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Uilleann piping 1
Uilleann piping 2
Uilleann piping 3
Uilleann piping 4
Uilleann piping 5
© UNESCO · Wikimedia Commons
UNESCO ICHRepresentative ListInscribed 2017

Uilleann piping

Practised In

Overview

Uilleann piping is a musical practice which uses a particular type of bagpipe (known as the ‘uilleann’, ‘Irish’ or ‘union’ pipes) to play Irish music. It is a highly developed instrument with strong roots in tradition dating back many generations. Bearers and practitioners are dispersed throughout the world, but the greatest concentration is in Ireland and Irish communities abroad. Uilleann piping offers an important way of socializing and plays an integral role in life events such as marriages and funerals, where it provides a sense of rootedness and a connection to the past. The most highly valued method of transmission is the practice of one-to-one, master-to-student instruction, but transmission also occurs through more modern methods such as video and DVD tutorials and the internet. The most prominent group involved in safeguarding Uilleann piping is Na Píobairí Uilleann (NPU), which was founded in 1968 by pipers with a mission to stop the decline of the instrument. Through a programme of research, publications, tuition and training, the NPU has contributed to a huge increase in the use and appreciation of the instrument and its music, resulting in a flowering of the art in modern times, with more players than in any previous period.

About Uilleann piping

The uilleann pipes, also known as Union pipes and sometimes called Irish pipes, are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland. Their current name is a partial translation of the Irish language terms píobaí uilleann, from their method of inflation. There is no historical record of the name or use of the term uilleann pipes before the 20th century. The name was an invention of Grattan Flood and it stuck. People mistook the term "union" to refer to the 1800 Act of Union; however, this is incorrect as Breandán Breathnach points out that a poem published in 1796 uses the term "union".

Read more on Wikipedia

Domains

Details

Country
Ireland
Inscribed
2017
Register
Representative List
Reference
1264
View on UNESCO ICH website
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