Special & Sale Items

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.

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.

This Dunbar polypenco pipe chanter is in excellent condition with no carving. It would be around 25 years old. It displays a vibrant sound and will pitch in the low 470s with the right reed. 

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. There are a couple of chips on the top of the imitation ivory sole.

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. 

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. 

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.