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Origin of the Bagpipes

1/26/2014

3 Comments

 
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Why write about Bagpipes?
My husband is Italian (from Sicily), and we watch Italian television (RAI) daily.  At Christmas time, there was a Nativity Pageant produced on RAI, and the shepherds in the background were playing bagpipes.  My grandchildren were amazed, so I thought other people might be surprised also.

When Bagpipes pipe their mournful sounds, most people (Americans, at any rate) associate the instrument with the Highlands of Scotland, but in fact the bagpipes were introduced into Scotland by the Romans.

What are Bagpipes?
Bagpipes are musical instruments classified as aerophones. They are reed instruments that utilize an air reservoir.  The reservoir allows an uninterrupted stream of air to be directed through the reeds.


Ancient OriginsAncient OriginsWhile there several theories about the first bagpipes, many scholars believe they originated somewhere in the in the Middle East before the time of Christ -- Mesopotamia, Sumaria, or perhaps even India or Persia – in the form of a crude instrument comprised of reeds stuck into a goatskin bag.Historians generally agreed that the bagpipe arose from the desire to make reed instruments easier to play, especially for lengthy spells.  Connect your local reed instrument to a bag, add a blowpipe for putting in air, inflate fully and squeeze.

An early version of the bagpipes was constructed using animal skin.  The hollow leg bones of small animals were attached to the instrument with holes drilled into them.  These holes gave the player the ability to play various pitches and tones.

Ancient Origins

While there several theories about the first bagpipes, many scholars believe they originated somewhere in the in the Middle East before the time of Christ -- Mesopotamia, Sumaria, or perhaps even India or Persia – in the form of a crude instrument comprised of reeds stuck into a goatskin bag.

Various forms of bagpipes appear in ancient records in many parts of the western world including a textual reference from 425 BC, in the play The Acharnians by the Greek playwright Aristophanes.  Also, one website indicates a style of bagpipe is mentioned in the Old Testament of the Bible.

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On Oliver Seeler’s website, Universe of Bagpipes, the photo to the left of an Assyrian palace wall carving (from Nimrud, circa 800 B.C.) clearly depicts a warrior fording a river with what could be the earliest depiction of an inflated leather bag as an air reservoir.  The bag is equipped with a blow-pipe through which the swimmer can replace air that has leaked.  Tie a simple reed-pipe into this device and you would have a bagpipe.

The Oxford History of Music claims that a sculpture of bagpipes has been found on a Hittite slab at Eyuk in the Middle East, dated to 1000 B.C.

While there is strong evidence that the Romans and Greek had early versions of bagpipes, the exact form isn’t well documented.  The instruments themselves were made entirely or almost entirely of organic materials (wood and skins) and not durable in the long-term.  They tended to be instruments of the "common" people, were used, probably somewhat roughly without concern, outdoors.  Being an instrument of the common people, bagpipes didn’t get much “Press” since no one wrote about the peasants.

Two exceptions to this are writings from the Dio Chrysostom in the 1st century A.D., describing the Roman sovereign as playing the tibia (the pipes) with his mouth as well as with his “armpit.”  In the 2nd Century A.D., Suetonius wrote that the Roman Emperor Nero was a talented bagpipe (or Tibia Utricularius) player.  Whether or not he was really talented, or only described that way by some scribe who wished to continue to live, is speculation.  But it does mean that the instrument was somewhat familiar to these writers.

Regardless, the Romans are credited by most for bringing the bagpipes to Scotland and other parts of the world they conquered.


Bagpipes Today
It is speculated that bagpipes were used by shepherds in ancient times.  The early Romans used them as outdoor instruments during the building of roads or the gathering of harvests, and the pipers would march through town to announce the beginning of a workday.  They also used the bagpipes during religious ceremonies for the sacrifice of the gods or at chariot races and funerals.

Early Roman soldiers and later Scottish soldiers used the bagpipe as an instrument of war.  The resonating sound of the pipes could be heard up to 10 miles away.  In 1745, when the British defeated the Scottish at the Battle of Culloden, the use of bagpipes was outlawed.  The ban was later lifted in the 1800s.

Today bagpipes are used frequently at parades (I guess this answers the question about what's worn under kilts), at funerals, and at wedding. For funerals, the music is said to enhance the grief of the family of the dead and the other mourners.  It also serves to escort the fallen to the final resting place.  This scenario has been played out for centuries and the tradition has been carried forth from the ancient battlefields of Ireland and Scotland to the ceremonies honoring slain peace officers and firefighters. None of my sources gave an explanation of why they are so popular at weddings.
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But in Italy, bagpipes are a most common Italian Christmas sound.  The zampognari, the shepherds who play the bagpipes, come down from their mountain homes at Christmas time and perform melodies adapted from old folk tunes in the market squares.

In Italy, the tradition of bagpipes goes back to ancient Roman times.  Legend says that the shepherds entertained the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem.  Today, the zampognari perform their own private pilgrimage, stopping before every shrine to the Madonna and every Nativity scene. Take a listen: Click for Christmas Bagpipes.



Resources
http://www.mid-east.com/info/bagpipe.html
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090516234156AAvtLkQ
http://www.hotpipes.com/history2.html
http://www.bcfpb.com/id11.html







3 Comments

The Fine Art of Body Painting

1/6/2014

2 Comments

 
This article by Ann Siracusa was originally published on the Romance Books 4 Us Blog, April 10, 2013

A few weeks ago, a friend sent me some pictures circulating on the internet showing body painting by nineteen-year-old Japanese artist student Chooo-San. She uses acrylic paint to transform herself into a mutant or cyborg. I was so intrigued that I had to find out more.

