2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
- Maddie
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
Question #7: Do you have any St. Patrick's Day plans that include whistle?
- Mr.Gumby
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
Maddie wrote:Question #7: Do you have any St. Patrick's Day plans that include whistle?
All St Patrick's Day parades and activities involving large gatherings have been stopped here. Blowing whistles or flutes (and attending production of droplets etc) in public or at gathering would seem less than prudent, given the times we live in.
Last edited by Mr.Gumby on Tue Mar 10, 2020 4:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
Not me, I don't do ITM....Maddie wrote:Question #7: Do you have any St. Patrick's Day plans that include whistle?
But no doubt I'll play a tune or two on my whistles/flutes/harmonicas anyway.
Keith.
Trying to do justice to my various musical instruments.
Trying to do justice to my various musical instruments.
- pancelticpiper
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
For sure that's true with me. My path was slightly different than yours, though the two paths start and end at the same places:psoutowood wrote:
Having come from Highland piping to Scottish smallpipes to Irish whistles I have to agree that the ornamentation sticks with the instrument. When I pick up my smallpipes my brain can't even remember tunes I play on my whistles and my fingers seem to revert to Highland ornamentation. On the whistles I don't even think of playing grips, birls, or taorluaths.
Highland pipes > uilleann pipes > Irish flute > whistle.
After that portion, my musical path took a number of twists, including Baroque flute, Bulgarian kaval and gaida, Bolivian sikus and kenas, Northumbrian pipes, Spanish gaita, and Cornish doublepipes.
Style and ornamentation are so culture-specific, and for me almost nothing from my forays has got incorporated into my Irish whistle playing.psoutowood wrote: I love hearing from musicians like Brian Finnegan who utilize ornamentation and style from all over the world.
When I play slow airs on Low Whistle a couple subtle things from Bulgarian kaval and Native American (North and South) flutes do creep in from time to time.
Last edited by pancelticpiper on Wed Mar 11, 2020 5:36 am, edited 1 time in total.
Richard Cook
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
- pancelticpiper
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These days many discussions are migrating to Facebook but I prefer the online chat forum format. - Location: WV to the OC
Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
Why yes indeed!Maddie wrote:Question #7: Do you have any St. Patrick's Day plans that include whistle?
Last year I sat in with a local ITM trio on a couple gigs and had to learn 20 or so new reels, jigs, hornpipes, polkas, and songs.
I'm doing a couple gigs with them again this year and just yesterday I worked out a few more of their pieces and reviewed the others.
With them I play whistles in (from low to high) Low D, Low E, F, G, A, Bb, C, and D.
Add to that uilleann pipes in C and D, and Scottish smallpipes in A.
My evening St Pat's gig is the same one I've been doing for 20 years, a small house party where I sit in the corner and play (solo) for a couple hours. It keeps me out of the pubs, and gets me in bed by a decent hour.
Richard Cook
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
- Maddie
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
A lot of people will be in the same situation. Some would have booked their March 17th dates months ago, only to have them cancelled. If this were a "normal" year, what would your typical St. Patrick's Day plans have been?Mr.Gumby wrote:All St Patrick's Day parades and activities involving large gatherings have been stopped here. ...
- Maddie
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
That sounds like you're figuring out your parts on your own, rather than having trio practice sessions. I'm wondering how that works. Do the players swap recordings with each other? Or do you all have enough experience that you can easily blend your parts when you play together?pancelticpiper wrote:... Last year I sat in with a local ITM trio on a couple gigs and had to learn 20 or so new reels, jigs, hornpipes, polkas, and songs.
I'm doing a couple gigs with them again this year and just yesterday I worked out a few more of their pieces and reviewed the others. ...
- Mr.Gumby
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
I don't fancy big crowds and pubs heaving with noisy drinkers, these days I tend to avoid the whole thing a much a I can.If this were a "normal" year, what would your typical St. Patrick's Day plans have been?
My brain hurts
- pancelticpiper
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
Well it came today!Maddie wrote:Awesome! I hope you'll report back when that new Goldie arrives and share your first impressions.pancelticpiper wrote:Well the main thing on my 2020 wish list, a great-playing mezzo F whistle, has been sorted. ...
It's superb.
The low notes are powerful, the high note sweet. Plays like a dream.
