It is called the Picardy bagpipe or pipasso. A popular instrument in the region, which has set the tone and atmosphere at many balls and festive events. Fallen into oblivion, his practice has been brought up to date for several years by the company AMUSéON.
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The members of the AMUSéON company, based in the Somme, are sound smugglers, lovers of traditional music that they bring back into the air. And in Picardy, many people agree that they have largely contributed to the revival of a forgotten instrument, the pipasso or Picardy bagpipe.
The pipasso has even become central in their productions, a joyful and festive music that fits well with the instrument. “The sound of this little bagpipe is cheerful, joyful and it attracted me, I found it very nice and I wanted to take it over”. says musician Ghislaine Desmaris. A task not so easy, because no one knew how to play it anymore. “There was no longer any traditional ringer, the last one having died in 1936. Since then we had heard more”.
But fascinated by the instrument, Ghislaine Desmaris managed to tame it. On stage, she surrounds herself with other musicians, like her husband who plays the accordion. There is also a violinist and a percussionist. The latter had to adapt his instrument to the particular sound of the pipasso. “All my skins are animal and I learned to ride my drums myself explains Jean Caron. I have goat, veal…I learned to manage this sound that you don’t have at all with plastic skins”.
Between covers of traditional Picardy songs and new creations, the company offers a varied register that hits the mark in the region. “We wanted to make people here proud again and tell them that we have great music here too” adds Ghislaine Desmaris. Balls, brass bands, street performances, thanks to the company, the festive sound of the pipasso resounds again throughout the region.