04 January 2010

Eleven Pipers Piping


As if we didn't have enough noise with all the birds chirping, squawking, and whistling, Bring on The Bagpipes.

At the big feasts held during the holiday celebrations the guests were often entertained by musicians, dancers, jugglers, etc. as well as singing and dancing themselves. Bagpipes were popular instruments for dance music. While we usually associate the bagpipe with Scotland, they were also a common instrument in France as well. Since Queen Elizabeth I was succeeded by the Stuart kings of Scotland, bagpipes and other aspects of Scots culture were common among the upper classes in England as were elements of French culture due to intermarriage of the English and French nobility.

2 comments:

Linda said...

I never thought of bagpipers with this verse, I always thought of small pipes sort of like recorders I guess.

The whole song has definitely taken on new meaning for me with all of these great explanations!

Ivy Green said...

Slainte!