Media

Ceol na hÉireann / Irish Music, Volume 1, Issue 2, Page 7

Ceol na hÉireann / Irish Music, Volume 1, Issue 2, Page 7
13 views

Properties

periodical Publisher
Na Píobairí Uilleann
periodical Editor
Chairman, NPU
periodical Title
Ceol na hÉireann / Irish Music
volume Number
1
issue Content
4Ceol na hEireann Irish Music5doubt. That very few of these sets survived intact to give us their story is ashame. A further shame is that we have had to rediscover the knowledge thatnone of these early makers wrote down. So with a view to retaining clearly thischanter tuning information let us go through it again with specific problems inmind:A fingerholed note is flat in the lower and upper octave. Sharpen both notesby:(a) Making hole larger or(b) moving hole towards reed or(c) undercutting inside edge of hole towards reed end of chanter.A fingerholed note is flat in the lower octave only:(a) Make the bore at and just above (towards reed) the finger holeslightly larger in diameter or(b) lessen the wall thickness over the fingerhole.A fingerholed note is sharp in the lower octave only:(a) Make the bore at and just above the fingerhole smaller in diameteror(b) increase the wall thickness over the fingerhole.A fingerholed note is flat in the upper octave only:(a) Undercut the inside edge of the fingerhole away from reed end ofchanter or(b) move hole towards reed end until upper octave note is correct andthen apply the cure for sharp low octave note.A fingerholed note is sharp in the upper octave only:(a) Move hole away from reed end or(b) make hole smaller, then apply cure for flattened low octave note.A fingerholed note is sharp in the low octave and flat in the upper:This classically occurs at the E note. A thicker wall will bring downthe low octave note. This would be achieved during manufacture bymaking the outside larger over the E hole. After manufacture this lowoctave E could be brought down by the insertion of a rush or wire intothe bore, going past the E hole. The upper octave E can be tuned up byundercutting or moving the holed towards the reed.Hard D is sharp:(a) Make bore narrower in lowest part of chanter or(b) make lowest part of chanter longer.Hard D is flat:(a) Make bore in lowest part of chanter slightly wider or(b) shorten lowest part of chanter.Hard Dis unsteady with almost any reed:The throat diameter of the chanter is too large. The throat is thesmallest diameter of the chanter, just below the reed seat. An unsteadyhard D can usually be cured by inserting a tube of rolled paper in thethroat to reach down no more than 10-15mm below the reed seat. If thisdoes not cure the unsteady hard D then the reed scraping should belooked to.Back D is weak (sinking Back D):This is usually a reed problem caused by over scraping of the centresof the blade edges.C sharp IC natural:C sharp and C natural being derived in the lower octave, from the samehole, need careful consideration. Often there is not quite enough differencebetween them - C sharp being flat when C natural is in pitch. By maximisingthe cross fingering i.e. finding the fingering that -lowers C natural most, andadjusting the wall thickness over the C hole to enhance the tone height of Csharp, a cure should be achieved.With the information given here it should be possible to design out mostchanter faults. However, it is not my suggestion that anyone attack their chanterbecause they think it is wrong. If you cannot make things right with the reed,pieces of tape for the holes and a bore wire, then consult the maker. Remember,it is too easy to take off material but sometimes impossible to replace it. So, ifyou feel like carving the outside of a chanter to make it comfortable, rememberthat you may run the risk of putting it out of tune. It should also be recognisedthat whereas I have dealt with specific problems and cures on an individualbasis, when some physical property of a chanter is altered it may have anadverse effect on another note.- -4
issue Number
2
page Number
7
periodical Author
[Various]
issue Publication Date
1994-01-01T00:00:00
allowedRoles
anonymous,guest,friend,member

Ceol na hÉireann / Irish Music, Volume 1, Issue 2

Related Keywords