Global Patents
U.S. Patent No. 5,959,226
"Reversible double-tongued drone reeds are more stable, versatile, and offer a greater harmonic depth," said Wygent, who manufactures his reeds for his family's cottage industry, Wygent Reeds. International patents for the reed are also pending.
Wygent, an open (professional) class bagpiper, took up bagpiping as a child eager to please his grandparents, immigrants from Fraserburgh, Scotland. The red-haired Detroit, Mi. lad soon developed a passion for piping. His quest for "the ultimate sound" and good reeds soon led him to begin making his own hand-crafted bagpipe reeds in 1981.
"Reed making has always been a very closely guarded trade and I had a hard time finding help getting started," the reed maker recalled. "That turned out not to be a bad thing because I did not approach the craft of reed making with preconceived ideas of the way things should be. I learned to be resourceful enough to solve my own problems, make my own tools, and make reeds that would please my own ear."
To play the Great Highland Bagpipe, a piper blows air into a hide or synthetic bag and uses gentle arm pressure to force air into the three drones (two tenor and one bass) which produce the bagpipe's unique loud and harmonious droning sound. Tunes, from haunting slow airs to foot-pounding reels, are fingered on the bagpipe chanter, a flute-like instrument which keeps nine of a piper's 10 fingers quite busy.
According to Wygent, reed makers in Scotland, America, Canada and Australia are presently dancing a hornpipe to keep up with the recent world-wide demand for bagpipe drone and chanter reeds.
"I don't know of a reed maker who doesn't have a waiting list," Wygent said. "There is a great interest in Celtic music in general and bagpiping in particular. I think it has something to do with our collective need to know the origins of our families, and the fact that our society is becoming so mobile and fragmented. Once you take up the pipes you find you are part of a big world-wide community," said Wygent. "Some pipers really enjoy the camaraderie of playing in a band, and going to a Highland Games to compete is, in some ways, like a family reunion," he said.
"This might be good for business, but there is a down side," commented Wygent. "Many people are taking up the pipes and attempting to teach themselves, and many others are learning from pipers who are not qualified to teach. Reed makers end up doing a lot of coaching by telephone and email."
Wearing a telephone head set which allows him to keep his hands working in his cluttered basement workshop, Wygent dispenses tuning advice and reed tips to pipers throughout the world. Until fairly recently, the vast majority of bagpipe drone and chanter reeds have been made from arundo donax, cane grown in the Mediterranean regions of France and Spain.
"Quality cane reeds have a wonderful sound, but they do have their problems, particularly when the weather becomes wet and cold," Wygent said. During the past two decades Great Highland Bagpipe reed makers began experimenting with synthetic materials.
In 1995 Wygent introduced the SYNTHE-DRONE™ drone reed, a drone reed machined from a wood-based polymer featuring an adjustable plastic tongue and tuning pin. "The reed has the nice warm sound of cane, but is generally more reliable and works more dependably when ambient conditions turn bleak," said Wygent, pointing out that SYNTHE-DRONE™ reeds inspired William Livingstone of Whitby, Ont., pipe major of the 78th Fraser Highlanders, to comment, "You've tamed the beast."
Wygent said that although the original SYNTHE-DRONE™ design was patentable, he could not afford a patent at the time, and the reed has since inspired several spin-offs from overseas. "Bagpipe exports are a part of the U.K. economy and there are many forces there working to keep it that way," said Wygent.
"It was disappointing after spending so much time and money developing our reed, and coaching pipers to work with it, to see the design appropriated," Wygent said. "On the other hand," he said, "I am proud of my family's link to Scotland and very pleased that the design has been so widely accepted. It became obvious, though, that any further improvements and design innovations would require patent protection."
Wygent is making two different bagpipe drone reeds which will be protected by his patent. SYNTHE-DRONE2™ reeds, which Wygent recommends for intermediate players, incorporate the patented reversible format and new polymer materials. DUATONE™ drone reeds, which Wygent considers to be his premier reed, features twin opposing tongues, the reversible format and new polymer materials. They are recommended for top solo and band players.
"Reed makers including myself have made inverted-tongue drone reeds for years but the patented reversible reed seat offers pipers the ability to take a reed and maximize their tuning," said Wygent. "The same reed can produce one sound for solo work and another for a band."
According to the reed maker, reverse-tongue reeds generally tend to play with a more mellow intonation, pitch slightly higher, and will be more stable in problem drones. They can also be a boon to a piper playing a set of pipes with a slightly warped drone or mismatched drone lengths, both of which can cause disturbed air flow.