Richard Cook
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
- Maddie
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
Awesome! I'm happy for you.pancelticpiper wrote:Well it came today!
It's superb.
The low notes are powerful, the high note sweet. Plays like a dream.
- pancelticpiper
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
A member of the trio has built a nice recording studio in her home, and the trio has recorded a number of albums.Maddie wrote: That sounds like you're figuring out your parts on your own, rather than having trio practice sessions. I'm wondering how that works.
So I can learn their pieces at home.
Before each gig we have a rehearsal where we run the whole set list.
I need so many whistles, and C and D pipes, because they play songs in a large variety of keys, whatever required to suit their voices.
Richard Cook
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
- pancelticpiper
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
I'm with you entirely.Mr.Gumby wrote:
I don't fancy big crowds and pubs heaving with noisy drinkers, these days I tend to avoid the whole thing a much a I can.
I've been playing St Pat's gigs for over 40 years. How many late nights playing in pubs jam-packed with drunks? I'm too old for that nonsense now.
So I do a solo gig at a small quiet house-party, play whatever I want, chat, and get paid more than I would playing in a band in a pub.
There are years when that's my only St Pat's gig. There have been years when I've done six or seven gigs that day, play for an hour, travel for an hour, play for an hour from dawn to near midnight.
The most fun St Pat's gigs are the Highland pipe band pub crawls. I played in a Fire Brigade band and we would march in, play a few tunes, pass the boot, and march out, from pub to pub. There's a street here with seems like dozens of pubs in the space of a few city blocks, and on St Pat's all are packed with happy drunks willing to shove money into the boot.
That seems to be contrary to what I said about dealing with crowds and drunks on St Pat's, but in a pipe band you just march in, play for five minutes, and march out. Most of your time is walking outdoors and chatting with your band-mates.
Richard Cook
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
- Mr.Gumby
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
When my son was a little fella we went out to watch the parade, take a few snaps, perhaps play a tune after, and make an exit before things got too rowdy.pancelticpiper wrote:
I'm with you entirely.
But really, there's no reward or fun in the whole thing, If I want to, I can go out any night of the week and have a more pleasant and quiet tune without the interference or hassle.
Mind you the Taoiseach just made a statement putting the whole country on near lockdown so it's a bit of a moot point. Protocols for social distancing as recommended rule out going in to any pub etc, cultural institutions and tourist sites are being shut down. Concerts etc are being cancelled. We're digging in for the duration.
This is what we're at now:
This is the new friend:
My brain hurts
- pancelticpiper
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
Same here!
Our Pipe Band's pub crawls this weekend and on St Pat's were all cancelled.
All of my Irish gigs have been cancelled, except for playing in the Church hall tomorrow night and the small house-party on St Pat's. I'm expecting to hear about these getting cancelled too.
Yesterday at work I was informed that we will be shutting down until further notice. After 30 years I'm suddenly out of work.
My wife works at a tech firm set up for people to work from home, and that's what she's doing starting today.
My daughter's University is telling everyone to stay home. Classes will now be online.
California has banned any gathering larger than 250 people. All sporting events, theme parks, conventions, etc are shut down.
Our Pipe Band's pub crawls this weekend and on St Pat's were all cancelled.
All of my Irish gigs have been cancelled, except for playing in the Church hall tomorrow night and the small house-party on St Pat's. I'm expecting to hear about these getting cancelled too.
Yesterday at work I was informed that we will be shutting down until further notice. After 30 years I'm suddenly out of work.
My wife works at a tech firm set up for people to work from home, and that's what she's doing starting today.
My daughter's University is telling everyone to stay home. Classes will now be online.
California has banned any gathering larger than 250 people. All sporting events, theme parks, conventions, etc are shut down.
Richard Cook
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
c1980 Quinn uilleann pipes
1945 Starck Highland pipes
Goldie Low D whistle
- Nanohedron
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Re: 2020 Tin Whistle Enthusiasts Q & A
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert played to an empty theater last night. That was eerily surreal, and you could tell that Colbert was a bit off-balance over it. Same thing with sumo (yes, I watch a bit of NHK): During national tournaments the stands are normally jam-packed, but these too were completely empty. It was like a dress rehearsal with injuries.
"If you take music out of this world, you will have nothing but a ball of fire." - Balochi musician