If you can think of any more bagpipe terms that haven’t been included here please comment on this thread and I will include them!

A device attached to the blowpipe stock designed to catch water from the player’s breath, in order to prevent the reeds from getting wet.

Valves are used in most types of bagpipes to close off the air entry point (the blowpipe), although some pipers simply closed the end of their blowpipe when they took a breath.

Vent Holes

On the Highland bagpipe chanter, the vent holes are two holes with produce low G; the reason for the term vent holes is unclear.

(The) Voice

An American publication dedicated to piping.

Removing material from the underneath of a finger hole to sharpen the note on the chanter without changing the shape of the hole.

Union

An early name for Uilleann Pipes.

Unison

In pipe bands, the term unison normally refers to how closely melody players are playing together.

Urlar

Gaelic word for Ground. See Piobaireachd above.

An onomatapoeic decription of a short melodic figure in Scottish music. It generally consists of a short note, on the beat, which is followed by a long note a second or third below.

Taorluath

A fundamental embellishment in Highland bagpipe playing, a more complex version of the GDE pattern.

Tenon

Connects the pipes to the stocks of a pipe. Tenons are typically wrapped with waxed thread. Cork, o-rings, and other materials are also sometimes employed for this purpose. Italian pipes use bare tapered tenons mating into tapered sockets, and screw threads carved into wood or ivory are also seen.

Tempradura

A prelude played by Spanish bagpipers as a warmup exercise; perhaps a prelude appropriate to set the mood for the concert piece.

Throat

The internal bore of the chanter between the reed seat and the top hole. The shape of this is critical.

Throw on D

An embellishment on the D of the Highland bagpipe chanter not dissimilar to the grip.

Tight Fingering

See closed fingering.

Tipping

A series of short staccato notes played on the Uilleann pipes.

Tongue

The vibrating element of a drone reed which has a single vibrating element. Chanter reeds have two vibrating elements or blades.

Tuning Pins

Also know as tuning slides, the sections of the drone that when mated together allow the overall length to be adjusted in order to bring the drone into tune.