The great Highland bagpipe is a type of bagpipe native to Scotland, and the Scottish analogue to the great Irish warpipes. It has acquired widespread recognition through its usage in the British military and in pipe bands throughout the world.
The binioù is a type of bagpipe. The word binioù means 'bagpipe' in the Breton language.
Since the early 1970s, Brittany has experienced a tremendous revival of its folk music. Along with flourishing traditional forms such as the bombard-biniou pair and fest-noz ensembles incorporating other additional instruments, it has also branched out into numerous subgenres.
A bagad is a Breton band, composed of bagpipes, bombards and drums. The pipe band tradition in Brittany was inspired by the Scottish example and has developed since the mid-20th century. A bagad plays mainly Breton music, but a bagad's music is evolutionary: new forms and musical ideas are experimented with at each annual national competition.
A sonneur – or, in Breton, soner – is a player of traditional music in Brittany: i.e., someone who plays the bombarde, biniou, or clarinet; as distinct from a kaner, or traditional singer.
A fest noz is a Breton traditional festival, with dancing in groups and live musicians playing acoustic instruments.
A folk instrument is a traditional musical instrument that has remained largely restricted to traditional folk music, and is not usually used in the classical music or other elite and formal musical genres of the culture concerned, though related intruments may be.
The culture of Brittany is the patterns of human activity and symbolism associated with the historical region of Brittany in northwestern France and the Breton people. Breton culture has been influenced by various local and nearby traditions over the centuries, including the Celtic culture of the Britons and Gauls and French culture to a lesser extent, particularly in Upper Brittany.
The Bretons are a Celtic ethnic group native to Brittany, north-western France. They trace their heritage to groups of Brittonic speakers who emigrated from southwestern Great Britain, particularly Cornwall and Devon, mostly during the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain. They migrated in waves from the 3rd to 9th century into Armorica, which was subsequently named Brittany after them.
This article defines a number of terms that are exclusive, or whose meaning is exclusive, to piping and pipers.
The piston is a type of oboe invented by Breton musician, teacher, and luthier Youenn Le Bihan in 1983. The pistoñ is a contemporary development of the hautbois, classical and/or baroque oboe, influenced by the bombard or talabard, the traditional double reed instrument of Brittany. It is typically rooted in the key of D and features post-mounted simple system key-work to expand its range. The tone of the pistoñ stands in a warm and rich middle ground between the trumpet-like tone of the bombard and that of the baroque oboe. The bore is similar to that of a baroque or classical oboe.
Breton dance is a group of traditional dance forms originating in Brittany, the Celtic region of France. The dance has experienced a reappropriation in the late 1950s, with the development of the Celtic Circles and Fest Noz.
Celtic Wedding is an album of traditional Breton music performed by the Irish band The Chieftains. The album features guest performances by Breton artists Nolwen Monjarret, Bernard Pichard, Alain Guerton and Michel Bertae. Nolwen Monjarret later appeared on the Chieftains' 1991 album, The Bells of Dublin, performing "A Breton Carol" with the band.
The treujenn-gaol is the Breton term for the clarinet as used in Breton music. The term 'treujenn gaol' was originally a pejorative term invented by bombard players who found the newer instrument encroaching on their livelihood.
Les Ramoneurs de menhirs are a Breton Celtic punk group formed in 2006. Its members include Éric Gorce on the bombardon, Richard Bévillon on the bagpipes, the traditional vannetais singer Gwenaël Kere and Loran, guitarist from the group Bérurier Noir. They play concerts at fest noz as well as normal rock concerts. Most of their songs are sung in the Breton language.
Red Cardell is a French, Breton rock band, that mixes Breton music with rock, folk, blues, world music and chanson réaliste.
The Festival de Cornouaille is an annual festival taking place in Quimper, a city in the south-west of Brittany, a western region of France. The festival begins on the third Sunday of July and lasts for one week. It has been held since 1923 and is one of the biggest cultural events in Brittany.
Georges Cadoudal was a French sonneur and musician. Alongside Étienne Rivoallan, he formed a group of sonneurs dedicated to the revival of Breton music after World War II. A founding member of Bagad Bourbriac, he was its penn-soner from 1953 to 1964.
Traditional French musical instruments, known as instruments traditionnels in French, are musical instruments used in the traditional folk music of France. They comprise a range of string, wind, and percussion instruments.
