The Kemper Bagad

version française


"Close to half a century has passed since were created the musical groups , mostly Breton , known in the world under the name bagadoù . This evolution, yes it is really one, might have been only an empty attempt to prolong the survival of an art facing a quick decline because it was not able to follow the requirements of our day. This is the contrary which happened. Because the new ringers and their masters have done a long-term job and incessant inventions with a constant calling into question.

They know today the reward for their efforts and also, it must be said, a musical inspiration without which they could not have reached excellence. The best of them succeeded. Among those who reached the success, the Kemper Bagad is certainly the most convincing illustration (...). It is really a first class group.

The project of the bagad and its steps of evolution have matured during a long time , its successive realisations have been submitted , each time , to a correction without concession. It has taken as basis for its repertoire, breton tunes of traditionnal style and has developped contemporary versions . It has extended this repertoire by using the musical legacy of certain countries few or not at all used before. So it gave a new lustre to the danses particularly to the mountain tunes from the land of Pourlet and Plin.

Going farther its basis , it tried to develop the musical possibilities offered by the orchestral expression mode of the bagad . This new concern came out to the original composition of suites in which altern bare melodic lines and refined harmonizations, so enabling group playing like instrumentalists interventions playing their own part , the one of drums and bombardes , by example, whilst the bagpipes execute all the niceties of the fingering technique.

It is obvious that such an undertaking succeeds only by a complete knowledge of the instruments, the group unity and an individual mastery of the performers which enabled the composers to create and to harmonize without being restrained by technical inadequacies.

So the musical approach of the Kemper Bagad is founded on the pursuit of different goals : gathering of the subtlety and of the technical excellence, creation of an original music, synthesis of a well understood tradition and of a controled evolution."

Pierre-Jakez Hélias


The subtle union of tradition and evolution which characterizes the Kemper Bagad explains that it has been hailed , 13 times champion of Brittany of the Bagadoù after a series of annual competitions.

That is why it is regurlaly requested in Brittany and in the whole Europe . Such a success is due to the musical and technical mastery of each of the musicians of the three chapters which compose the formation, these three chapters are : the (bagpipes) cornemuses, the bombardes and the (drums) batterie.


Complementary information :


Contribution Olivier Couet [couet@hphigz.cern.ch]