A new House of Edgar collection

[Jock Scot]

The video done by House of Edgar spends a bit of time talking about the "herringbone selvedge" apparently typical of the times when these six tartans were being woven. Barb Tewksbury sent me a picture of a tartan with herringbone selvedge. One reason it was attractive was that the selvedge "stripe" border coincided EXACTLY with the transition from one stripe to another in the fabric. I know little enough about looms and weaving so as to have no clue whether that's always the way it would be.

Can anyone enlighten me on this?

Thanks so much!

I certainly can't help you there! Although aesthetics do come into it. Kilts, tartans, tractors, cars, guns, rifles, fishing rods, combine harvesters etc., etc., and their construction have absolutely no interest to me. I am of the "you make it and I will fly it" school of thought" and that works for me!

[Troglodyte]

Those are some serious sporrans. The hose on the gentleman second from left are interesting. The pattern looks like it could be a stag head and antlers. Or maybe just a laurel crest.

Here is an original example of the stag-head hose, shown in the Highland Home Industries guide from about 130 years ago.

[OC Richard]

Traditional garters were striped, not tartan. Here's a are a couple of 18th century pairs.
Attachment 44413

I'm a bit bleary-eyed as I got up at 3am to watch the Live Stream of the World Pipe Band Championships on Glasgow Green.

Nevertheless as always I'm watching what the bands are wearing. Trends include:

-Tweed instead of Barathea. A decade ago every top band would be wearing black Barathea with silver buttons. This year only three of the 14 Grade One bands were, the rest in tweed (mid-grey, dark grey, deep blue, and one in black).

-The death of black kilt hose. Since the 1970s it's gone cream > pure white > black > any dark colour except black. This year two of the 14 bands might have been wearing black, but it's hard to know because except in direct sunlight some of the "charcoal" hose can't be told from black.

-Striped garter flashes. From being unknown in the past (except for certain military bands) this year 5 of the 14 bands are wearing striped flashes. Three of these were the red striped Scots Guards pattern.

-Visible knees. For some reason band people are wearing their kilts higher these days, even the drummers! If I'd not seen it with my own eyes I wouldn't have believed it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A_3p9ofFuBE

What didn't become a trend was the return to Balmoral bonnets. The 78th Fraser Highlanders last year wore them, the first band to do so since the 1970s.

I thought they might be cutting-edge trend-setters. No. This year they remained the only band doing so, except for the Oman pipe band, who has always worn them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKEA...&start_radio=1

[kilted redleg]

I too have been enjoying the world pipeband championship on line. I have one question regarding the bands "What makes playing a snare so difficult that the drummer has to roll up his sleeves"? You do not see pipers rolling up their sleeves. I have a friend who played in a band I was in and rolled up his sleeves to play the snare drum, when asked why he stated he was a plumber and that's how he worked. Are all these guys plumbers?

[OC Richard]

I have a friend who played in a band I was in and rolled up his sleeves to play the snare drum...

Snare drummers have told me it's because the back end of the stick can get caught in the cuff. Not good!

Speaking of snare drummers, did you see when the SLOT snare drummers did some backsticking? Never seen that before in competition. (Drum fanfares/salutes yes, competition no.)

They also changed the sound of the snare drums for a time. I think they disengaged, then re-engaged, the upper snares. (Just a guess. I know a few years ago a snare-line put some kind of pads on their drum-heads to muffle the tone, then pulled them off later.)

I don't think today's performance is up yet, but here's the same Medley.

At 2:56 you can see backsticking, and at 6:03 you can hear the timbre of the snares changing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-kc...&start_radio=1

[jsrnephdoc]

Snare drummers have told me it's because the back end of the stick can get caught in the cuff. Not good!

Speaking of snare drummers, did you see when the SLOT snare drummers did some backsticking? Never seen that before in competition.

At 2:56 you can see backsticking, and at 6:03 you can hear the timbre of the snares changing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-kc...&start_radio=1

THANKS for that. WAY back in high school, my feeble abilities on the clarinet were forgotten so long as I agreed to play the snare drums in the marching band (appreciated by the dedicated wind players, but to the dismay of the REAL drummers).

But, since the VERY first time I could distinguish the sound of of the snares in a Highlands Pipes and Drums Corps from a US marching band on one of my dad's 78 rpm recordings, that marvelous and different sound of the Scottish snare drums has attracted me ALMOST as much as a cluster of (well tuned) pipes.

And, just what is "backstitching?"

[kilted redleg]

"backsticking" is hitting the snare drum head with the bottom of the drumstick not the head.
As far as getting the stick caught in the sleeve sounds like a musical "urban legend" as the majority of the drummers in the competition had sleeves down. Perhaps this is something the P/M needs to address as it is only two or three in the whole drum corps.

[OC Richard]

And, just what is "backstitching?"

Interesting you should say that!

Backstitching was a highly decorative technique employed by Irish uilleann pipers a century ago.

It fell from use but a few modern pipers have revived it.

Here's the best in the world doing it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1nr...&start_radio=1

and here's a demonstration of the technique

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04Ie...&start_radio=1

Backsticking is a snare drum thing where you use the back end of the stick to give a different sound.

Here's the best in the world doing it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpy8..._radio=1&t=67s

[jsrnephdoc]

Interesting you should say that!

Backstitching was a highly decorative technique employed by Irish uilleann pipers a century ago
It fell from use but a few modern pipers have revived it.

Here's the best in the world doing it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1nr...&start_radio=1

and here's a demonstration of the technique

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04Ie...&start_radio=1

Backsticking is a snare drum thing where you use the back end of the stick to give a different sound.

Here's the best in the world doing it .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpy8..._radio=1&t=67s

Sometimes those net nannies can be just TOO overzealous