One of our most treasured family sets of pipes are 100 years old this year. They were made for John McDougall Snr in 1920 by a local cabinet maker Charles Ewen from Aboyne. There were 2 sets made one for John and one for his brother Billy we don’t know where the other set might be. Pipes made by Charles Ewen are extremely rare and internationally important. They have certain qualities that make them extremely stable in terms of tone regardless of the conditions or reeds. The Ewen family were well known pipers and tutors in the North east of Scotland. Often when the big pipe makers of the central belt were flat out busy they would sub-contract work out to suitably skilled folk around Scotland, and Charlie was one of these workers. The experience he gained from manufacturing the various design of pipes from the leading makers would have given him the knowledge to use the best of design in his own pipes.
Charles was tutor to Bob Brown, who became “The Queen’s Piper” and one of the famous Balmoral Bob’s. Bob Brown became the world’s leading exponent of the style of Piobaireachd know as the Balmoral style and was later mentor to John A McDougall who would travel by bus from Aberdeen and then walk to Finzeen for lessons with Bob.
We call these pipes the Glentanar pipes because it was where John Snr was born and lived for a good portion of his life.
They are made from African blackwood with ivory projecting mounts, ferrules and caps. The set have been played almost continuously since the day they were made. When John Snr died in 1984, they were “kept going” by his son, John McDougall, who passed them on to his grandson Scott.
The pipes feature heavily in our family C/D A wee bit o a tune, being played by both John Snr and Scott on all of their tracks.