---
title: "Scottish bagpipe (Great Highland Bagpipe)"
slug: scottish-bagpipe
type: concept
definition: "The Great Highland Bagpipe, the Scottish bagpipe, is a mouth-blown bagpipe with three drones (one bass and two tenor) and a fixed-scale conical chanter of nine notes, historically tied to military regiments and the pipe band tradition."
synonyms: ["Great Highland Bagpipe", "pipe band bagpipe", "highland bagpipe"]
publishedAt: 2026-08-12
---
The **Scottish bagpipe** —the Great Highland Bagpipe— is the best-known bagpipe in the world. It is mouth-blown, like the [Asturian gaita](/en/concepto/gaita-asturiana), but splits the air pressure across three drones (one bass and two tenor, tuned to the octave and the lower octave of the tonic) and a fixed-scale, keyless conical chanter in the mixolydian mode with nine notes.

It became established as an instrument of war and military parade, tied to the Scottish regiments, and today lives on mainly through competition **pipe bands** and the solo *piobaireachd* tradition.

It belongs to the [Atlantic arc](/en/concepto/arco-atlantico) of European bagpipes, alongside the Asturian, Galician, Irish uilleann and Breton bagpipes.