GB2344923A - Practice bagpipe chanter with drone - Google Patents

Abstract

The practice chanter 1 comprises a chanter portion 2 of generally known type of construction and which houses in a reed seat (4, Fig 2) a chanter reed (6) and a drone portion 8 of generally known type and construction and housing a drone reed (10) in a reed seat (12). Both the chanter portion 2 and drone portion 8 are connected to a manifold connector 14. The manifold connector 14 has a mouth piece 16 connected to it and the manifold 14 is formed and arranged so that the chanter portion 2, the drone and the mouth piece 16 are in fluid communication with each other. The manifold 14 is arranged such that when a player blows pressurised air into the mouth piece 16 the air is distributed between the drone portion 8 and the chanter portion 2 for activating the chanter reed 6 and the drone reed 10 simultaneously so that the player can produce a melody on the chanter portion 2 and a harmonic on the drone portion 8 simultaneously.

Description

Musical Instrument The present invention relates to a musical instrument and in particular a chanter of the type used on a bagpipe and/or as a practice chanter to aid and practice the playing of the bagpipes.

Bagpipes and chanters for use therewith have been known for many years and although the bagpipe pipe and the playing of the bagpipe is associated usually with Scotland bagpipes of one form or another are known of and played in many countries around the world. British Patent No. 29532 of 1910 discloses improvements in and relating to chanters for bagpipes and many inventions relating to bagpipes have been made over the years.

Bagpipes conventionally generally comprise a reservoir air bag which is inflated by a piper blowing through a blow stick, a number of drones e. g. base and tenor drones connected to the airbag and a chanter. A"Goose"is another type of bagpipe which has no drones and comprises a bag, a blow stick and a chanter. The chanter is in the form of a hollow pipe having a plurality of holes, generally seven holes at the front and one at the top end for the thumb and which houses at the top end a reed, usually cut with two tongues, which vibrates in a passage of air coming from the bag. As the holes on the chanter are fingered by a piper a tune or melody may be played.

The drones, sometimes referred to as"pipes"are in the form of hollow pipes fitted with a reed which fit into stocks on the top of the bag. The drone gives, as its name suggests, a droning single note or harmony which is controlled in pitch to blend with the chanter. This control is achieved by sliding one part of the pipe over another thus altering its length and consequently the pitch of the drone and therefore the harmonics of the instrument.

The bagpipes, as an instrument are notoriously difficult for beginners to be able to play and it is known therefore for beginners and indeed pipe majors to use"practice chanters"as a practice aid to the playing of the pipes. A particular disadvantage though with the practice chanter is that as there is no bag and no drones there is no harmony or"drone"to accompany the melody played on the chanter. Furthermore the sound produced by such practice chanters lacks the continuity of sound provided by the bagpipe drones and the sound is not as true to that of the bagpipes. For this reason practice chanters are generally disliked by bagpipe players both experienced and inexperienced.

It is an object of the present invention to avoid or minimize one or more of the foregoing disadvantages.

The present invention provides a practice chanter which comprises a chanter portion of generally known type and construction and a chanter reed and a drone portion of generally known type and construction and a drone reed, said chanter portion and said drone portion being connected to a non-resilient manifold portion; said manifold portion having connected thereto an air input conduit so that said chanter portion, said drone portion and said air input conduit are in fluid communication with each other, said manifold portion being formed and arranged such that pressurised air entering said manifold portion from said air input conduit is distributed between said drone portion and said chanter portion for activating said chanter reed and said drone reed whereby in use a player forcing air into said air input conduit can produce on said practice chanter according to the invention a melody on said chanter portion thereof and a harmonic on said drone portion thereof simultaneously.

Preferably said manifold portion has a first aperture with shouldered sleeve formed and arranged for a sliding fit engagement with said air input conduit and a second aperture for receiving the reed seat end of said chanter in a sliding fit engagement. Said first and second apertures are arranged so that said air input conduit, said manifold portion and said chanter portion define a generally elongate column for the passage of air therethrough. Said manifold portion further includes an aperture formed and arranged for connection to said drone portion. Preferably the components of the practice chanter are assembled using a push fit of the type commonly used in chanter and bagpipe construction.

Preferably said manifold portion is formed and arranged such that the longitudinal axis of said chanter portion is parallel to and spaced apart from the longitudinal axis of said drone portion. Alternatively though said longitudinal axis of said drone may be angled with respect to the longitudinal axis of said chanter portion. The parallel spaced apart arrangement is though preferred as it permits the user to hold and play the practice chanter according to the invention in a simple manner. Conveniently the drone portion may be rotated with respect of the chanter portion around the longitudinal axis of said chanter portion so as to facilitate playing of the practice chanter according to the invention in both left handed and right handed mode.

