Lindsay System Scottish Smallpipes

Availability & ordering
When complete sets of Lindsay System Scottish Smallpipes are in stock, they will be listed here and can be purchased directly via this page. At other times, please allow up to two months from placing an order here until dispatch of your pipes.

If preferred, advance orders can be placed via the deposit link, with a 50% deposit on ordering and 50% prior to dispatch (see that page for current turnaround times).

For questions or to discuss options, contact lindstruments@gmail.com or @lindstruments on social media. New members are always welcome in the “Lindsay System Chanter” Facebook group.

Instrument overview
Lindsay System Scottish Smallpipes are an innovative set of smallpipes built around the Lindsay System chanter – a keyless, extended-range Scottish smallpipes chanter with a practical range of almost three octaves.

The project has been covered in detail in a series of articles in the National Piping Centre’s magazine Piping Today (2018–2020), and was featured on Scottish TV’s “Live at Five” (24 January 2018).

About the chanter
The Lindsay System Chanter was developed by Donald WG Lindsay in Scotland between 2006 and 2018. It is the original Lindsay System smallpipes chanter and the core of Lindstruments’ work. Workshop plans were published in Piping Today issue 97, and a growing community of makers and players is supported via the Facebook groups “Lindsay System Chanter” and “LSC Makers Circle”.

In January 2019, three significant Lindsay System prototype sets were added to the museum collection of The National Piping Centre in Glasgow.

For more detail on the chanter’s design and capabilities, including video and audio, please select Chanter Information from the menu.

Hear the chanter
Listen to the Lindsay System Chanter in context on these recordings:

Drones
To support the full range of the Lindsay System Chanter, these smallpipes are supplied with four drones, along the lines of an A/D combination set:

• Bass A/B

• Baritone D/E

• Tenor A/B

• Alto D/E

The inclusion of an alto D/E drone provides better support for second-register playing on the Lindsay System Chanter and improved drone support when playing in D and G.

Bag, reeds and stocks
Each set is supplied with:

• Eezedrone synthetic drone reeds (Pipe Dreams)

• A cane chanter reed

• A Canmore hybrid bag

The main stock and blowpipe stock use a screw-threaded clamping system rather than traditional tying-in. Any replacement Canmore bags purchased via Lindstruments are pre-cut with holes precisely sized for these screw-threaded clamps. Bags can be supplied in large, medium or small as required.

Brass linings
Drones are currently fully brass-lined, top and bottom. The tuning chamber of each drone is formed entirely from thin-walled brass. This approach, used by Donald throughout his smallpiping career, is intended to provide a clear, resonant, stable tone.

O-rings and joints
The entire set uses O-rings in dovetail grooves for airtightness. Drone stock tenons are screw-threaded to avoid slippage while tuning. Tuning slide joints are still hemped in the traditional way, allowing the player to set slide firmness to taste.

Drone stop caps
Four decorative end caps hang on short hand-twisted cords from the drones. Each cap has an O-ring in its circumference that fits into a groove around the top of each drone, with a second O-ring on the drone end to give a double seal when the drone is stopped.

Bellows
As of September 2018, Lindsay System smallpipes are supplied as standard with bellows made by Niall Kelleher, available in either large “uilleann” size or 3/4 smallpipe size.

Bag cover and finish
Sets come as standard with a teal velvet bag cover made to measure by Debbie Covers and Crafts of Glasgow. The cover is edged with a patterned gold-coloured trim, and drone cords are coloured to match the set. Alternative materials and colours are available on request.

Shipping
Shipping is arranged by courier once your pipes are ready; shipping payment is taken at that point.

Within the UK, we normally use tracked, insured services suitable for high-value instruments.

For overseas orders, including the USA and Canada, we can arrange fully insured courier shipping and are happy to provide weight and dimensions if you prefer to organise your own courier. We’ll confirm options and cost with you before dispatch.

Materials and further information
Lindstruments is known within the Scottish piping and traditional music community for the use of new materials and manufacturing processes. For more about this aspect of the work, please follow the link on this page.

A regular Facebook live workshop covers technique and repertoire for these pipes and includes live Q&A. To take part, send a join request to the Lindsay System Chanter Facebook group.