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Scholars have long provided bagpipes with a creation myth that stretches back to the ancient Near East, where they supposedly appear in the biblical Book of Daniel. It then has the Greeks playing them and Roman legions carrying them to the ends of the Empire. But Michael Peter Vereno's The Voice of the Wind calls this story into question. Using linguistic analysis, Vereno shows that the oldest 'evidence' is often dubious at best and demonstrates that supposed ancient stories of bagpipe origins- and sometimes even their names-were later scholarly creations to give them a respectable, ancient pedigree. His erudite examination calls into question many conclusions and settled 'facts' to reveal a more enlightening story of bagpipe origins. It redefines its field and represents a significant contribution to historical organology. Readers with an interest in modern bagpipes, the history of instruments, and the interpretation of ancient and more recent textual sources will all find something to engage them and complicate their beliefs.
About the author
Michael Vereno is a musician, researcher, and event organizer from Salzburg, Austria. Born in 1986, he has been playing the bagpipes since his youth. He holds a PhD in historical linguistics and is an active member of the Austrian early music ensemble Unisonus. Vereno is also an active solo performer and works as a private instructor for several Central European bagpipes. Since 2016, he has been the co-organizer of the Austrian bagpipe & drone music festival "sunnseitn bordun", taking place biennially at Kremsmünster.
