Rufus Harley, Jazz Bagpiper [RIP]

Philadelphia Inquirer ^ | 8/02/2006 | Daniel Rubin

[sionnsar]

Interesting. He's playing a set of "right-handed" pipes; very unusual. (The picture is not reversed because his left hand is on the top of the chanter.)

[sionnsar]

Pipes and Drums of FreeRepublic ping!

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[decal]

Fine taste in tartans: he's wearing the Buchanan Modern in that pic - same as mine...

[sionnsar]

My practice goose was in that tartan also.

[decal]

Well, you've undoubtedly seen pix of medieval pipers with the bag under the right arm. There's no problem playing in place that way, but I wouldn't want to march doing that ;)

[sionnsar]

Actually there are much more recent (pre-1745) paintings of pipers playing right-handed sets. I am told (emph.) that the MacCrimmons played left-handed, so that became the standard of the College of Piping during the post-1745 ban.

But I agree -- marching with a right-hand set in a left-hand band could be, um, exciting.

[Chode]

i can't imagine what jazz sounds like on the pipes, but it must be amazing...

[decal]

I've seen a pic of a marching band where the pipe major was playing a "right-hand" set (for the rest of you benighted folks who don't play the pipes, the PM traditionally marches in the far right of the front rank of a marching band, so this wouldn't be a problem).

When I ordered my pipes I encountered a 2-week delay in receiving them because the firm I ordered from sent a bag cover to fit a "right-hand" set...oops.

[decal]

Goto Amazon and hear them; clips at:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=pd_sl_aw_tops-1_music_11031253_2/002-3464395-6482433?search-alias=music&keywords=rufus%20harley&rank=relevancerank&field-binding=8&field-is-popular-query=yes

[Candor7]

PING for the Graham Highlanders Pipes & Drums

http://www.grahamhighlanders.com

[Chode]

ummm... what am i looking for??? i don't see anything about playing previews or demos. just the new/used cd's for sale

thankx for the help.

[decal]

Clicking on the first two CDs available will take you to their respective pages, both of which have 1-minute examples of each track.

[Candor7]

Being a saxophonist and a piper, I am struck by the fact that his right hand playing of the chanter is very much in the same position as a sax would be. Very strange but probably allowed for an expressive transfer of skills from the sax to the pipes, although the instruments are nothnig alike in terms of coordination

As an aside I was recently at the Antigonish, Nova Scotia Highland Games, and got to see several seated pipers, play with the chanter held directly in front between the legs, with a very circular form of the arms, which surprisingly gives a lot of diaphram strength to blow.

Some of these seated pipers played jigs and reels for over twenty minutes without stopping, as required for dance sets, accompanied by fiddles.

[Chode]

well i must be a bone head cause i can't find it...

is there any way you can post the url where tracks are???

[decal]

Well, I partly take it back - only the second one listed has tracks:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000508Q5/sr=1-2/qid=1154563071/ref=sr_1_2/002-3464395-6482433?ie=UTF8&s=music

Scroll about 1/4 of the way down.

[Chode]

outstanding... thx for the help.

[sionnsar]

PING for the Graham Highlanders Pipes & Drums

Glè mhath, sibh uile!

[Chode]

well that's surenuff different... didn't sound like he was on one or two of them though, must not of gotten to his part yet.

[freedumb2003]

Have any wav's or mp3's or samples?

The idea of jazz bagpipe is intruiging.

RIP to this gentleman.

[Redleg Duke]

I am a leftie and I have my pipe hung on my right shoulder. I was born polydactal and when the docs removed my right extra finger, they left the internal bone structure, which limited my right hand extension. It hurt to play right-handed, so I became a "ham-fisted" piper.