The Enigmatic Panpipes

A very warm welcome to this site which is dedicated to that most ancient , beautiful and mystical of musical insruments , the Panpipes. This page is primarily dedicated to the rich world of the "Classical" Romanian Panpipes also known as the "Panflute" or the "Nai". An instrument of simple sophistication , the modern Panpipes come alive in the hands of the world's greatest virtuoso performers. From Classical to Light music to the instrument's true home of Romanian Folk Music , there are today , many incredibly talented soloists.

Take time to browse this site , I hope you find it interesting , informative and truly enlightening.

A little about myself. My name is David Pighills and I live in West Yorkshire in the North of England. I am by no means a professional musician nor even accomplished amateur. I am , however , a great lover of this beautiful instrument , its music , its history and its development. It is my ambition to make whatever contribution I can to raising the profile of the Classical Panpipes.

At the top of the page you can see two of my collection of "Ion Preda" instruments and a quick soundbite from a Romanian melody played upon them. The traditional Romanian Panpipes has 20 tubes and a range from B1 to G4. The tubes are arranged in a curve and decrease in length and diameter up the scale. The instrument is traditionally tuned in G major. The established modern variant of the instrument has 22 tubes from G1 to G4 (3 octaves) and larger variants are commonly available.

Ion Preda Panpipes are available from the great teacher , composer and Panpipes expert Costel Puscoiu.

Other superb Panpipes are...Ulitza , Occorso , Kuttner , Dajoeri and others. Prices can vary though between £300 and £800 for a standard 22 tubed instrument.Visit this site Panofon

Great Panpipes Virtuosos

The world's greatest performers include the legendary Gheorghe Zamfir , who first brought the instrument to the west , Germany's Ulrich Herkenhoff , the Romanian born virtuosos - , Simion Stanciu , Damian Luca , Damian Draghici , Radu Simion , Horea Crishan , Cornel Pana , Dana Dragomir , Dragu Voiculets , Nicolae Pirvu , Constantin Dobre , Radu Constantin , Damian Cirlanaru , Costel Puscoiu and the late and great Fanica Luca (who taught Zamfir and others) , the American Brad White , Jos Aerts , Kevin Budd , Esther Erbehart and many more. Read more about these great performers and visit their web sites via the links table at the bottom of this page or visit the U.K.'s first Panpipes site Panflute-UK
 
 

Recent History of the Romanian Panpipes

The Romanian Panpipes were only made really famous in the west following the arrival on the world stage of the great Gheorghe Zamfir , himself a Romanian. Zamfir was "discovered" as such my the famous Swiss Empressario and Ethnomusicologist Marcel Cellier who extensively researched Romanian Folk Music. Zamfir gave performances in the early 1970s in France and Switzerland and was further exposed following the chart success in the United Kingdom of a Romanian lament "Doina de Jale" , played by Zamfir and used as the theme music to a BBC TV series "The Light of Experience". Greater fame and a number of recordings and concerts across the western world accorded Zamfir the tile of " Uncrowned King of the Panpipes". Zamfir's style is unique and instantly recognisable and was instrumental in launching the Panpipes onto the world stage.

Gheorghe Zamfir

Since the 1980s the profile of the Panpipes in Classical music has been significantly raised. This has followed a number of notable recordings of Classical works by Zamfir but , perhaps more significantly , by a fellow Romanian who studied the instrument at the same academy as Zamfir and who has now become known as the "Paganini of the Panpipes". He is Simion Stanciu "Syrinx". Syrinx's performances of classical works are legendary and he displays a formidable playing technique. He has made a number of classical recordings and has been accompanied by many eminent ensembles and soloists.

Simion Stanciu "Syrinx"

Great recognition in the Classical field must also go to a phenomenally talented and young perfromer from Germany , Ulrich Herkenhoff. Herkenhoff has made a number of recordings of classical works with famous orchestras and soloists. His interepretation of Baroque music is second to none. He has also made symphonic and light music recordings of the highest standard. His enormous talent and dedication have earned him the prestigeous and coveted German Echo award for best classical musician in the year 2000.

Ulrich Herkenhoff

Other great names in the Panpipes World

Marcel Cellier.

Marcel Cellier is the great Swiss Organist , Emprassario and Ethnomusicologist. It is he who is responsible for bringing the talent of a number of great Romanian virtuosos to the notice of the west as the result of his extensive research and numerous recordings. It was Marcel Cellier who brought Gheorghe Zamfir to the platform of world fame and whose recordings with Zamfir on Panpipes and himself playing Organ accompaniement have received world recognition. Cellier has also accompanied Simion Stanciu and Ulrich Herkenhoff as well as another Panpipes virtuoso , the Romanian born Horea Crishan. Marcel Cellier's contribution in this area has been massive and his recordings are an absolute must.

Costel Puscoiu.

Costel Puscoiu is a Composer , Musician , Teacher and Panpipes Expert. Romanian born , he is based in Delft in The Netherlands and has penned a number of very authoritative works in relation to the panpipes and Romanian Folk Music as well as many other musical publications. His "New Method for Panpipes" is a world recognised pedagogical work giving a sound and structured programme for learning the Panpipes. His library of musical scores and is extensive. He is Panpipes teacher and Leader of an orchestra at the "Free Academy Westvest" in Delft.


 
 

Advice on Buying Panpipes/Panflutes
 
 

Featured left to right are double-bass , tenor and alto Panpipes

Buying Panpipes is not unlike buying other musical instruments. Go for quality and avoid cheap and cheerful trinkets which have been thrown together to make a tourist souvenir. The makes I have mentioned on this page are all available via the internet and I can vouch for them being quality , professional instruments. Rather than go into detail here about the do's and don'ts of buying your first instrument , I commend you to the advice given by the Canadian Kevin Budd on his excellent web-page. Kevin also makes quality Romanian Panpipes at very reasonable prices.Visit his superb web site. 

Make your own Panpipes

Check out this beginners guide

Recommended CD.........

I will regularly place here a highly recommended recording. First off is "Concertos for Panpipe and Orchestra" featuring the brilliant virtuoso Ulrich Herkenhoff. Herkenhoff is a master of Baroque Music on the Panpipe and this CD displays his remarkable talent. Get this and other great recordings by visiting his web-site The Art of Pan

Great Links and Contacts!!!!!

Below are links to many of the great resources I have already mentioned. There are some excellent web-sites. Please check-out and join the e-groups page "Panflute World" a great discussion and knowledge sharing forum.


Panflute World

(informative chat-room)

Gheorghe Zamfir

(the Legendary Virtuoso)

 Ulrich Herkenhoff

(German Virtuoso , Teacher & Panpipes maker)

 Costel Puscoiu

(Netherlands based Teacher Composer and Panpipes expert)

  Brad White

(American Pan-Flautist , Recording Artist & Professional Musician)

  Kevin Budd

(Canadian Performer , Panpipes maker , Teacher and Expert)

  Marcel Cellier

(Swiss Organist , Ethnomusicologist and Researcher- A great man)

 Matthias Schlubeck

(German Panpipes player , Teacher and Authority)

  Jos Aerts

(Panpipes Player and Authority from The Netherlands)

  Ester Erbehart

(Panpipes Player based in the Netherlands)

  Michael Dinner

(Panpipes Player and Maker)

  Steffen Kuttner

(Superb Panflute Builder from Germany)

  Santi Occorso

(Swiss Panpipes Maker)

  Dajoeri

(Swiss Panpipes Workshop)


 

Please E-Mail me with any comments or queries.