The reeds
The sound quality of the bombarde, biniou or bagpipe, is very dependent on the reed which is the essential element of the instrument. The player selects the suppleness of the reed which corresponds to his needs and which best expresses his talent.
The workshop proposes several types of reed – the single blade reed for the drones of the bagpipe or the biniou and the double reed for the bombarde and the chanters of the biniou, bagpipe and veuze.
Both the single blade reed and the double bladed reeds are hand-made in our own workshop. The reeds made in our workshop are manufactured from tubes of cane and assembled using a special thread. The cane tubes used in the Hervieux/ Botuha workshop have been selected after much research which involved sampling cane from within the country and from many different suppliers to the point where they have now identified the best possible sources of this vital raw material.
The double reed, as distinct from the single reed, incorporates a copper tube which tapers from round to oval. The thread is then wrapped around the tube. At first sight it looks easy, but it is soon revealed how difficult it really is. !
The bombarde reeds made by Jorj Botuha and sold from theworkshop, are the fruits of his distinguished piping career He has won more prizes than any other bombarde player in Brittany!). His skill is also based on his in depth knowledge of both antique and modern instruments…in short, on his vast experience. Jorj has been making instruments for over thirty years and began to make reeds to enable him to understand the workings of every part of the instrument with the objective of achieving maximum quality..
Price : from 20 euros all taxes included
Les poches
The bags made by Tudual Hervieux are among the most sought- after at the present time. Thanks to their quality which marries tradition and innovation, these bags have convinced more and more pipers throughout the world.
Tudual’s concept of bag-making is the result of several years of research to source the best raw material. Sheepskin, cow- hide, hemp, glue, wax…nothing has been left to chance ! He even travelled to the tannery in Scotland in order to verify the quality of their product. Tudual has reached the summits of excellence and today he offers not only the most sought-after Scottish pipe-bags, but also bags for the biniou and veuze.
Every procedure is carried out by hand – no machines allowed. He has produced a very fine item with perfect consistency thanks to his careful work carried out to suit the morphology of the client.
His collaboration with pipers such as Hervé Le Floc’h (piping teacher and Pipe-major of the Cap Caval bagad) or Jean-Yves Herlédan ( teacher at the Music Conservatory of Quimper), has allowed him to reach a point of excellence where he can now offer straight cut or swan neck bags to clients. The workshop will clean, season and tie in stocks at the customer’s request.
Price/ from 170 euros all taxes included.
Our retail shops:
- In Scotland:
MG Reeds - In New Zealand:
Bryce Bagipes - In Australia:
St Kilda Retail
The TEMZ'
The seasoning TEMZ’ produced by Hervieux is suitable for all animal hide bags. It is carefully prepared using a top secret formula and is 100% airtight for all leather bags. Tests carried out on this product have revealed a net increase in humidity absorption and even extends the lifetime of your bag.
This seasoning is proving the most popular with pipe bands and soloists alike… and it even smells nice!
Associated Items
Our professionalism is not limited to our instruments ! We are also at your service for the supply of quality items thanks to our wide rangeof suppliers.
These articles are intended to enhance your performance on your instruments – to help protect them and to maintain them properly. You will find everything you need in our shop !
Absorbers
- Stabilisers
- Containers
- Absorbers
Reeds
- biniou reeds
- bombarde reeds
- biniou drone reeds (plastic or cane)
- Anches bourdons de cornemuse écossaise
- chanter reeds
- practice chanter reeds
- biniou chanter reeds
- veuze reeds
Tin whistle
- Tin whistles in every key
Practice chanters (Blackwood, plastic, boxwood)
- junior size
- Long size
- Standard size
Bungs
- drone bungs
- stock bungs
- ear-plugs (hearing protectors)
Cords
- Silk cords (white, violet, royal blue, dark blue, green ; black, red, gold silk, silver silk)
Blowpipes
- blowpipes
- blowpipe tips
- teeth protectors (rubber)
Instrument Maintenance
- Waxed thread (black/yellow)
- Plain thread (yellow)
- Tying-in twine
- Temz’ (bag seasoning)
- Soft cleaning rods
- Sets of nylon brushes
- Tunetape (adhesive tape for chanters)
- Oil
- Grease
- Resin
- Chanter reed protector
Cases
- for Bombarde
- for biniou
- for small pipe
- Bagpiper case
- duffle(textile) bag
- protective cover for case
Covers
- Tartan covers
- Corduroy covers (with, or without zip), and velcro
- Smooth velvet covers with, or without zip, and velcro
Tutor Books and Collections
- Bombarde tutors
- Bagpipe tutor by J-C Le Moigne ( bks. 1, 2 &3)
- 3 DVDs « The bombarde and its cousins)
- Collection of Dance Tunes by P. Sicard (2 volumes)
- Bagpipe tutor, Robert Wallace vol.1
Metronomes and Tuners
- Korg Metronomes
- Korg Tuners
Bags and Accessories
- Scottish pipe-bag / sheepskin/ sheepskin swan neck
- Scottish pipe-bag / sheepskin straight cut
- Scottish pipe bag/cow-hide
- Temz’ bagpipe seasoning for leather bags)
- Scottish pipe-bag synthetic, Canmore-Goretex + zip
- Scottish pipe-bag Bannatyne WMC hide and Goretex
- Scottish pipe-bag Bannatyne WMC hide and Goretex +zip
- Poche cornemuse écossaise Bannatyme cuir et goretex
- Biniou bag hide
- Veuze bag hide
Valves
- Drone stop valves
- Ross Valves
- Biniou valves
- Valves with copper mounts