Sale! Playing Materials for Pipers

Instructional Books, CDs and DVD for Practice Chanter and Bagpipes; also Books of Tunes, Information on Maintenance of the Pipes

College of Piping Bagpipe Books

The College of Piping series of books and recordings is published by the College of Piping in Glasgow, Scotland. Probably the best-known chanter/bagpipe method in the United States, the series is written to be useful both for students studying with a teacher and also for those of you who study the practice chanter or pipes on your own.

BB1. Highland Bagpipe Tutor Part 1 (green book) plus CD-ROM. The 72-page book is a playing manual for beginners. Information on the practice chanter, holding the chanter and playing the scale (with clear drawings), grace notes, throws and doublings, other techniques of playing, reading music, graded tunes with playing instructions, history of the bagpipe. The accompanying CD-ROM has two tracks on it - the audio/visual track shows the pieces in Part I being played and the other track plays as a standard audio CD. This set of book and CD-ROM works well either with a teacher or on your own. Book/CD-ROM set $32. Sale $22
 

BB2. Highland Bagpipe Tutor Part 2 (red book): This is a book on the bagpipes themselves, not a playing instruction book. It covers the parts of the pipes, the bag itself (function, materials, making a bag, choosing, tying on, seasoning a bag), blowpipe and valve, the pipe chanter, the drones, pipe chanter reed (making, choosing, setting, blowing in), choosing a bagpipe, posture, marching, and advice on lessons.
BB2A. Book only, 64pp. $20 Sale $14
BB2B. Set of book plus DVD showing a presentation  $32. Sale: $22

Sale! BB3. Highland Bagpipe Tutor Part 3 (blue book): More advanced lessons on playing (this book picks up where Book 1 leaves off). Eighteen tunes with instructions on how to play them and exercises on special features of the tunes. 79pp. Was $20, on sale at $14.

BB4. Highland Bagpipe Piobaireachd Tutor Part 4 (yellow book) plus CD. This is a tutor book for piobaireachd music, also called ceol mor (big music). This is the real bagpipe music, almost the only pipe music played up into the early 19th century, as opposed to the dances and other light music most commonly played on the bagpipes these days. It is assumed that you know the basics of playing the bagpipe, and are quite good at it, before attempting this book (that's why it's number four in the series). The book is by Seamus McNeill, revised and produced by Robert Wallace. Angus MacLellan and Robert Wallace sing and play each lesson from the book on the accompanying CD. Set of book and CD: $33 On sale at: $24

Chanter and Bagpipe Lessons DVD

BB12. DVD, Learn To Play The Bagpipe. Vol. I has seven lessons on playing the practice chanter, starting right at the beginning with the bagpipe scale, and going on to variations in the lengths of notes, and the various kinds of grace notes for decorating your playing. You do not need a book for this lesson DVD, because the music that the piper is playing is put right up on the screen for you to watch. The lessons include well-known tunes such as  Amazing Grace, Scotland the Brave and the Skye Boat Song. Vol. II has seven lessons on how to manage your bagpipes, including information on holding your pipes while playing, tuning the drones, dealing with reeds, marching while playing, and more.  Bonus material: a short worldwide history of the origins of the bagpipe up to the modern day, with 5 minutes of excellent background material. Suitable for all ages.  Published in Scotland by Bagpipes of Caledonia. Was $29. Sale $20

Books of Pipe Music

BB30. The Regimental Pipers of the Scots Guards Present A Collection of New Tunes for the Highland Bagpipe. Book I. Over 50 tunes composed by pipers of the Regiment, past and present, in the tradition of other Scots Guards music books. A brief history accompanies each tune. 32 photos. $32 Sale: $22

BB31. Caledonia Cathedral: Hymns for the Bagpipe. Forty-two hymns for church, weddings, Christmas and other events, most of which are rarely  heard on the pipes. These have been carefully selected for their compatibility with the highland bagpipe and arranged by a remarkable young piper, Alasdair Trotter. Abide With Me, Amazing Grace, Crown Him With Many Crowns, Guide Me O Thou Great Jehovah, Onward Christian Soldiers, and several Christmas carols are some of the hymns, plus the title hymn, Caledonia Cathedral. The words to the hymns are included in this book. Published by Bagpipes of Caledonia. $24 We have one left. Sale: $20
 

Click here to hear two pieces played from this book: Abide With Me and All Creatures of our God and King.

BB34. The Cairngorm Collection of Highland Bagpipe Music: Book 1. A collection of the works of Pipe Major George S. McLennan 1884-1929. Thirteen 2/4 marches, eight  6/8 marches, eight reels, five strathspeys, four slow marches, five retreats and three jigs. Pub. Exile Publishing. $20 Sale $15

BB35. The Cairngorm Collection of Highland Bagpipe Music: Book 2. Fifty-five classic 2/4 marches from various sources, chosen by the publishers as "a legacy to current generations from fellow pipers of old," music that has stood the test of time. This book is reviewed in the Summer 1999 issue of The Voice; "many of these tunes are in books now out of print...if you want top-of-the-range 2/4 marches, buy this book..." Pub. Exile Publishing. $20 Sale $15

BB38. Bagpipe Sheet Music Song Book by Michael Hamilton. 52 tunes: jigs and reels, marches, hymns, airs, standards and strathspeys. Each piece is on a separate page. Size of booklet: 8 1/2" wide x 5 1/2" high. $10 Sale: $7

Pipes Maintenance and Tuning

BB40. Highland Bagpipe Tutor Part 2 (red book, also listed above): This is a book on the bagpipes themselves, not a playing instruction book. It covers the parts of the pipes, the bag itself (function, materials, making a bag, choosing, tying on, seasoning a bag), blowpipe and valve, the pipe chanter, the drones, pipe chanter reed (making, choosing, setting, blowing in), choosing a bagpipe, posture, marching, and advice on lessons. Published by the College of Piping. 64pp. $20

BB41. Bagpipe Maintenance Book by Michael Hamilton. Practical tips from a piper. Small booklet, 31 pp. $5.

Back to practice chanters page.

You are on the web site of The Harp and Dragon at www.harpanddragon.com .
There are over a hundred pages on this web site; click on the Back to Home Page link
to see an outline of this entire site.
Back to Home Page

If you do not receive a reply from us within a day or so after sending in an order, or after emailing a question, please contact us again, as our reply may have been thrown in your spam bin or may have returned to us. Exceptions: weekends or when we note on our front page that we are closed for any reason.