oh yes…that chanter is soooo loud…ya…that insert name pipe-makers name makes chanters that are LOUD.” This statement, and other similar declarations beg the simple question, “Emmm are you SURE???” I once heard that, and then upon inquiry… I find out that the chanter was a med. bore w/a reed open wide enough for a beetle to make it’s home in.

I was playing my Hunter B recently, and decided it was time for a new reed. The reed I had in it was a very good, and liquidy sounding. The chanter really sounded like the Peter’s old Coyne. I put in the new reed, which was sitting around for about 3 weeks. It was never used, as I got distracted and was on to a different project. The finished reed had all the physical characteristics of something that was going to work. Mind you, I never much go beyond that presumption, as reeds can trick the maker by looking, feeling, and crowing well, only to sound poorly when blown.

When I put the reed in and was ASTOUNDED! My very well made chanter went from very good sounding to, “I wanna play this all the time-can’t keep my hands off it!”

So… obviously nothing in the chanter design changed. It was/is still a great chanter, but what changed IN it, was the most obviously changeable item, and folks these things change. If not from the weather, they’ll tire after sometime, and you will replace it.

I may be stating the obvious..ok ok…I AM…but read on anyways; It’s very easy to blame the maker for the sound that’s coming out of the chanter. So, before passing judgement on a chanter and what the pipe maker was going for, please take into consideration what’s causing that sound you are not so fond of…

2

There’s way too variables to add in here. I have two excellent chanters , an Eamonn Curran boxwood and a Martin Preshaw ebony chanter. Both in D , both with reeds by the same maker and an exceptional reedmaker to boot. Both excellent chanters but both sound different to each other. For a laugh I swapped the reeds and they both sound shite. Obviously the reed is going to make a difference. Also the player can make a difference , as can the wood , as can etc etc feel free to add here .I’ve had really good players make my chanters sing and I think why can’t I make the sound like that. Obviously you state the obvious hence the thread but in my opinion tis a bit o everything not purely the reed that makes the world go around :smiley:

Awaits the flame… :thumbsup:

3

IMHO: The reed is so much of the sound. Too, I’ve heard more than a few makers say nearly 80% of the chanter sound is the reed (I’ve heard one maker say 85%). The bore, throat, and wood are significantly important, but much smaller pieces of the pie. Naturally, if the bore is wrong, or the throat’s too big/mall… all bets are off.

…take a great reed, and if you could …change the wood of the chanter. …Still great, though somewhat different.

Take a shite reed and put it into any chanter, with any player…and you still have shite (and probably a piper who is listening thinking negative thoughts about the maker, wood, etc.)

4

I have two African blackwood and brass Dave Williams chanters in D. One made in 1980 one fully keyed made between 2000-2004. Both with Williams reeds. Both are great chanters yet they sound very different to each other. I agree with you both. A good reed is crucial, but as tritaffy already stated there are many other factors involved, how the good reed is set up, how often the reed has been played, the throat, bore, humidity, how air tight the set is, how experienced the piper is. Other weird stuff happens too with reeds, like I mentioned on another thread where a 29 year old Bb reed I’d more or less written off resurrected itself and is now a great playing reed, how? I don’t know

5

What about the weather, gentlemen? This may be my superstition, but I find that on days where the weather is switching from low to high pressure (or vice versa), my sticks/reeds don’t sound so good. Sometimes they also sound poorly on high pressure days. I equate high pressure with bright, cloud free and drier weather and low pressure with cloudier, wetter weather. My sticks tend to sound best when the shite weather has settled in. One big consolation with bad weather is that, I find, bad weather days are the best days for uilleann piping.

6

This is degenerating fast frae whit wis the patently obvious to whit is patently not obvious and as the thread is aboot stating the obvious then perhaps we should stick wi it ..Now then whit aboot the full moon?It is so obvious tae masel that the bestest ever piping ever is played in the middle of a forest at full moon mind ye and wi no one else in the forest..that is essential.

7

Lads, again..this ain’t about variances in tone, good player/bad player zzzzzZZzzZZzzz

It’s simple:

Reed is Crap= Crap Chanter Sound, No Matter Who the Maker Is
Reed is Good= Good Chanter Sound…unless the chanter is Crap.

Jayyysus …WHY didn’t I just start with that!?
:astonished:

8

Then we can move onto “If it’s not Scottish, it’s crap!”

Wait . . . :open_mouth:

9

IMO it helps to split the matter into sound, performance and tuning.
Even the “nonproblematical” tones (first 8ve A, G, or B…) can sound good in a sh…abby chanter + good reed combo (whether in tune is a different thing).

The “range of tones” (no autocran, steady back D, second 8ve B, C,
third 8ve D…) of course is wider with a good reed, but the help (percentage) of a good chanter is higher in terms of “performance”.

The highest effect of the chanter is in terms of tuning - not considered sinking back D, “areas of tones” that are out of tune [lots of room for discussion here]. Wax “boogers” in the toneholes or all kinds of rushes help. While these things are generally considered as “work of the devil”, most “global players” have much less problems with them.

If (like myself) the phrase “the chanter sounds good” makes you a bit angry - propose that that person might remove the reed and listen whether it still sounds that good then. You can also take off the strings off a stringed instrument. You then but still could knock it. Knock but a reedless chanter (or an embrochureless flute) :blush: .

10

I would like to add that not all chanter reeds sit under the piper’s left arm. Such as mine. =)

11

When I wrote my “Manual For the Uillann Pipes,” I asked Todd Denman to let me include his essay on the chanter reed as follows:

"The chanter is an instrument designed for manipulating and amplifying the reed. We don’t play the chanter. We play the reed, and the chanter is the instrument that controls it .

The quality, timbre, or tone, of the sound comes from the reed. The chanter
takes a noise and turns it, hopefully, into music. Therefore the “noise” that you are starting out with must be good, or else even with the best chanter you’ll still have a crummy sound … everything ultimately, the way you play, the way your pipes sound, comes down to the reeds.

One of the first things I learned was that a wide-bladed reed sounded darker
and heavier than a narrow bladed reed … I knew that a long bladed reed gives a softer richer tone, and sometimes a definite darker tone. . . . I got this richer darker sound by pulling the blades way out on the staple to lengthen the overall blades above the hemp, to make a really long bladed reed.
. . . Short reeds tend to sound more resonant than long reeds. They tend to
play sharper, sometimes with more pressure. The longer the reed the flatter. The shorter it is the sharper it will be. The wider the blades the flatter. Narrower makes it sharper.

… If a reed doesn’t play at first [move the staple] re-tie it. And re-tie it again. If you hate sanding and scraping your slips to shape, this method will help"

12

Pat, I am struggling to understand what “darker” and “richer” mean to me in this context. When I listen to chanters I sometimes hear a very buzzy sound -presumably lots of harmonics there -maybe too many. Other times the sound can be less buzzy perhaps with the hint of a flute or whistle - presumably with fewer high harmonics. If I want the less buzzy sound do my reeds need to be wider or narrower, or longer / shorter?