Uilleann or Union bagpipe made by William Rowsome, Dublin, 1898 played by Kevin Rowsome (audio clip)

The tune, an air or lament, 'Staker Wallace', is played by Kevin Rowsome on a set of Uilleann pipes pitched in C sharp; the pipes were made by his great grandfather, William Rowsome of Dublin. The air commemorates a patriot hero in the Rebellion of 1898 who defended the walls of Limerick City using only a stake. The tune makes full use of the extended melodic range of the Uilleann pipe chanter and of the harmonic possibilities of the regulators.

The Uilleann bagpipe has been made in a variety of keys or pitches, and sets in non-standard tunings are generally known as 'flat sets'. This set made in Dublin in about 1898 is pitched in C sharp.

Available on CD: 'The Rowsome Tradition' (Kelero 001).

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