| Scotland's national instrument, the
Bagpipe or in Gaelic "piob-mhor" (the great pipe) is not,
contrary to popular belief, an instrument which has its origins in and
has diffused from Scotland. The bagpipe is an instrument of great
antiquity, an instrument which has its origins in the Middle East and
traveled through and evolved in Europe alongside the diffusion of early
civilization.
The "Oxford History of Music"
makes mention of the first documented bagpipe being found on a Hittite
slab at Eyuk. This sculptured bagpipe has been dated to 1,000 B.C.
Biblical mention is made of the bagpipe in Genesis and in the third
Chapter of Daniel where the "symphonia" in Nebuchadnezzar's
band is believed to have been a bagpipe. These early pipes or
"Pan" pipes, without the bag or reservoir, were probably the
second musical instrument to evolve. Musical history dictates that
pipers have to take a back seat to percussion instruments in this case.
These early pipes used materials with a natural bore (hollow reeds, corn
stalks, bamboos, etc.)
See http://www.bagpipes-henderson.com/history.cfm
for further information |
