So who can tell me what the tuning of a Ghost D is?
How many cents sharp of your bottom D is your Ghost D hole?
Is this a semitone, which one? There’s a number of
them isn’t there??? I’m just curious and trying
to learn more about what Ghost D is comprised of,
and what it’s ‘supposed’ to be tuned to, if possible.
Thanks all, -B
I think that’s the least of your worries. It’s roughly E flat on most chanters.
Pat.
Am I alone in thinking that it might more properly be called a ghost “E” (same pronunciation in Irish vernacular speech, btw, so maybe there has been some confusion)?
It was nearly E on my first chanter.
The article by Ken McLeod in the Sean Reid Society Journal #2 about the Timmothy Kenna set might shed some light on the gost D intonation issue. This Kenna set has a D# key, in addition to the ghost D finger hole. Mr. McLeod points out that the fingered Ghost D# is close to an equal temperment D#, and therefore it does not blend with the just intervals of the drone fundamental or overtones. On the Kenna set he describes, the keyed D# is in a just mode and blends well with the drones. This is a C chanter we are talking about, but I am refering to the equivalent positions on a concert-pitch D chanter for convienence. The finger hole ghost D is of course necessary to get the proper pitch for E (chanter on the leg). I wonder if Kenna (or others) explored moving the Ghost D placement to get a just mode so no key was necessary, only to find that the E tuning was now adversely affected? The presence of both a ghost D finger hole (~equal temperment) and a keyed D# (in the true just mode) kinda leads to the conclusion that you can’t get both proper E tuning and a just interval D# with one ‘ghost’ D hole position, but who knows.
I have been pondering this a bit recently because I am very close to finnishing a replica of this chanter. I would be interested to know who else has used these Kenna plans and has experience with the D# key placement, any one?
John.
Ghost d is that note which falls between e and d. It has no real set pitch value and I am not certain it ever will. As Pat D’Arcy suggested on the other Uilleann Pipes forum in a similar topic, you should be working on your rolls, cuts and taps… and maybe, just maybe (if you’re a good little piper), learning your crans. 
I know you have a burning desire to know how a thing is possible, how it works, but sometimes you simply have to accept that it does work and trust your ears and blind faith. 
Where was that train going again?
Ghost d is that note which falls between e and d. It has no real set pitch value and I am not certain it ever will. As Pat D’Arcy suggested on the other Uilleann Pipes forum in a similar topic, you should be working on your rolls, cuts and taps… and maybe, just maybe (if you’re a good little piper), learning your crans.
Agreed that discussing its pitch is irrelevant except for pipe-makers. But it has value as it offers two very distinctive uilleann-pipe-specific ornamentation options:
as a grace note for the back D; and
left open so that it becomes an auto-grace-note for descending-scale passages in dance tunes.
It seems to work best with narrow-bore chanters.
An example of the former is the opening note of a Liam O’Flynn track on a B or B-flat chanter, a tune which I think is called “The Humours of Barrack Street” which I think is on the album “Sources of Riverdance”.
The latter is particularly associated with Ennis. I can hear it in my mind’s ear but can’t offhand (stealing a few minutes in work time) think of a particular example.
Agreed.
I think our man here is looking for a hard and fast rule concerning the pitch value of the ghost d in hz. I have to say that I feel there really isn’t one… at least at this date. Who knows, sometime down the line a chanter will be developed that will have such a thing, and then it will really be out of tune. 
This thread needs to be locked. Badly.
The album is the Saville Suite and it’s a C chanter played against D drones. Very nice effect.
This thread needs to be locked. Badly.
I disagree. It needs to be locked very well!!! 
This thread got me thinking. I checked the ghost D on my Gallagher chanter and it’s only about 40-50c sharp of D. Just based on ear alone I’d have said is was much nearer Eb. But the tone is very different (very ghosty).
On my K&Q chanter the ghost D is sharper, pretty much Eb, but is sounds more like an E in tone (less ghosty).
It does seem like the tone quality is more important than the pitch in differentiating the note.
Cran on ghost D in upper octave is very effective in certain tunes. Robbie Hanon introduced me to this on Jennys welcome to Charlie.