The Spanish word
"gaita" comes from the Gothic word "gaits"
(The Goths were a Germanic tribe who invaded Spain after the fall
of Rome). This word is also used in Balkan languages ("Gaida"
in Hungary, "Gainda" in Crete or "Gayda" in
Yugoslavia), and means "goat", becuase the
pipe bag is traditionally made of goatskin. The Latin word
"Cornamusa" is used in France, Italy and Eastern Spain.
The Asturian Pipe was first attested in the
Middle Ages, but it's quite probable that it is considerably
older, like most Atlantic Pipes. The Asturian pipe is a folk
instrument used by the country folk, and it became a part of
daily life: parties, funerals, masses... and even was accepted by
the nobility.
 |
Drone and blowpipe from the XVIII-XIX century, the most ancient pieces know about asturian pipe.
It was find in Colunga (little village in eastern Asturias). |
The first evidence for the
Asturian bagpipe is dated at the Thirteenth Century.This
deciption us a piper can be seen in a column of the
gothic church called Santa Maria of Villaviciosa "La
Oliva". The piper in question is a hog. Another can
be seen in a miniature from the book "Libro
de la regla colorada"(Fourteenth
Century), in which the piper is a hare. The draw is a
rabbit playing the pipe, or in a gothic set of chairs of
Oviedo Cathedral of a pig playing the pipe. |
 Detalle sillería gótica Catedral de Oviedo/Uviéu |
 El Gaiteru Llibardón |
The bagpipe became so
intertwined in the cultural landscape that by the
beginning of the Sixteenth Century there were already
professional Asturian pipers, as evidenced in the
parochial records of Asturias. The evolution of the
instrument in this period was minimal. Until the
early Nineteenth Century, where the pipes experienced a
resurgence. The pipers of this period are the most famous
in popular memory: Aladino'l d'Amandi
and the Gaiteru Llibardon.
The second of these participateed in the Universal Expo
(EXPO) in Paris, 1889, representing Spain at it's
pavilion, and later in Milan (Italy) he cut the first
known recording on the Asturian bagpipe. |
At the beginning of this
century, the bagpipe lost prestige and following, with
few amateurs pipers remaining, such as the piper José
Remis Ovalle (The Best Piper in
Spain, a title given by the King of Spain to the best
piper in the nation during his reign), or the Veriña
piper. Only during the revival of
the late 70's did the Asturian pipe recuperate and
achieve it's greatest splender. Pipes are being made with
new techniques, with perfect tuning and octave and a
half. Asturian pipe bands are appearing, musical lessons
has been introduced in the learning process, methodbooks
have appeared, folk groups... everything. |
Remis Ovalle. Spanish Major Piper |
In the last years the pipe in Asturias start to introduce
with Asturias Simphony Orchestra, and one piper, called Jose Angel Hevia, sold
more than 1.650.000 CD with his MIDI Asturian Pipe playing traditional
asturian music with pop rithms. The pipe bands, with some luthiers, are introducing a second and third drone (but third it's not traditional), and the tone are in B flat, when in Asturias the tones were always between B and D. The Scottish influence has made a big polemic between traditional and evoliotonist in pipe bands. Now most of the Pipe Bands use a B flat tone and one or two drones. Also we can found asturian pipes in the nearest regions to Asturias, and one hybrid with galician pipe in the frontier between both regions. |
 Alfonso Fdez., Pipe Museum of Gijon Director with the asturian MIDI pipe. Photo Pablo Arce. With the permission of the Pipe Museum of Gijón. |