Stefan Dollak plays Cantigas on the bladder-pipe
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- čas přidán 23. 08. 2024
- I am playing a wonderful drone bladderpipe, made by Petr Cip of the Czech Republic. He based this instrument off an illustration in the "Princeps Codex" of the Cantigas de Santa Maria manuscript, which depicts many fascinating music instruments known to the court of Alfonso X "el Sabio" in 13th century Spain.
To get a continuous sound, I have to maintain pressure through my mouth while drawing air in through my nose. It is almost like circular breathing, but not quite: I am not actually exhaling while inhaling.
The melodies here are based on CSM 325 and 167.
I hope you like this little demo video. My site is www.stefandollak.com
I would like to add--the instrument is very cacophanous for the notes above A--which is wonderfully medieval! I have found that if you do not blow as hard that it helps to soften the notes, but the hardest part of playing this instrument is the breathing. There has to be a constant stream of air flowing through the pipe or the sound stops. Learning how to regulate the air flow is challenging, but I am getting better. Again, I want to take my hat off to Stefan for making such incredible bladder pipe videos.
I love it. I'm watching your videos since I bought the "Cip" bladder pipe 4 years ago.
I have noticed that the pressure of the breathe might change from a reed to another when needed to be changed. This sometimes can be annoying as I need a week to get use to pick the right note.
By the way is an amazing instrument. Easy to learn.
Please upload more video
You're like The Pied Piper with that thing haha. I read that it was very likely The Piper played on of those. It looks really cool :)
The Early Music Shop in London has both one drone and no drone Cip bladder pipes available. I bought the no drone (much less $$$$$) after seeing Stefan's videos. At this point, the breathing aspect is a lot like kissing a water buffalo--very difficult, but I am getting better. However, as the instrument uses descant/soprano recorder fingerings, it's not that difficult. The major drawback of the instrument that I have is that the bladder is "permanently" fixed to the chanter. This means it cannot be cleaned and the reed cannot be replaced. To take the instrument apart would require undoing a string wound around the joint of the two, and that is not something I am going to risk. I wonder if the new pipes with drones have the same problem. Stefan, I love the music you make.
Thanks! Glad you enjoy the videos.
I don't have the drone-less bladderpipe, but I've seen photos of the one from the Cip family workshop. It appears to have a tenon joint where the chanter meets the capsule. The thread hanging from that joint, I suspect, is part of the winding on the tenon: it's traditional to let the loose remaining thread hang from the joint. I imagine the instrument could then be disassembled to access the reed for maintenance (as well as properly seasoning the 'bladder').
Thanks for the advice. I am very much reluctant to try it myself. So far there have been no issues. I have improved quite a bit since last time I wrote. People are really surprised with the bladder pipe's sound, but they also seem to enjoy.
I absolutely have to get the drone version!
That's got an amazing sound - and beautifully played! I've just been looking at Cip's range of instruments, and I'm really tempted with one of these. Does it need a high pressure of breath, compared to, say, a recorder? The only reason I ask I bought a Bombard a few years ago, and that needed so much puff it really wasn't enjoyable to play. Many thanks - please post some more tunes
Thanks!
Mine has a little bit of resistance, so it takes a bit of endurance. But I bought mine about 10 years ago. Since then, his son has taken over the shop and made some refinements. My colleague bought a recently made bladderpipe from Cip's shop and I was astonished to find how easy it was to play compared to mine; the breath pressure required was minimal (not quite like a recorder, but certainly far less than a bombarde). That, and it was a bit louder. I think these issues have much to do with the reed construction.
And yes... I do need to post more videos! I hope to do so soon!
Thanks so much for the information - very much appreciated
Do you know were I can buy an bladder pipe?
The Cip family in the Czech Republic is continuing the tradition of making bladder-pipes, and other medieval-style instruments:
www.histnastroje.gajdy.cz/en/
Is there any resources on how to learn to play the bladder pipe you know of?
Hi there! I don't know of any tutorials for the bladder-pipe. Typically, if a person learns the recorder, and becomes familiar with the nine-note bagpipe ambitus, it's not too difficult to figure out.
is that a real bladder
+Kori Mecklenburg Hee hee! No, Petr Cip used a kind of suede material for the bag.
Not this one, but most are.