SLOVAK BAGPIPES

Bagpipes - Podpolanie

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Podpolanie and areas of Hont, Novohrad and Gemer are a homestead of three-voice bagpipes with open end of melody pipe. The chanter – gajdica – has two bores. The right one - hucik – has one fingerhole (kontra). It plays low fourth when covered (with right hand's ring finger), and the tonic when open.. Abeceda, the melody pipe on the left side has 5 fingerholes in front and a thumbhole on the rear. It plays the tonic when all the holes are covered. There is a special tuning hole at the side of the chanter, for setting this bottom note in tune. Gajdica is usualy placed in an angled stock, carved in a shape of a goat's head (kozicka). The drone – huk – has three adjustable parts – stavce – and plays two octaves lower from the chanter's tonic. The resonating bells of both chanter and drone can be funnel-like trachtare rolled from a brass sheet, which were typical for the northern areas, whereas in the south cowhorn bells were used.

Tuning:

The bagpipes preserved in museums together with old recordings show surprising pitch variability, from low es up to high c. During the last decades, f, g, a were stabilised as standard.

Prices:

• simple – no adornments, cherry wood, copper rings, leather bag, brass or cowhorn bells – 380 euro
• simple adornments copper or brass rings with engraved ornaments, „mirror“ on the goathead stock, drone parts decoratively turned, woods cherry, apricot, pear, plum – 450 euro
• fully decorated – as above, plus goathead stock with metal, bone and horn intarsions, darkest plum wood, bag covered in velvet and brocate coat – 550 euro
• pewter inlayed – woods pear, plum – 600 euro

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