Pastoral pipes

The pastoral pipe (also known as the Scottish Pastoral pipes, Hybrid Union pipes, and Union pipe) was a bellows-blown bagpipe and widely recognised as the forerunner and ancestor of the Uilleann Pipes. ^{[1] [2] [3]} Similar in design and construction, it had a footjoint in order to play a low leading note and played (in theory) a two octave chromatic scale. There is a tutor for the "Pastoral or New Bagpipe" by J. Geoghan, published in London in 1745. ^[4] Although it is now thought that Geoghan was unversed in the instrument. ^[5]

This now long-forgotten bagpipe was commonly played in the Lowlands of Scotland and the Northeast of England and throughout Britain and Ireland from the 1800s/1900s. They were a less developed form of what are now known as Uilleann pipes, and there were several well-known makers over a large geographic area, including London, Dubin, Edinburgh and Newcastle. Therefore it is difficult to say which country the Union Pipe specifically comes from as it was made in England and Scotland as well as Ireland. As the Union pipe was modified by makers in all three countries, sharing ideas and design improvement was common place. [1] [2].

The term "New bagpipe" refers to the expanded compass and improvements to the instrument in this time. Although the use of the term Pastoral is not historically found outside Geoghegans London context and is invicotive of the style of music played at the time. ^[6] Originally the label "Pastoral" may refer to the "ancient Pastoral airs" played on the instrument composed in a "gentle, very sweet, easy manner in the immolation of those airs which Shepard’s are supposed to play" This style would suit the sweet tone of the Pastoral pipes Union/Uilleann pipes of the late 1700’s, when literature, art and music romanticized rural life. ^{[7] [8]} In the 1800’s raucous sounding oboes were being marketed in London as "Pastoral" to fit the music styles of the times. The pastoral bagpipe may have been the invention of an expert instrument maker who was out to fleece the Romantics of the time. The Pastoral pipes and later closed short chanter Union/Uilleann pipes were certanly a favourite of the upperclasses of the then expanding "British Empire" and was fashionable for a time in formal social settings, where the term Union pipes may originate. ^[9] The first reference to a Pastoral pipe comes from popular and fashionable pastoral dramas of the time with music such as the Gentle Shepherd in (1725) ^[10] by the writer and poet Allan Ramsay and the English Ballad The Beggar’s Opera in 1728, as a counter-measure against the influx from Pastoral Italian music. The Opera featured an "en masse" dance led by a Pastoral pipe and the scene was engraved by William Hogarth (1697-1764) which clearly shows a bellows blown bagpipe later depicted in the Geoghegan tutor. The instrument was also use for operatic arrangements of the Ossian Cycle ^[11] and the emerging 'Pastoral' and prototype Union pipe/Uilleann bagpipe influenced the folk tradition of the 18th and 19th century played in Scotland and Ireland can be though of as a shared tradition to serve a Neo-baroque orchestral and concert fashion which drew strongly on the ‘native traditions’ of both Scotland and Ireland and the music styles of the times. ^[12]

The pastoral pipes are played in a seated position and was played by a set of bellows, and the chanter was similar to the later Union/Uilleann pipes, but it had an added foot joint that gave it a range that extended one step lower. ^[13] This added foot joint had holes in its sides in addition to the hole at the bottom of the bore. Unlike the Uileann pipes the player of the Pastoral pipes could not create momentary interruptions of the flow of air through the chanter, due to the side hole in the foot joint, there was no way to completely stop the flow of air through the chanter even when the bore was close to the leg. Thus the melody was a constant, unbroken stream of sound. All articulation, by necessity, was created solely by movements of the fingers. The surviving instruments indicate that the Pastoral pipes had three drones and one or more regulators.

With the open chanter, the conventional view is the Pastoral Pipes were difficult to shift between the lower register to the second octave, although this is not the case. With modern Uilleann pipes from the first octave G to the second octave g will stop the chanter momentarily while increasing the bag pressure, causing the reed to double-tone. This may have motivated the evolution into the Union pipe and the staccato closed chanter and in effect by removing the foot joint from the Pastoral pipes. ^[14] However, the surviving MacKie manuscript the Pastoral pipe tune ‘Speed the Plough’ has vigorous G Æ g Æ G octave leaps from G to g by playing a D# gracenote while increasing the pressure of the bag. Alternatively, a player can ‘run up’ a few intervening notes, as modern players do up to "high d" on the Uilleann pipes.

