Thanks, lads. Note that I’m using “lads” in the genderless, totally inclusive, modern Irish sense of the word. Groups of ladies are frequently overheard to say, “right, lads, what are we at?” As well as other things that might shock the unwary…
I’m afraid I can’t take any credit for the drum, the rug, or the cut of that room; like an old-timey country doctor, I make housecalls. There’s a few other interesting things in the background, including one major feature that nobody has mentioned so far, surprisingly.
Just to address a few of the points raised, starting with the first: I don’t agree with the “laterally rotated outwards” thing at all. Which way is out? I’m super-sensitive to any kind of strain, having had a pretty severe problem on another instrument many years ago, and I can assure any doubters that my left wrist is totally strain-free.
My thumb doesn’t get particularly tired, since it doesn’t hold the flute up. It’s really a pivot point. My RH little finger is pushing the flute away from me, and the flute pivots on the thumb and is pressed onto my face, for want of a more elegant way to say that. When I do it right, it feels like the weight of the flute magically disappears. The RH thumb isn’t doing much, either. I suppose the weight is shared around among all the contact points.
One of the main reasons I’m trying to make a distinction between holds of the “piper’s” type and what I’m trying to call holds of the “Irish” type is that LH thumb. In the piper’s holds, in addition to the use of the second joints to cover the holes, the thumb is generally under the flute and supporting its weight, in a position similar to where the thumb rests on a chanter to cover the back D (and Jem, I’d say a flipped-over whistle hold would put the thumb on the underside as well). Accepting that there are most certainly gradations/grey areas betwixt and between, generally speaking that players that I would identify as using the Irish hold have that LH thumb somewhere out on the side of the flute, where it serves more as a pivot than a support. The use of the first finger joints to cover the holes just completes the distinction.
John C. is correct that the normal Bb key is useless to someone using this type of hold. That’s why I’m always banging on about the RH touch, an elegant side-step to the problem. Another issue is where to put the RH little finger on an 8-key. My solution is a little plug of cork, shaped and affixed to the footjoint between the Eb key and the C#/C touches - the patented Rob-Rest ™!!! I make them for my keyless flutes as well, though there isn’t one on the flute in the video (an Olwell Pratten). I’ll post a pic or two at some stage. Thanks again for the kind words. Cheers,
Rob
