"That'sall crop."
Posted on 04/19/2008 7:19:17 AM PDT by blam
"Mr Cheape argues that following the defeat of Bonnie Prince Charlie and his men, educated and wealthy expatriate Scots living in London tried to keep the flame of nationhood burning and in 1778 founded the Highland Society of London with the aim of “preserving the martial spirits, language, dress, music and antiquities of the ancient Caledonians”
Many of the Scots who were fighting with Bonnie Prince Charles were forced to leave Scotland...many settled in North Carolina and began harvesting rosen/pitch from the native pine trees that would be used in ship repair.
The term 'Tar Heels' can be traced to these early Scots.
At one time, North Carolina was world renowned for ship repair quality and ship building expertise. (Wooden ships)
The Northumbrian pipes have a similar background. In the early 19th century, skilled makers turned a primitive folk instrument into a sophisticated little pipe.
The reasons for this is pretty obvious. Primitive shepherds and clansman didn’t have the money to commission such fancy instruments, and modern steel tools and machinery are needed to make really good ones.
I don’t think we have a Northumbrian pipe ping list here.
“A simpler type of pipe, which has its roots in the Islamic world, the Mediterranean and eastern Europe, was popular throughout the Highlands until the defeat of the Jacobite rebellion at the battle of Culloden in 1745.”
Need I say more?
Scotland ping
I learned of a group of direct descendants of these Scots living in a remote part of North Carolina (said to still be speaking “Elizabethan English”, among other things). At one point the British had confiscated all their bagpipes as the music was thought to foment rebellion.
In a small church in the mountains the congregation substituted their own voices: men as the drone pipes and the women as the chanter. I actually heard on NPR this group singing (playing?) “Amazing Grace”. No words, just human sounds evoking the lost bagpipes.
The sound was unique, to say the least.
It is said that Robert the Bruce marched to the Battle of Bannockbum in 1314 with his troops playing the pipes. The Irish have stone carvings dating back to the 12th century depicting the pipes.
The article acknowledges that pre-1745 Highlanders played the pipes and that chiefs actually founded colleges of piping. AND that there were "well-established pipe makers in Edinburgh." What were they making? Oboes?
And the British went to the trouble to ban the pipes after Culloden as "instruments of war" -
All that went on was the usual Victorian technical improvements which occurred in everything else around that time. Of course you had the hiatus while the pipes were banned, and things were bound to change a little, but I see this as much ado about nothing much.
A bagpipe player with a pager......
Wouldn't that be a screech-howl-squawk list?
This article is full of wind.
Sounds like a grant student looking for sensationalism, so instead of picking a fight w the muslims he’d going after the Scots.
Historical accuracy isn't exactly Mel Gibson's strong suit. ;)
"That'sall crop."
Er, no. The Northumbrian pipe has a tonality similar to a clarinet.
Yep, this is merely iconoclastic journalism. Consider the source here.
3 versions of the origin of 'tarheel' from UNC.
I hardly think any version of the term “tar heel” published by UNC is likely to be objective or factual, especially if the version is unflattering.
“Historical accuracy isn’t exactly Mel Gibson’s strong suit. ;)”
So what?
It was a fun movie.
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