‘Gaillard’ Musette

Although this instrument is unsigned, it is typical of the ‘Gaillard’ musettes presumably produced in the late nineteenth century, which all present similar features: small, mouthblown bagpipes made from ivory, with lavish textile bags. The blowpipe, melodic pipe, and parallel drone, as well as the round-headed stocks, are entirely made of ivory. The melodic pipe is fitted with a double reed. The drone is plugged with cork, a common occurrence in nineteenth century bagpipes. The melodic pipe bears the trace of a small key that might have been added to the lower double key-hole.

All three pipes are adorned with a raised ring within which are cut hemispherical beads, a pattern found across many ‘Gaillard’ musettes. The lower end of the melodic pipe also features a small, serrated pattern, carved into a raised groove. The insufflation pipe is decorated with a helical-grooved ring. The main stock is embellished with the beaded and serrated patterns. The double pipe stock is adorned with a round medallion featuring a small scene. Dr Anna Rigg, eighteenth-century French art historian, identified this as a typical flirtatious scene in a pastoral setting. A well-dressed man in a long jacket is talking to a shepherdess in billowing skirts leaning against a tree. Her skirts are raised, showing some ankle, a common occurrence in these racy scenes. Rigg points out, however, that the lady’s hairstyle, beret-like hat and squared neckline are reminiscent of nineteenth century fashion, which supports Libin’s dating of these instruments.

The leather bag has a silk cover that textile-expert Elena Kanagy-Loux identified as an eighteenth-century pattern. The silk bag itself may date either from the nineteenth or eighteenth century; it seems to be older than the instrument according to textile conservator Nouko Kajtani (1997, instrument file). The bag is trimmed with galloon, which would have been more expensive due to the use of metallic threads and increased complexity in its manufacture. The stock opening features a long fringe, and the bag is closed with an intricately designed blue ribbon.

‘Gaillard’ musettes were instruments that were made for display; it is unlikely that they were played as the instruments have uneven internal bores (Libin 1997:172). They feature on late nineteenth century and early twentieth century paintings as props for romantic portraits of ladies (Montbel 2017). Despite their appearance in late nineteenth century, these objects were made to fit into a French eighteenth century aesthetic. The delicate textile bags, the elaborate trimmings and ribbons, the ivory parallel pipes, and the overall appearance of these musettes place them in the same aesthetic continuum as the baroque musette, an instrument played by the French upper class in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. They are intentionally confusing in terms of their dating: until Laurence Libin’s research published in 1997, many of these instruments were assumed to be from the eighteenth century, as far back as 1700. To add to this confusion, some of the textiles used for Gaillard musette covers could be from the eighteenth century, firmly placing them in a pre-revolutionary aesthetic.

These instruments were commercial products most likely made for wealthy customers with a penchant for antiquities, which included musical instrument collectors (Libin 1997:170). Instruments that feature the same aesthetic features as this musette are marked P.G. or P. Gaillard. To date, no bagpipe workshop with this name has been identified in France or Belgium. Eric Montbel suggests that Gaillard might not an instrument maker at all: this could be the stamp of an art dealer, a collector or a maker of fine objects (Montbel 2017:568). The success of this model amongst the collectors is evidenced by the presence of multiple examples of these bagpipes in Europe’s and North America’s private and museum collections (see Libin’s list 1997:176-7).

(Cassandre Balosso-Bardin, 2023)

Technical description

Conical single chanter of ivory 267 mm, 7/1 holes, 2 ventholes, 1 key (missing), narrow double cane reed on tin staple, wire tuning bridle;
1 drone in 2 sections 199 mm, cylindrical bore, reed missing;
Ivory conical insufflation pipe 135 mm, leather flapper valve;
Leather bag with silk tapestry cover trimmed with gold braid, beige fringe and blue ribbons;
1 cylindrical ivory stock for blowpipe, 1 cylindrical double ivory stock for chanter and drone;
Ivory pipes and chanter stock with grooved, beaded and turned decorations, chanter stock with round plaque on front with figures carved in relief.

References
Laurence LIBIN, 1997. ‘Seeking the source of the Gaillard cornemuses’, Musique-Images-Instruments n° 3, p.168-177.

Montbel, Eric, 2017. ‘Les Musettes Gaillard des cornemuses d’ameublement’ in La Cabrette -　Histoire et technique d’une cornemuse, ed. A. Ricros, E. Montbel, D. Perre.　Riom: Amta, p.559- 585.