Said air input conduit is preferably in the form of a mouthpiece of generally known type of construction used in chanters and bagpipes and is formed and arranged for a slide or push fit engagement with said sleeved shoulder portion of said manifold portion. Preferably the longitudinal axis of said mouth piece is co-axial with the longitudinal axis of said chanter portion. Alternatively there may be provided an air input conduit formed and arranged in the form of an adapter to facilitate connection of the practice chanter according to the invention to the bag of a conventional set of bagpipes.

The manifold portion is most preferably formed and arranged so that air being blown or otherwise forced thereinto from said air input conduit is divided more or less equally between said drone portion and said chanter portion. The actual amount of air passing through said chanter portion and said drone portion with though depend on the length of the chanter portion, and thus the length of the column of air therein, and the length of the drone and thus the column of air therein.

Conveniently as the drone portion is of a generally known type of construction and thus comprises a first reed seat end and a second telescopically sliding tube portion, the length of the drone portion may be increased or decreased thereby facilitating the balance between the drone portion and the chanter portion and thereby tuning the harmonic element of the sound produced with the drone element of the sound produced.

The manifold portion is most preferably in the form of two elongate tubes the first tube being open at both ends and formed and arranged for receiving of each end said air input conduit and said chanter portion and the second hollow tube being closed at one end and open at the other end for connection at said open end to said drone portion, said first and second hollow tubes being connected to each other, preferably by dowels or other suitable connector means in side by side arrangement and being in fluid communication by an aperture in the side walls. The tube with the closed off end may be provided with a piston, plunger or screw arrangement, formed and arranged to extend into said blocked off end of said hollow tube to a greater lesser extent and thereby to facilitate adjustment of the length of air column in the drone portion. This adjustment means may be used in addition to or as an alternative to adjustment of the length of the drone portion.

The practice chanter according to the present invention is made using conventional techniques and materials to those used in making conventional chanters and bagpipes and such techniques and materials will be known to those skilled in the art.

Further preferred features and advantages of the present invention will appear from the following detailed description given by way of an example of a preferred embodiment illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. l is a front view of a practice chanter according to the inventions; and Fig. 2 is an exploded view showing the individual components of the practice chanter shown in Fig. 1.

A practice chanter, generally indicated by reference number 1, is shown in Fig. 1. The chanter 1 comprises a chanter portion 2 of generally known type of construction and which houses in a reed seat 4 a chanter reed 6. A drone portion 8 of generally known type and construction and housing a drone reed 10 in a reed seat 12 is provided. Both the chanter portion 2 and drone portion 8 are connected to a manifold connector 14.

The manifold connector 14 has a mouth piece 16 connected to it and the manifold 14 is formed and arranged so that the chanter portion 2, the drone and the mouth piece 16 are in fluid communication with each other.

The manifold 14 is arranged such that when a player (not shown) blows pressurised air into the mouth piece the air is distributed between the drone and the chanter for activating the chanter reed 6 and the drone reed 10 simultaneously so that the player can produce a melody on the chanter portion 2 and a harmonic on the drone portion 8 simultaneously.

An adapter portion 18 (shown in Fig. 2) is provided to replace the mouthpiece and the adapter portion is formed and arranged for a connection to the bag of a conventional set of bagpipes (not shown).

In more detail and with particular reference to the manifold shown in cutaway in Fig. 2, the manifold 14 comprises an first elongate hollow tube 20 which has a first end 22 connected to the mouth piece 16 (or the adapter) and the second lower end 24 for connection to the reed seat 4 end 26 of the chanter portion 2. Parallel with the elongate hollow tube 20 is a second tube 28 which has a closed top end 30 and an open bottom end 32 for receiving the drone 8. The two tubes 22,28 are doweled (not shown) together and are provided with an air passage 34 therebetween. In use it will be seen that a user blowing air through the mouth piece 16 will cause pressurised air to pass through the manifold 14 into both the chanter portion 2 and the drone 8. The arrangement of the air passage 34 in the manifold 14 is such that the pressure of air at the chanter reed 6 and the drone reed 10 is sufficient for them to vibrate simultaneously and thus to vibrate the column of air in the chanter portion 2 and the drone 8 respectively.

Fig. 1 shows the complete practice chanter in an assembled condition. The positioning of the finger holes 36 on the chanter portion 2 are generally similar to that found on a conventional chanter except that in the embodiment shown the spacing thereof is slightly modified so as to facilitate tuning of the chanter portion 2 to the drone 8 and vice versa.

Tuning of the drone 8 with respect of the chanter portion 2 is achieved by moving the telescopically extending tube 38 portion of the drone 8 up or down (as shown by arrow A).

