The date of this Sinclair chanter is indeterminate, but it still plays with a crack off the technique and a slightly lower pitch. No apparent carving. 

This RJM solo blackwood pipe chanter was played for about three months some years ago. It has been carved on the D, E and F. 

The smaller hole sizes and comfort of these chanters is making fans all over the piping world.  This one has been slightly used, and carved on the F.

This Dunbar-Eller blackwood pipe chanter is in excellent condition with no carving. It displays a vibrant sound and a lower pitch reflective of its time in the early 1990s.

The AURORA JM pipe chanter was designed to play at a slightly lower pitch than other modern chanters: 472-480, depending on the reed. The chanter is blackwood, uncarved and in excellent shape. 

George Alexander made pipes in the last half of the 1900s and became known as the first maker to produce a ‘long’ practice chanter with countersunk holes the same spacing as the pipe chanter. This one has what looks to be a Hardie pipe chanter sole.

While Joseph MacDonald was writing his  famous “Complete Theory of the Scots Highland Bagpipe” in 1760, his brother Patrick was preparing this publication which came off the press in 1784. Together they represent the first serious attempt, using the medium of print, to make Highland music more widely known throughout Scotland.  With four piobaireachd appearing at the end of the book, and Joseph’s book not seeing publication until well after his death, Patrick’s “Vocal Airs” marks the first appearance of pipe music in staff notation. 

The book lacks its cover, but is otherwise in excellent condition. The parchment pages do exhibit some show-through and slight discolouration, but the print is still clear and legible. 

General C. S. Thomason lists the publication of this seminal work as 1900, though there were apparently small editions published before this date. The book contains several hundred piobaireachds, all written in General Thomason’s ‘code’ which allowed him to place an entire tune on a 4.5″ x 8″ sheet. Besides being the largest single piobaireachd collection ever published, it is also one of the most significant. It is difficult to untangle the various early editions, but this appears to be edition V, exact publication date unknown, but certainly before 1910.

The book is in very good shape except the front cover board and cover spine have come loose from the binding. The back cover board remains attached. 

Donald MacDonald published his seminal “Ancient Martial Music of Caledonia” in 1822, beating Angus Mackay by 16 years. While it never achieved the importance of Angus Mackay’s book, it almost certainly stands in second place as a major early piobaireachd source. 

This is a third edition, published between 1822 and 1833, when the publisher ceased operation. The book cannot be dated more accurately than this. 

The book has a cover, but it is almost certainly not original. The cover is well affixed to the binding, but the title pages are loose. The binding is solid.  There is some slight show-through of the staves on the pages.

Sir John Dalyell was an antiquarian and naturalist lived from 1815-1844 and was a regular judge and organizer at the Highland Society of London’s competitions. The book is an account of the musical antiquities of Scotland, beginner with three chapters on the bagpipes and bagpipe music. Though clearly not a fan of the bagpipe, Dalyell nonetheless gives us a rare account of piping in the early part of the 19th century and his book remains a window to another age.

The book is in excellent condition, though the cover is not original.

Published in 1920, this book records “the Achievements of Pipers of Scottish and Overseas Regiments during the War 1914-18.” With colour plates and nearly 300 parchment pages, the book outlines activities of pipers in the various regiments. The last half of the book features essays by various authors on piping in the military. The blue music book was written to accompany the large book and contains tunes written during the Great War. 

Only 200 of these pairs were published and it is indeed rare to have a pair still together.

Both books are in very good condition, with some fraying and wear on the covers.

This is a first printing of the first edition of Angus Mackay’s iconic “A Collection of Ancient Piobaireachd,” published in 1838. Angus Mackay was the prime caretaker of the ancient piobaireachd  tradition in his day, and this is his opus. Most of what piobaireachd performers play today comes down to us through Angus.

The book has no cover and the title page is badly frayed and worn.  The edges of the book are age-stained with some slight tearing here and there. The spine has had some primitive repairs made to it, but appears stable. 

This book is not to be confused with the 1899 edition, which has a hard, burgundy cover, but still retains the 1838 publication date.