Chiff and Fipple Forums

Geez, An Draighean, I've dreamt about that sort of home all my life! Good for you. And with a natural waterfall on the property, it doesn't get much better than that. What's the wildlife like?

My own vision of an earth-home always had an enclosed courtyard, but that would mean either mounding or digging down, rather than digging laterally into a hill.

Nanohedron wrote:Geez, An Draighean, I've dreamt about that sort of home all my life! Good for you. And with a natural waterfall on the property, it doesn't get much better than that.

Thanks!

Nanohedron wrote:What's the wildlife like?

Very rich and diverse. The family we bought the land from, homesteaded it here in 1853, and before that it was Indian territory (Comanche and Kiowa). Back then, they dairy farmed a large valley, but they have done nothing with the land for 3 generations so it has just gone back to being wild. The "neighbor" to the west is a 4,000-acre cattle ranch, so there is nothing around here to disturb any of the wildlife. We see whitetail deer, turkeys, cottontail rabbits, coyotes, bobcats, red-tailed hawks, and owls frequently. There have been credible sightings of a mountain lion, and one was killed by a car a few miles away on a paved county highway. And a diverse population of other birds and reptiles. Several varieties of wildflowers that bloom at different times of the year, including Texas bluebonnets, and the native pollinators that go with them.

Nanohedron wrote:My own vision of an earth-home always had an enclosed courtyard, but that would mean either mounding or digging down, rather than digging laterally into a hill.

There's many different ways to approach building an earth-sheltered house. The majority I would guess are more like what you want. Building into the hill just seemed the natural thing to do here, because we had a number of north-south oriented hills to choose from, so that our windows could face east.

Livin' the dream. You're a 21st-Century hobbit.

Nanohedron wrote:Livin' the dream. You're a 21st-Century hobbit.

Mrs. Blackthorn hates the H-word (perhaps because she is short?)! Fortunately, she does not read C&F.

One more thing I forgot to mention - the natural reverb under any of the domes is fantastic! Sounds SO good to practice in there, as long as the weather is nice. So easy to hear if everything is in tune or not. Attracts song birds too. I hope it still sounds as good once it is enclosed with doors and windows, and the concrete is plastered over. If it does, we'll have to have some kitchen sessions and some house concerts (if we could get any touring performers and ticket patrons to come out this far in the country).

An Draighean wrote:One more thing I forgot to mention - the natural reverb under any of the domes is fantastic! Sounds SO good to practice in there, as long as the weather is nice. So easy to hear if everything is in tune or not. Attracts song birds too. I hope it still sounds as good once it is enclosed with doors and windows, and the concrete is plastered over. If it does, we'll have to have some kitchen sessions and some house concerts (if we could get any touring performers and ticket patrons to come out this far in the country).

Great.

BigBpiper wrote:

AaronFW wrote:Since not a lot seems to be going on at C&F, I'm curious what other going-ons are going-on for members.

I'm in the middle of buying a house and I have a flute on order... with current estimates, the sale might close and the flute might arrive around the same time (the beginning of May). So that is exciting.

Do you guys have anything exciting or worth talking about?

Exciting! Congratulations on both investments ! I just had two roller coaster weeks as far as performances go. Two weeks ago, I was performing a few times with some friends from Ireland while they were touring. The week after that was St. Patrick's, so I don't even need to explain that So just a lot of late nights and early mornings, but luckily I don't have to perform until after Easter (except at my church, but that doesn't really count)!
Cheers!

I nearly missed your post...
Thanks.
Understood. Our session leader volunteered us for 3 gigs on St. Patrick’s day and some democratic fund raiser the Friday before. It can get kinda crazy, but I also enjoy the craziness of it at times.

Do you play the pipes at church? If so, what style/genre do you play? I’ve visited a lot of churches over the years, so it is hard for me to guess.

Nanohedron wrote: The redoubtable Chad McAnally, C&F username ceadach. With him in St. Paul, we're practically neighbors. Chad doesn't post much any more, but he's a busy fellow. This harp will be low-headed evoking the Boru harp silhouette but built larger as a floor harp, with nylon strings (31 of them, IIRC), and a round back. Sharping levers, too. Really looking forward to it. Meanwhile, I'm taking in a lot of YouTube instructionals because I haven't the slightest idea of what I've gotten myself into.

My wife and I bought a 29-string Dusty with money we received as wedding gifts. We both stuck with it for awhile; she made much more progress than I. Liking to make stuff, I made a 22-string very portable (4 lb) lap harp with full blades (our original one had only C and F). That was loads of fun; I made one for my niece, too. We weren't satisfied with either, so finally ordered a 36-string Dusty. They're all in the basement now, along with the cello and several guitars. We still intend to learn the harp (and my wife the cello) in our retirement. If you have more discipline than I (not difficult), you'll do better. It really is a blast to play, and to this day I think I like the sound of the harp more than any other instrument.

AaronFW wrote: I nearly missed your post...
Thanks.
Do you play the pipes at church? If so, what style/genre do you play? I’ve visited a lot of churches over the years, so it is hard for me to guess.

No problem . I generally tend to avoid playing the GHP in church (preach, brother!), I'd probably kill a few of the people there. In any case, they're used more for Christmas rather than Easter. For Easter, I'm usually asked to do vocal pieces at church since I'm also a classically trained first baritone, though I have done some pieces (the names are escaping me for now) with the whistles.
Cheers!

chas wrote:We still intend to learn the harp (and my wife the cello) in our retirement. If you have more discipline than I (not difficult), you'll do better. It really is a blast to play, and to this day I think I like the sound of the harp more than any other instrument.

And this time I won't be confining myself almost exclusively to Trad; after all, harp is just the thing for Xmas tunes. Iconic, you could say.

Next stop: Stairway To Heaven.

Nanohedron wrote: Next stop: Stairway To Heaven.

I feel like Stairway to Heaven is done a little too often on harp. I think it is fine for you to learn it, but would you mind setting the next trend as well?

Flight of the Bumblebee, then.

Nanohedron wrote:Flight of the Bumblebee, then.

Nah. Firestarter. That's what you need.

This?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmin5WkOuPw

Nanohedron wrote:This?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmin5WkOuPw

Yes, please.