Where do Hard Ds come from?

[ausdag]

Who knows the physics behind the existence of hard D? What factors go into its existence? I imagine it was purely accidental that it came about. I couldn't imagine any pipemaker thinking 'I'm going to invent a way of making the bottom note sound in two different ways'. More likely someone flicked their A gracenote onto low D and it gave a hint of hardness and so perhaps he went on to try and refine its existence. But what actually happens to the air column and reed head 'stature' to produce it?

Cheers,

DavidG

[Brian Lee]

David, check out this article...it might help to explain a little of what's happening:

http://www.tuftl.tufts.edu/mie/Pubs/uilleann_reed.pdf

[reedman]

Hard "D"'s come from "D Land" that is created under certain
pressures in the upper part of the chanter bore.

[David Lim]

I have heard it is the bottom D attempting to overblow up an octave (as a whistle does) and for some reason failing to do so.

This failed overblow results in a new note (the hard D) with greater higher harmonic content than the proper bottom note (the soft D).

The bottom note will succesfully overblow again to its third mode producing a high A. Commonly referred to as a squeak.

David

[ausdag]

The bottom note will succesfully overblow again to its third mode producing a high A. Commonly referred to as a squeak.

David

That's interesting because I have noticed that when I have a good reed, I can stop the chanter on my leg, lift it, and it will immediately play a hard D which I can repeat over and over - stacatto Hard D. On not-so-good reeds, stopping an lifting like this results in the high A 'squeak'. This suggests that the not-so-good reed is not capable of locking into this 2nd harmonic but goes straight to the third harmonic. Hmmmm...
Cheers,

DavidG

[ausdag]

David, check out this article...it might help to explain a little of what's happening:

http://www.tuftl.tufts.edu/mie/Pubs/uilleann_reed.pdf

Thanks Brian, I'll have a reed..read... of it over a glass of homebrew stout tomorrow.

Cheers,

DavidG

[ausdag]

Hard "D"'s come from "D Land" that is created under certain
pressures in the upper part of the chanter bore.

You mean when a chanter and reed love each other very much?

[Brian Lee]

...This failed overblow results in a new note (the hard D) with greater higher harmonic content than the proper bottom note (the soft D).


David

Ah now David, there are some who would take issue wit yerself for speaking such tings! As we all know the *proper bottom note* is in fact always a HARD D.

[reedman]

Absolutely! "ausdag" Yes I mean when a chanter and reed love each other, things certainly happen in the upper bore of the chanter.

[Joseph E. Smith]

Absolutely! "ausdag" Yes I mean when a chanter and reed love each other, things certainly happen in the upper bore of the chanter.

And here, I have always been of the opinion that the Hard Stork brought the Hard D.

[Jessica Ventura]

Hard "D"'s come from "D Land" that is created under certain
pressures in the upper part of the chanter bore.

You mean they come from D Land down under?

[billh]

but seriously folks

I think there's some question about whether it's a true "multiphonic" or not. My favorite pet theory about it is that it's a chaotic phenomenon, rapidly flipping between two modes.

[ausdag]

Hard "D"'s come from "D Land" that is created under certain
pressures in the upper part of the chanter bore.

You mean they come from D Land down under?

I said 'do you speak a my language'....he just smiled and gave me vegemite sandwich

[ausdag]

but seriously folks

I think there's some question about whether it's a true "multiphonic" or not. My favorite pet theory about it is that it's a chaotic phenomenon, rapidly flipping between two modes.

That's reasonable theory. Given that to play a hard D you have to put the reed under more stress initially than with the soft D (the propper D ) my guess the hard D is occurring under some duress and that could account for its chaotic rapid flipping between the two (or more) harmonics.

DavidG

[Donald E Baltus]

Hard "D"'s come from "D Land" that is created under certain
pressures in the upper part of the chanter bore.

You mean they come from D Land down under?

Or sometimes when a high D ho doesn't use protection.