Big Blog II: One Last Music Culture
For my last big blog I decided to learn about the music and culture of Scotland! Scotland is mostly known for their tradition in music and of course the bagpipes. Speaking of bagpipes, they are the national instrument of Scotland and originated there. However, some believe that the bagpipes were brought over from Egypt when they were invading Roman legions. Egypt does seem to have an instrument very similar to the bagpipes in 400 BC, the 'pipers of Thebes', which was known to have pipes made of bone and dog skin. Others believe it was brought to America from the Scottish tribes of Ireland. So bagpipes have been associated with different people in many different forms. No one really knows for sure where bagpipes came from. In fact, bagpipes are considered a very important instrument in Scotland because it is classified as a war instrument during the Highland times of the 1700's. Bagpipes were played in many wars, because of that, the loyalist government viewed bagpipes as a instrument of war, making them ban the playing of bagpipes after the uprising of 1745. In fact, anyone who was seen with bagpipes was penalized. Stated by the court, "no Highland regiment ever marched without a piper and therefore his bagpipes in the eyes of the law, was an instrument of warfare". Soon after the ban in 1782 bagpipe playing began to spread like wildfire. The most common brand used is the Great Highland Bagpipe, and it was popularized by the Highland unit of the British Army. Knowing that it's a musical instrument of war, they first appeared in 1549 at the Battles of Pinkie when the bagpipes replaced the trumpets to motivate soldiers into war. Below is a diagram showing the different parts of the bagpipes. It has a very interesting shape to it, in my opinion.
There are two main types of Scottish bagpipes, the Highland and Lowland pipes. Lowland pipes have a different procedure than Highland pipes, pipers use their arms to squeeze air into the bag rather than blowing in the pipe. Lowland pipes have more of a soft timbre than highlanders, making it acceptable to play inside. It is really common to have bagpipe competitions in Scotland for soloist and pipe bands and often have world competitions and parades! A term I think is important to know is the "Pipe major". A pipe major is a leader of a pipe band, the one who makes the musical decisions and decisions regarding to events and parades. Below I found a really cool YouTube video demonstrating the lowland bagpipes as well as covering one of my favorite soundtracks! I also listed another video of a bagpipe band!
Some other instruments of Scottish music include the fiddle, accordion, guitar, harp, tin whistle, and bodhran. The harp was considered the national instrument of Scotland before it was replaced by bagpipes in the 1400's! In fact, the Scottish harp was the most popular in the medieval ages and only three medieval Gaelic harps survived, the Queen Mary harp, the Lamont harp from Scotland and the Brian Boru harp from Ireland! The only tin whistle that survived was the Tusculum whistle which goes back to the 14th and 15th century! The bodhran is a one headed drum that originated in Ireland and was considered the "poor mans tambourine" made from farm implements.
The languages of Scotland are English, Scot, and Scottish Gaelic. English is the most spoken language but Scottish Gaelic is struggling to keep alive, however, it is taught in schools to preserve it. Many people aren't familiar with Scot (lowland scot) because there is no formal category to place it into. Because it is very similar to English, some people debate that it is a form of English/slang or it is just a heavy accent. One of 
Scotland's traditions as you might know is the use of tartans (fabric of multi colored crisscross clothing patterns) and kilts. Tartans are Kilts are worn by men and are mostly worn on occasions and events such as, weddings, Highland games, and ceilidhs. Ceilidhs (Gaelic word for gathering/party) is a Scottish or Irish traditional event where they dance, sing/play folk music, and tell stories! Furthermore, kilts are considered a historic piece of clothing because they were worn in military use.
The Scots love food and so do I, traditional Scot suppers include various of foods. Haggis is considered the national dish of Scotland and is generally made from organs of sheep, pigs, and cows marinated with spices and then boiled in the stomach! It is typically served as part of the Burns supper. Some other dishes include, Scot pies, Scottish porridge (breakfast dish), Cullen skink (smoked fish soup), deep-fried mars bars (a Scottish dessert), Neeps and Tatties (root vegetables, often accompanying Haggis), Cock-a-leekie soup (Scotland's national soup), and stovies (meat/potato appetizer). Many Scots drink whisky and it is very popular in Scotland and is considered their national drink.
The Highland games are very traditional and take place in Scotland every weekend in the spring and summer. The movie Braveheart reminds me a lot about the Scottish and their games/sports such as, heavy contest, hill race, field events, dances like sword dancing and the Highland fling! Highland games are a way to celebrate Celtic and Scottish culture. One of the most famous Highland games in the world is the Cowal games (Cowal Highland Gathering) and takes place in Dunoon, Scotland and in North Carolina and California! Some important days and occasions that the Scottish celebrate are Burns Supper, St. Andrews day, and Hogmanay. Burns supper is held on Jan. 25th to celebrate the memorial of Robert Burns (a Scottish poet/lyricist). St Andrews day is celebrated to honor Scotland's patron saint (St. Andrew) and is known to be Scotland's national day! Lastly, Hogmanay is what the Scottish call New Years.
Most of Scotland practices Christianity, however, a majority of Scotland's population does not have a religious identification. The Church of Scotland is considered to be the national church of their country.
Resources: What are Scottish Traditions?(2021, Feb.4).The Royal Scots Club. https://www.royalscotsclub.com/what-are-scottish-traditions/.
10 Foods to Try in Scotland.(2021, Feb.4).BBC Good Food. https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/top-10-foods-try-scotland.
Languages of Scotland.(2021, Feb.4). Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/video/213474/Scotland-language.
Scottish Highland Pipes.(2021, Feb.4). Historic UK. https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofScotland/The-Piob-Mhor-or-the-Great-Highland.
Bagpipes.(2021, Feb.4).Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bagpipes.
Music of Scotland.(2021, Feb.4). Wikipedia.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_Scotland
Julia I knew about the bagpipes but I had no clue that played bodhran and tin whistle. That's so interesting.
ReplyDeleteThe Scotland Bagpipes are such an interesting instrument. I wonder if they did actually originate from Egypt! I also find it interesting that it was a war instrument and that it's associate with battle and fighting. I had no idea there were different types of bagpipes. I have never seen the lowland pipes before! I thought all of them were blown into. I think it's nice to have this bagpipe that can be played inside since it has a softer and "nicer" sound to it. However, the highland bagpipes are also super cool and the bands remind me a lot of marching bands with the way they're set up. Scotland The Brave seems to be the song everyone knows, because I have heard the tune so many times!
ReplyDeleteI can't believe there are only three medieval harps still standing from Scotland. I also had no idea they were is important to Scotland a while ago. The Highland games and folk traditions seem very fun as well! This blog was super cool and I learned a lot!