"They can also help a piper to achieve a better tonal blend," Wygent said. "For example, if a piper has a set of pipes with a strong bass, he can adjust the reed to mellow the bass to blend better with the tenors. And if the piper is plagued with one louder tenor drone, he can reverse the reed to quiet the errant tenor," he said.
"The DUATONE™ drone reed incorporates the patented reversible advantages, but the two tongues seem to give you the harmonic equivalent of two reeds in every drone," Wygent said. "With two tongues you have a more stable reed with a greater depth of harmonics. They're very smooth. "You would think two tongues might require more air, but actually the reverse is true," commented Wygent. "When properly set up they actually blow as easy or easier than a single-tongued reed, due to an equalization of pressure." Wygent recommends DUATONE™ drone reeds for advanced players already thoroughly familiar with his synthetic drone reeds.
Wygent, a sole proprietor, said he plans also to continue to manufacture his original SYNTHE-DRONE™ drone reed, along with a limited amount of cane pipe chanter, and plastic practice chanter reeds.
"These are not quickly-made mass-market reeds, so I anticipate being very busy for the foreseeable future," said Wygent. "I do hope one day to be able to train apprentices, pass the skill on, and innovate more," he said. "Bagpipe reed makers are some of piping's best ambassadors, and we need to do everything we can to preserve and advance both bagpipe playing and our own craft," Wygent said.
PRESS RELEASE: Australia Awards Patent to U.S. Reedmaker
PRESS RELEASE: New Zealand Grants Patent to American Reedmaker
PRESS RELEASE: Canada and United Kingdom Award Patents to American Reedmaking Enterprise
September 28, 1999
An American bagpipe reed maker, the grandson of Scottish immigrants, has been granted a United States patent for a Scottish bagpipe drone reed. "This is the first patent, to the best of our knowledge, ever granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for a bagpipe drone reed," said Mark Wygent. Wygent, 48 years of age, was granted U.S. Patent No. 5,959,226 for reversible, double-tongued drone reeds."Reversible double-tongued drone reeds are more stable, versatile, and offer a greater harmonic depth," said Wygent, who manufactures his reeds for his family's cottage industry, Wygent Reeds. International patents for the reed are also pending.
Wygent, an open (professional) class bagpiper, took up bagpiping as a child eager to please his grandparents, immigrants from Fraserburgh, Scotland. The red-haired Detroit, Mi. lad soon developed a passion for piping. His quest for "the ultimate sound" and good reeds soon led him to begin making his own hand-crafted bagpipe reeds in 1981.
"Reed making has always been a very closely guarded trade and I had a hard time finding help getting started," the reed maker recalled. "That turned out not to be a bad thing because I did not approach the craft of reed making with preconceived ideas of the way things should be. I learned to be resourceful enough to solve my own problems, make my own tools, and make reeds that would please my own ear."
To play the Great Highland Bagpipe, a piper blows air into a hide or synthetic bag and uses gentle arm pressure to force air into the three drones (two tenor and one bass) which produce the bagpipe's unique loud and harmonious droning sound. Tunes, from haunting slow airs to foot-pounding reels, are fingered on the bagpipe chanter, a flute-like instrument which keeps nine of a piper's 10 fingers quite busy.
According to Wygent, reed makers in Scotland, America, Canada and Australia are presently dancing a hornpipe to keep up with the recent world-wide demand for bagpipe drone and chanter reeds.
"I don't know of a reed maker who doesn't have a waiting list," Wygent said. "There is a great interest in Celtic music in general and bagpiping in particular. I think it has something to do with our collective need to know the origins of our families, and the fact that our society is becoming so mobile and fragmented. Once you take up the pipes you find you are part of a big world-wide community," said Wygent. "Some pipers really enjoy the camaraderie of playing in a band, and going to a Highland Games to compete is, in some ways, like a family reunion," he said.
"This might be good for business, but there is a down side," commented Wygent. "Many people are taking up the pipes and attempting to teach themselves, and many others are learning from pipers who are not qualified to teach. Reed makers end up doing a lot of coaching by telephone and email."
Wearing a telephone head set which allows him to keep his hands working in his cluttered basement workshop, Wygent dispenses tuning advice and reed tips to pipers throughout the world. Until fairly recently, the vast majority of bagpipe drone and chanter reeds have been made from arundo donax, cane grown in the Mediterranean regions of France and Spain.
"Quality cane reeds have a wonderful sound, but they do have their problems, particularly when the weather becomes wet and cold," Wygent said. During the past two decades Great Highland Bagpipe reed makers began experimenting with synthetic materials.