The Pastoral pipe had a narrow throat bore of 4mm and an exit width seldom larger than 11mm. This was identical to later flat set Uilleann pipe chanter bores made in the late 18th century and 19th century. The reeds, had a head width of 9.5mm to 10.5mm and staple bores of 3.2mm. The chanter bores were made in a variety of pitches many with a lowest note of C one step lower than an Uilleann pipe chanter. Without the foot joint, the Pastoral pipe pitch would be about modern D flat set pipe, and pipes made in this pitch were common. Later examples include a slide on the foot joint to change the lower leading note from flat to sharp as required and on a further set an on/off mechanism is fitted to control the drones with the two regulators fitted neatly to the top of the common stock and the addition of key in "e" to increase the compass of the chanter in the second octave.

The Pastoral chanter is the main part of the pipes and distinguishes it from any other chanter of its time. It is used to play the melody and was similar to later flat set union/uilleann pipe chanter in tone. It has eight finger holes (with the added range of a footjoint: Bottom C♯), D♯,D, E♭, E, F♯, G, A, B, C♯, D'. To achieve this the chanter is played off the knee, exposing the exit of the chanter's bore and side holes, where the note is produced. [3] Later sets included fully chromatic keys in the first and second regester. The second octave; the chanter was never closed and the bag pressure increased, and then fingered notes will sound in the second octave. A great range of different timbres can be achieved by varying the fingering of notes and is simillar to the legato fingering style of some Uilleann pipers more predominately are referred to as "open" pipers. Chanter has another key for producing d3 in the third octave, and often another small key for e3, and another for D#' (as opposed to the E♭ fingerhole, which could be slightly off-pitch). The chanter uses a complex double-bladed reed, similar to that of the oboe or bassoon and must be crafted so that it can play two full octaves accurately, without the fine tuning allowed by the use of a player's lips; only bag pressure and fingering patterns can be used to maintain the correct pitch of each note.

The Pastoral pipes fell out of fashion as musical tastes drifted towards a more expressive type of instrument. The foot joint and low C# may have been removed as early as the 1746-1770's ^[15] as oboists of the period would frequently removed or invert the foot joint in order to play low C# and as musical tastes drifted, Pastoral pipers would removed the foot joint to play the chanter upon the knee. ^[16] To obtain the staccato effect already familiar to the "smallpipes" played on the Anglo/Scottish border. This playing style had become fashionable and would improved tone, range and eloquence of the pipes and the foot joint would fall into disuse.[4] [5] [6] The fall from grace of the open chanter was slow to take effect as Pastoral pipes with removable foot joint’s were still being made till the 1850’s ^[17] There was perhaps less competitive pressure on pipe makers it is possible that the performer community diverged for a while into ‘union’ pipers playing without the foot joint, and old style Pastoral pipers who retained it ^[18] "Long and short" pastoral union chanters were documented in both Scotland and Ireland in this time, ^[19] throughout the 18th and 19th century, and makers of both "short and long" Union chanters in Aberdeen, Dublin, Edinburgh and Newcastle competing and copying each others ideas and innovations. Competition between makers in these cities seemed to drive the innovation of the modern Uilleann pipe. ^[20]

The Uilleann Pipes developed with ideas on the instrument being traded back-and-forth between makers in England, Ireland and Scotland roughly, around the 18th and early 19th century. It is now thought that the existence of regulators, already a common feature of the Pastoral pipes, a characteristic keyed stopped ended system. Was the inspiration for the keyed Northumbrian smallpipes, probably first produced by John Dunn, who made both Pastoral and Northumbrian pipes in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Historical examples of various designs have turned up over a wide geographical area, and there have been several attempts at reconstruction, with varying degrees of success. They are not widely played, though research and interest in them is currently increasing.

• Pastoral Pipes the forerunner of the Uilleann pipes

• National origin of the Union Pipes

• http://www.bagpipeworld.co.uk/British%20Isles/Pastoral.htm

• Uilleann pipe development history and design (pdf)

• Chris Bailey, one of the few modern makers of Pastoral pipes

• http://www.bemccandless.net/pdfs/PastoralUnion_McCandless.pdf

• Bagpiping