Construction of Bagpipes
The bagpipes are constructed of four main parts and are played by the ‘piper’. The four main parts of the pipes are known as the blowstick, the bag, the chanter and usually one or more drones.The piper blowing through the blowstick into the bag and filling it provides the air supply for the bag. The bag is first filled by the piper before playing starts and is continuously refilled as it continues. The bag itself is the air reservoir, which can be controlled in expelling the air and allowing the piper to create continuous sound easily.
Traditionally the bagpipes were created from entire animal pelts, animals such as the goats, dogs, sheep and cows have all been used as construction material for the bag of the bagpipes. Today the materials used are more likely to be synthetic.
The Chanter is a melody pipe that is affixed to the bag of the bagpipes and is the part of the pipes that creates the melody. Usually the chanter is a simple pipe with holes that resembles the recorder and by covering the holes it will create different notes. Most people learning to play the bagpipes will start by mastering the practise chanter in which they blow directly into it. This is an easy way to learn the different finger positions to create the notes before attempting to move on to mastering the technique of controlling the bag and air supply.
The drone, or sometimes drones as more than one can be attached to the bag, creates a monophonic effect of a continuous note or chord that is carried continuously throughout playing and gives the bagpipes its unique dual sound.