In 1995 Wygent introduced the SYNTHE-DRONE™ drone reed, a drone reed machined from a wood-based polymer featuring an adjustable plastic tongue and tuning pin. "The reed has the nice warm sound of cane, but is generally more reliable and works more dependably when ambient conditions turn bleak," said Wygent, pointing out that SYNTHE-DRONE™ reeds inspired William Livingstone of Whitby, Ont., pipe major of the 78th Fraser Highlanders, to comment, "You've tamed the beast."
Wygent said that although the original SYNTHE-DRONE™ design was patentable, he could not afford a patent at the time, and the reed has since inspired several spin-offs from overseas. "Bagpipe exports are a part of the U.K. economy and there are many forces there working to keep it that way," said Wygent.
"It was disappointing after spending so much time and money developing our reed, and coaching pipers to work with it, to see the design appropriated," Wygent said. "On the other hand," he said, "I am proud of my family's link to Scotland and very pleased that the design has been so widely accepted. It became obvious, though, that any further improvements and design innovations would require patent protection."
Wygent is making two different bagpipe drone reeds which will be protected by his patent. SYNTHE-DRONE2™ reeds, which Wygent recommends for intermediate players, incorporate the patented reversible format and new polymer materials. DUATONE™ drone reeds, which Wygent considers to be his premier reed, features twin opposing tongues, the reversible format and new polymer materials. They are recommended for top solo and band players.
"Reed makers including myself have made inverted-tongue drone reeds for years but the patented reversible reed seat offers pipers the ability to take a reed and maximize their tuning," said Wygent. "The same reed can produce one sound for solo work and another for a band."
According to the reed maker, reverse-tongue reeds generally tend to play with a more mellow intonation, pitch slightly higher, and will be more stable in problem drones. They can also be a boon to a piper playing a set of pipes with a slightly warped drone or mismatched drone lengths, both of which can cause disturbed air flow.
"They can also help a piper to achieve a better tonal blend," Wygent said. "For example, if a piper has a set of pipes with a strong bass, he can adjust the reed to mellow the bass to blend better with the tenors. And if the piper is plagued with one louder tenor drone, he can reverse the reed to quiet the errant tenor," he said.
"The DUATONE™ drone reed incorporates the patented reversible advantages, but the two tongues seem to give you the harmonic equivalent of two reeds in every drone," Wygent said. "With two tongues you have a more stable reed with a greater depth of harmonics. They're very smooth. "You would think two tongues might require more air, but actually the reverse is true," commented Wygent. "When properly set up they actually blow as easy or easier than a single-tongued reed, due to an equalization of pressure." Wygent recommends DUATONE™ drone reeds for advanced players already thoroughly familiar with his synthetic drone reeds.
Wygent, a sole proprietor, said he plans also to continue to manufacture his original SYNTHE-DRONE™ drone reed, along with a limited amount of cane pipe chanter, and plastic practice chanter reeds.
"These are not quickly-made mass-market reeds, so I anticipate being very busy for the foreseeable future," said Wygent. "I do hope one day to be able to train apprentices, pass the skill on, and innovate more," he said. "Bagpipe reed makers are some of piping's best ambassadors, and we need to do everything we can to preserve and advance both bagpipe playing and our own craft," Wygent said.
PRESS RELEASE: Australia Awards Patent to U.S. Reedmaker
March 23, 2000
The American firm of Wygent Reeds takes great pleasure in announcing the granting of an Australian patent for a unique bagpipe reed. Australian Patent#1999044707 was awarded to the small business on March 23, 2000, approximately seven months after the initial application for coverage on August 25, 1999. "Terrific news. We are very proud, indeed," said Mark Wygent, owner of the business, upon hearing the welcome news. "We will continue to innovate, and to concentrate as always on quality."PRESS RELEASE: New Zealand Grants Patent to American Reedmaker
February 8, 2001
Wygent Reeds is delighted to announce the granting of a patent by New Zealand, for the SYNTHE-DRONE2™ and DUATONE™ drone reed designs. New Zealand Patent No.337411, was granted on February 8, 2001, and covers a period of twenty years, beginning from August 24, 1998. Other foreign patent applications for Wygent's bagpipe reed design are currently pending throughout the world. "Intellectual property protection is a vital component in our small enterprise," said Wygent, "and I am very pleased that our efforts are being recognized."PRESS RELEASE: Canada and United Kingdom Award Patents to American Reedmaking Enterprise