As shown in Fig. 1 the drone 8 is on the right hand side of the chanter portion 2 (from a players perspective) thereby permitting playing by a right handed person. The push fit arrangement between the mouth piece 16, the chanter portion 2, the manifold 14 and the drone 8 facilitates the rotation about the longitudinal axis (X-X) of the mouth piece 16, the first hollow tube 20 of the manifold 14 and the chanter portion 2 so that the drone 8 may be rotated to facilitate playing by a left handed player.

Various modifications may be made to the above described embodiment without eparting from the scope of the present invention. Thus for example whilst there is shown the drone being parallel to the chanter, the drone could in fact extend out of the manifold at a right angle. Alternatively there may be provided a plurality of drones for example two or three arranged around the manifold in such a way to facilitate a player to access the finger holes 36 on the chanter.

Claims (20)

1. CLAIMS 1. A practice chanter which comprises a chanter portion as defined herein and a chanter reed and a drone portion as defined herein and a drone reed, said chanter portion and said drone portion being connected to a non-resilient manifold portion; said manifold portion having connected thereto an air input conduit so that said chanter portion, said drone portion and said air input conduit are in fluid communication with each other, said manifold portion being formed and arranged such that pressurised air entering said manifold portion from said air input conduit is distributed between said drone portion and said chanter portion for activating said chanter reed and said drone reed whereby in use a player forcing air into said air input conduit can produce on said practice chanter a melody on said chanter portion thereof and a harmonic on said drone portion thereof simultaneously.
2. 2. A practice chanter as claimed in claim 1 wherein said manifold portion has a first aperture with a shouldered sleeve formed and arranged for a sliding fit engagement with said air input conduit, and a second aperture for receiving the reed seat end of said chanter in a sliding fit engagement.
3. 3. A practice chanter as claimed in claim 2 wherein said first and second apertures are arranged so that said air input conduit, said manifold portion and said chanter portion define a generally elongate column for the passage of air therethrough.
4. 4. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein said manifold portion further includes an aperture formed and arranged for connection to said drone portion.
5. 5. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein the components of the practice chanter are assembled using a push fit.
6. 6. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein said manifold portion is formed and arranged such that the longitudinal axis of said chanter portion is parallel to and spaced apart from the longitudinal axis of said drone portion.
7. 7. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6 wherein said longitudinal axis of said drone may be angled with respect to the longitudinal axis of said chanter portion.
8. 8. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7 wherein in use of the practice chanter the drone portion may be rotated with respect of the chanter portion around the longitudinal axis of said chanter portion so as to facilitate playing of the practice chanter according to the invention in both left handed and right handed mode.
9. 9. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein said air input conduit as defined herein is formed and arranged for a slide or push fit engagement with said sleeved shoulder portion of said manifold portion.
10. 10. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9 wherein the longitudinal axis of said air input conduit is coaxial with the longitudinal axis of said chanter portion.
11. 11. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9 wherein there is provided an air input conduit formed and arranged in the form of an adapter to facilitate connection thereof to the bag of a conventional set of bagpipes.
12. 12. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 11 wherein said manifold portion is formed and arranged so that air blown or otherwise forced thereinto from said air input conduit is divided more or less equally between said drone portion and said chanter portion.
13. 13. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 12 wherein the amount of air passing through said chanter portion and said drone portion is a function of the length of the chanter portion, and the length of the column of air therein, and the length of the drone portion and the column of air therein.
14. 14. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 13 wherein the drone portion, as defined herein, comprises a first reed seat end and a second telescopically sliding tube portion, whereby the length of the drone portion may be increased or decreased thereby facilitating the balance between the drone portion and the chanter portion and thereby tuning the harmonic element of the sound produced with the drone element of the sound produced.
15. 15. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 14 wherein the manifold portion is in the form of two elongate tubes the first tube being open at both ends and formed and arranged for receiving at each end said air input conduit and said chanter portion and the second hollow tube being closed at one end and open at the other end for connection at said open end of said drone portion.
16. 16. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 15 wherein said first and second elongate hollow tubes are connected to each other by connector means in side by side arrangement and are in fluid communication by an aperture in the side walls.
17. 17. A practice chanter as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 16 wherein the tube with the closed off end is provided with adjustment means formed and arranged to extend into said blocked off end of said hollow tube to a greater lesser extent to facilitate adjustment of the length of air column in the drone portion.
18. 18. A practice chanter as claimed in claim 17 wherein said adjustment means is used in addition to or as an alternative to adjustment of the length of the drone portion.
19. 19. A practice chanter as claimed in either one of claims 17 and 18 wherein the adjustment means is in the form of a piston, a plunger or screw arrangement.
20. 20. A practice chanter substantially as described herein before with reference to Figs 1 and 2.