I heard a tune played by Jean Caringan during which he uses his fiddle to imitate bagpipes. I don't think it's in standard tuning. Does anyone know what alternate tuning is best for this effect?
It depends on what kind of bag pipes (there are hundreds) and it depends on whether you merely want to imitate the addition of the drones, or, more demandingly, the sound of the chanter.
Form experience with going for unison with the Irish pipes, the knack is to articulate the tunes with just your left hand fingers, while double stopping in unison with the regulators.
Star Above the Garter was actually in C#, not Bb, but the low tuning does open the sound up quite a bit. Drones are a lot smoother and warmer. Llig is right though - a pipe style really depends on intensive left-hand articulation in combination with double stops and drones.
There's a great track on John Doherty's "The Floating Bow" (the track that starts with the "Enniskillen Dragoons", IIRC).
He tuned the D-string down to a low A(*), then played the set of tunes: March, Jig, and reel on both strings, with long bows, while fingering only the A-string, and sliding up the fingerboard when necessary... Nifty stuff!
*) or to whatever matched the octave below the A-string, since the A-string creeps up when you drop the adjacent D string so much.
Christ almighty, I just listened to his foxhunters jig. Aaaargh those horrid trills. Sounds like an over eager adolescent whose only just come across the tune in a book.
violin imitating pipes
violin imitating pipes
I heard a tune played by Jean Caringan during which he uses his fiddle to imitate bagpipes. I don't think it's in standard tuning. Does anyone know what alternate tuning is best for this effect?
# Posted on February 1st 2010 by AlbertJulien
Re: violin imitating pipes
It depends on what kind of bag pipes (there are hundreds) and it depends on whether you merely want to imitate the addition of the drones, or, more demandingly, the sound of the chanter.
Form experience with going for unison with the Irish pipes, the knack is to articulate the tunes with just your left hand fingers, while double stopping in unison with the regulators.
# Posted on February 1st 2010 by llig leahcim
Re: violin imitating pipes
"Le violon accorde comme une viole"
EAEA tuning
# Posted on February 1st 2010 by Concpush
Re: violin imitating pipes
I saw this example the other day in what looks like standard tuning:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TL7OYehr8z8
# Posted on February 1st 2010 by davydd
Re: violin imitating pipes
Have a listen to Tommy Peoples on 'Waiting for a Call'.
# Posted on February 1st 2010 by Dragut Reis
Re: violin imitating pipes
Dennis Murphy's "Star Above the Garter" recording sounds to me like the pipes all over. I think the whole thing is played down in Bb too.
Salt
# Posted on February 1st 2010 by saltcast
Re: violin imitating pipes
Donegal fiddlers have been imitating the pipes for decades, usually in duos, though the latest Fídíl album seemingly requires three.
# Posted on February 1st 2010 by MacCruiskeen
Re: violin imitating pipes
Star Above the Garter was actually in C#, not Bb, but the low tuning does open the sound up quite a bit. Drones are a lot smoother and warmer. Llig is right though - a pipe style really depends on intensive left-hand articulation in combination with double stops and drones.
--Danjo
# Posted on February 1st 2010 by Danjo
Re: violin imitating pipes
There's a great track on John Doherty's "The Floating Bow" (the track that starts with the "Enniskillen Dragoons", IIRC).
He tuned the D-string down to a low A(*), then played the set of tunes: March, Jig, and reel on both strings, with long bows, while fingering only the A-string, and sliding up the fingerboard when necessary... Nifty stuff!
*) or to whatever matched the octave below the A-string, since the A-string creeps up when you drop the adjacent D string so much.
# Posted on February 2nd 2010 by Georgi
Re: violin imitating pipes
Here he is doing it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKIefbSro70&feature=related
# Posted on February 2nd 2010 by dafydd
Re: violin imitating pipes
What a bloody racket. It seems it's not hard to imitate a set of really horrible, badly played, out of tune bagpipes.
# Posted on February 2nd 2010 by llig leahcim
Re: violin imitating pipes
Christ almighty, I just listened to his foxhunters jig. Aaaargh those horrid trills. Sounds like an over eager adolescent whose only just come across the tune in a book.
# Posted on February 2nd 2010 by llig leahcim
Re: violin imitating pipes
Sound a little like a hurdy gurdy.
# Posted on February 2nd 2010 by Gringo