"Bagpipes of the World" CD |
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For information click on cover |
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A Web Site Owned, Written and Constructed by Oliver Seeler |
"Bagpipes of the World" CD |
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For information click on cover |
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"Here you find the image of a Musette Bechonnet I made for myself.
The instrument is a copy of an instrument I saw in the museum of Montlucon,
France. This Musette Bechonnet is made of ebony and the block is a copy of an
original Bechonnet design. An important item is the bellows. The instrument is not mouthblown but
supplied by a bellow which presses the air into the instrument. It gives the
opportunity to make reeds for the instruments which are not affected by
moisture. The bellows are made from pallisander and leather, all hand-sewn and very
reliable. (Bechonnet made bellows like the bookform of an accordion; you find
these also on the Musette de Cour). The famous bagpipe maker Joseph Bechonnet (1820 - 1900) was born in in Effiat, Puy de Dome, France. He was a wooden-shoe maker, woodturner and in my opinion a very good bagpipe maker. He made the Musette Bechonnet, a bagpipe with three drones - little,medium and big, all tuned to the same note. The chanter and the little/medium drones are situated in the same block. His instruments are of high quality. He developed the chanter to 1½ octaves, almost chromatic. Many modern chanters used nowadays in pipemaking mostly find their roots in Bechonnet's work." ~ Frans Hattink |