THE ORIGINS OF BODY ART
Body art is art made on, with, or consisting of the human body with painting, tattoos, piercings, branding, or scalpelling. Body painting is temporary, painted onto the human skin, and last for a day or two. Mehndi henna or temp tattoo and glitter tattoos may last a couple of weeks.

Tens of thousands of years ago, our early human ancestors used painting materials for cave paintings. Many scholars believe that before interior cave-decoration became a prehistoric fad, early humans used the same materials for painting their own bodies, primarily as camouflage for hunting and to defend themselves from predators. They certainly had many examples in nature to learn from.

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Whenever the practice began, body and face painting developed into decorating in shapes, patterns, and colors for hunting, religious, ritual, and military purposes--sometimes the painting was used to scare the enemy--and for artistic expression. Body painting, along with other rites, represents important changes in one's life, such as puberty, marriage, birth, and so on, and has been a part of most tribal cultures since ancient times. The art of transforming the human being for various purposes with make-up and masks seems inherent in all cultures.

Natural pigments, tree barks, plants, minerals, and clays were used; the colors and types of pigments depended on what was available in the immediate area. Different patterns, shapes, and colors have a different significance depending on the culture. Body painting became a way of expressing one's culture and identity.

According to fashionencyclopedia.com, body painting was traditionally used in many societies to signify a person's social status and/or religious beliefs. A temporary decoration, body paint lasted only a few days. In some cultures, both men and women painted their bodies only for important social occasions, while in others, people wore body paint every day as a uniform to show their social status.

TRIBAL BODY AND FACE PAINTING
Nearly all tribal cultures practiced some form of body art. The practice still survives in its ancient forms among indigenous peoples in many countries. While it is done primarily for ceremonial purposes (and tourism), it also serves to preserve elements of the culture and identity in an expanding world. Art makes us different.

Julius Caesar wrote that the Britanni warriors or Picts (which means painted ones in Latin) colored their bodies blue when going into battle. 

History teaches us that the American Indians painted their faces, particularly when preparing for war, and movies like Braveheart show other cultures that painted their faces and bodies.

Contemporary Body Painting
Most of us are familiar with face painting in its contemporary forms. We see the images in ads, on TV and many other places, particularly related to the entertainment business.

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And, ladies, your skin care and cosmetics represent a 160 billion-dollar-per-year industry. That's some serious face painting, wouldn't you say? To quote the Economist Magazine, an industry driven by sexual instinct will always thrive.

Even today in India and Morocco, brides traditionally have their hands and feet painted in henna, and Indian women. Hindu women and men wear their marking and symbols on their foreheads. The small red dot, worm by women, is called bindi and represents the social status of a married woman.

Body Painting As A Form Of Fine Art
Body painting doesn't always involve painting large pieces of a nude body; the art form also includes smaller pieces on otherwise clothed bodies. The model may be a "stand alone" canvas for the artist, or may be part of a more complex juxtaposition of model (or models) and background. Perhaps that is why body painting is considered, by some, as one of the performing arts.

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Body painting as a form of artistic expression experienced a resurgence in the 1960's and 1970's, in part due to the relaxation of the social mores regarding nudity and the freedom movements of those generations.  Some thirty years earlier, in 1933 at the World's Fair in Chicago, Max Factor Sr. and his model, Sally Rand, were arrested when he painted her body with new cosmetics developed for the movies.  By the 1960's artists needed attention and were looking for something shocking and provoking to send their message.

Since the 1980's, body painting has become widely accepted in the US.  There are publications dedicated to it, festivals, and competitions around the world.  The first art gallery dedicated to body painting as a fine art opened in 2006 in New Orleans.

But still today, there is an ongoing debate whether or not body paints is a form of Fine Art.  You'll have to make up your own mind.
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Artist Chooo-san

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Artist Craig Tracy

http://www.boredpanda.com/body-art-illusions-by-craig-tracy/
http://www.craigtracy.com

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Artist Gesine Marwedel
http://www.gesine-marwedel.de/
http://www.boredpanda.com/body-art-illusions-gesine-marwedel

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Artist Yomico Moreno (I believe these are tattoos, not body painting)
http://www.yomicoart.com/home.php
http://boredpanda.com/body-art-illusions-yomico-moreno/

Artist Emma Hack
http://thechive.com/2009/03/13/stunning-body-paint-art-by-emma-hack-16-photos/

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Artist Bella Volen
http://www.bella-volen.com/fine-art-body-painting.html










Some Others By Unnamed Artists
(unnamed in the articles)

I'd love to hear your opinion of this.  Please leave a comment.
□


Resources
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/10/photogalleries/africa_faces/photo7.html
http://www.snazaroo.us/football.htm
http://www.designyourway.net/blog/inspiration/the-art-of-body-painting-and-best-63-examples/
http://www.boredpanda.com/realistic-body-art-chooo-san-part2/
http://www.boredpanda.com/body-art-illusions-by-craig-tracy/
http://www.bella-volen.com/Body-Painting-History-Bodyart-History-Geschichte-der-Koerperbemalung.html
http://www.yomicoart.com/home.php
http://www.gesine-marwedel.de/
http://thechive.com/2009/03/13/stunning-body-paint-art-by-emma-hack-16-photos/
http://www.ideactionmedia.com/livingbrush/2012/10/30/hp-slider-bodies-as-works-of-art-2012/
http://www.chelkoevents.com/event-artists
http://www.bella-volen.com/fine-art-body-painting.html

 

2 Comments

    Author R. Ann Siracusa

    Novelist, retired architect and urban planner, world traveler, quilter, owl collector, devoted wife-mother-grandmother, great-grandmother, and, according to some, wild-assed liberal.

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