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Kinnaird Bagpipes Newsletter
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July 2013
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Greetings!
Last month's survey question: In one week, how much time do you spend playing your pipes/drums?- 0-2 hours: 13.1%
- 2-5 hours: 40.9%
- 5-10 hours: 31.1%
- 10-15 hours: 12.2%
- 15 or more hours: 1.6%
This month's survey question:
What would you most like to see a piping/drumming "How-to Video" about?
Answer the Question
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News
Thanks to everyone who submitted entries to our Video Contest. Now we need your help to select the winners!
Be sure to check out the entries and vote for your favorites. Your votes determine who walks away with a $500 Kinnaird Bagpipes Gift Certificate. Voting ends July 31st.
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Featured Article
Healthy Bagpipes
Playing the bagpipes is a great way to build up your lung capacity and is great for the cardiovascular system, but have you ever wondered what you might be breathing in?
Not only is moisture control important for maintaining a steady & reliable instrument, but it can also prevent the appearance of pathogens. Moisture can build up in many areas of the pipes, becoming a breeding ground for fungi and bacteria.
Being an organic substance, animal hide bags tend to be great breeding grounds for bacteria. Moisture from the piper's mouth and lungs builds up over time inside the bag causing bacteria and fungi to grow. Some bag dressings can address this issue, but not completely eliminate it. In fact, some dressings act as culture mediums for the bacteria.
Pipe bags are not the only issue. Moisture can build up on the reeds and in the drones. As the piper breathes, they may inhale any spores that have collected in the pipes. This can lead to lung infections and diseases, pneumonia, even brain diseases. Some early warning signs to look for are changes in ability to breathe and play, or voice fatigue.
New technology has greatly reduced these issues. Synthetic pipe bags, synthetic reeds and moisture control systems all help to reduce the amount of moisture build up in an effort to keep the pipes clean and pathogen free. Synthetic bags do not absorb moisture like hide bags do and do not require seasoning, which greatly reduces the opportunity for fungi and bacterial growth. Synthetic drone reeds also reduce moisture build up, unlike cane reeds which can absorb moisture. Best of all, moisture control systems are designed specifically to reduce the amount of moisture inside the bag. They come in a variety of designs from a basic water trap to a desiccant filled canister system. Their use will keep your pipes safe to play.
Always make sure you keep your pipes clean and dry them out whenever you get the chance. Happy, and healthy piping!
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Video Clip Showing that there is no end to what you can do with a little creativity, here's a video of a group that adapted the familiar Sesame Street Theme Song for the Bagpipes.
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Scottish Humor
One afternoon a Scotsman was riding in his limousine when he saw two men along the roadside eating grass. Disturbed, he ordered his driver to stop and he got out to investigate. He asked one man, "Why are you eating grass?"
"We don't have any money for food," the poor man replied. "We have to eat grass."
"Well, then, you can come with me to my house and I'll feed you," the Scotsman said.
"But sir, I have a wife and 2 children with me. They are over there, behind the garden sheds."
"Bring them along," the Scotsman replied.
Turning to the other poor man he stated, "You come with us, also."
The second man, in a pitiful voice, then said, "But sir, I also have a wife and 6 children with me!"
"Bring them all, as well," the Scotsman answered.
They all entered the car, which was no easy task, even for a car as large as the limousine was.
Once under way, one of the poor fellows turned to the Scotsman and said, "Sir, you are too kind.. Thank you for taking all of us with you."
The Scotsman replied, "Glad to do it.
"You'll really love my place.
"The grass is almost a foot high" |
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Recent Reviews
McCallum McC2 Gold Blackwood Chanter C4
-"Very easy to reed, great volume, very good top hand, pipers' dream!"
-"I have never had a chanter that sounded so good! Excited to take it out to solos!"
Technopipes by Fagerstrom
-"I just picked up one of these from Rob at Kinnairds. I had one of the original models years back, but was blown away by this new model with its drones, adjustable pitch, and different sounds. If you live in an apartment, travel a lot, have small children etc., this will add hours to your practice. Great product!"
-"Even better than the technochanter! You don't have to use headphones with these, you can plug this into an ampifier and sounds awesome (they technochanter sounds good only with headphones). Also, you can get drone and smallpipes sounds out of these as well. They technopipes are about an inch longer than the technochanter since it uses one AAA battery, but this is pretty negligible. The battery life is pretty good and is much cheaper to replace than the watch batteries the technochanter uses. I liked technopipes so much, I sold my technochanter."
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Sincerely,
Rauncie Kinnaird
Kinnaird Bagpipes
923 Emmeline Terrace
Saskatoon, SK
S7J 5G7
Ph: 1-877-249-2939
Fax: 1-306-249-2933
email: [email protected]
website: www.kinnairdbagpipes.com
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