![]() It can be sounded more or less continuously as a drone, or used rhythmically like the regulators of the Irish uillean pipes and the trompette of the French hurdy-gurdy. One interesting feature of the Landes pipe is a short pipe for accompaniment of the melody. Most of the melodies are intended for dancing, and they have a breezy lift that makes for most pleasant listening provided one likes the sharp tones of the bagpipe to begin with. The four revivalists all play their instruments with aplomb, some alone and others with accompaniment from fiddlers, hurdy-gurdy players and clarinetists. It is an excellent example of a creatively invented tradition. Therefore, the post-1968 revival of Landes piping is based much more on Slavic models, and on personal creativity, than on the Landes past. ![]() No other recording of a traditional Landes piper was ever made, and this one was discovered only recently. While we must imagine that Benquets playing is closer to the old style of Landes piping, we know that he was a cosmopolitan traveler and a semi-professional entertainer, and thus subject to outside influences. The fifth piper featured on the disc is Jeanty Benquet, considered the last of the traditional Landes pipers Benquet died in 1957, leaving behind only one recording, from which three selections appear on this collection. Four of these are what we would call revivalists: people who, in the 70s, learned to build and play the bagpipes of the Landes, reinventing the tradition as they went. Unlike Chabretas, it features five different pipers. A full scholarly set of notes in French and English, including notation for five tunes in different typical modes, is included in the booklet.įrance: Landes de Gascogne, La Cornemuse is another CD that focuses on the bagpipes of a particular French region. Montbels sharp playing is augmented by several of his musical friends: Jean-François Vrod (violin), Guy Bertrand (flutes) and Richard Monségu (percussion), all of whom do a magnificent job of adding texture and variety to the recording. ![]() The stately pace and infectious rhythms of these dances makes for compelling listening the fact that many are new compositions in the tradition of chabreta music, a tradition few understand as fully as Montbel, makes the disc an extra treat. Montbels main instrument has always been the chabreta, the Limousin bagpipe, and this album is a collection of chabreta melodies, mainly bourées and slower tunes. Somehow he has managed to have an active solo career as well, with several albums to his credit, the latest of which is Chabretas: les cornemuses à miroirs du Limousin. ![]() He is currently the founding director of the Center for traditional Music in the Rhône-Alps region of France. He has founded a non-profit organization for musicians as well as a folk music magazine, Modal. Montbel has been a member of leading traditional French bands like Lo Jai, Le Grand Rouge, and Ulysse. The first is by one of the worlds premiere bagpipe players and scholars, Eric Montbel. ![]() The last few months have been fruitful ones for the bagpipers of the world, and a number of good CDs from France and Britain have arrived at my door. The title of this article suggested itself as a tribute to pipes and pipers cornemuse is French for bagpipe, and pipers are renowned for their sense of humor. The Corny Muse: Bagpipes from Dirty Linen #69 Corny Muse ![]()
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