How long till you could play in public?

MSzychulda · Post by **MSzychulda** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 7:46 am

Just curious how long it took you all till you were good enough to play your whistle in public and what did you play?

I know everyone learns at a different rate, but I am teaching myself (no instructor within 200 miles)and am just curious what I can look forward to (rather than playing twinkle twinkle little star for my wife

)

I ordered the bill ochs book and cd as recommended on this forum, and my sister and mother are very good at the piano,harp and accordian so I hope I inherated a little skill. Thanks!

FJohnSharp · Post by **FJohnSharp** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 7:59 am

When I get good enough I'll let you know.

jim stone · Post by **jim stone** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 8:01 am

It very much depends on the
audience. My public has
been the street, where people
know little of celtic music
and are delighted to hear
live whistle--even live
whistle badly played.
I was playing in public
pretty quickly; not knowing
how bad I was helped.

burnsbyrne · Post by **burnsbyrne** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 8:27 am

I think you should start as soon as you can play an easy piece. The "public" can be family or friends. It doesn't have to be a formal event. They will like it even if all you can play is "Twinkle, twinkle little star". Children are especially appreciative and they don't care if you make mistakes. But it is important to play for others early and often to get used to it.
Mike

Tyghress · Post by **Tyghress** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 8:53 am

I started playing 'publicly' very early on in the game, but I'm playing in a reasonably large session. It took two years before I allowed myself to be miked on certain tunes, and I'm just about ready to do a solo air, or start a tune on my own (play one section alone so others can get my tempo and join in).

Before this, I've played for myself in public. That is I was able to sit in a park and play, or at an event, as long as I didn't feel as if I was giving a performance. If I could stop and chat, or ad lib, I was okay. If I felt as if I had to play a tune well, though, I would do a pretty poor job of it.

TelegramSam · Post by **TelegramSam** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 9:20 am

I haven't gotten there yet. I still can't play if I know someone else might be listening.

breedlovejumbo · Post by **breedlovejumbo** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 9:30 am

I played at church 2 weeks after I picked up the whistle. Of course, my very first instrument was saxophone, which is remarkably similar. Now, I don't have enough air to get a decent tone on sax, but the fingers remember quickly.

Roger O'Keeffe · Post by **Roger O'Keeffe** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 9:31 am

I've been doing it for years, but I'm still not good enough. The main thing is that the audiences generally don't realise it!

Duffy · Post by **Duffy** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 9:40 am

I'm pretty new myself and haven't really gone public but I sure like the idea of just playing someplace in public like a park or doorstep. A few days ago I was playing in the car while waiting on my better half and got a few strange looks but mostly smiles. Felt real good!

mitchlr · Post by **mitchlr** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 9:38 pm

I'm not good enough either, but I picked up the whistle two weeks before a Christmas performance with the Polish community here in Memphis, and learned the whistle part for two numbers by a Polish band called Arka Noego. The whistle part was accent and backup for the children singing a Christmas-theme song. I had a great time, even though I made mistakes.
On New Years eve my wife played guitar as I whistled Lord Inchiquin, Si Beg Si Mor, Irisheer, and Hector the Hero at a church gathering. And we're doing those numbers again plus singing/playing Foggy Banks at a talent show during a church dinner Saturday night.
The great thing is, our church family is a great (and very forgiving) audience. They know we're not professional musicians, and not even very good amateurs, but we have lots of fun and laugh together at the mistakes. I can only hope that others have a friendly venue to play in.

Kindest regards,
Rob Mitchell
Bartlett, TN

Jeferson · Post by **Jeferson** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 9:49 pm

On 2003-02-17 10:30, breedlovejumbo wrote:
I played at church 2 weeks after I picked up the whistle. Of course, my very first instrument was saxophone, which is remarkably similar. Now, I don't have enough air to get a decent tone on sax, but the fingers remember quickly.

Breeder, you're scaring me. My story is remarkably similar to yours, although it took a month for me, and the sax is still doing its thing. It's amazing how easy it is to play basic stuff on a whistle after playing the sax! I think it's why I prefer to cross-finger the C nat instead of doing the half-hole thing...there's no way to half hole on a sax, unless you're cheating to bend notes with a semi-closed key instead of using your mouth.

Jef

Bagfed · Post by **Bagfed** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 10:06 pm

Yea, I'm with everyone else, I have a long way to go but I impose myself on as many as I can. Theory being that I need to practice playing in front of people and they don't usually ask.(which is good because if they do I get this stupid monkey grin on my face and can't play anyway) No-one's asked to hear another yet but I usually give them one anyway.

By the way, It's funny you asked about how long before playing in public, If you would have said " I've been playing for two weeks, how long before I can play the Legacy Jig" you might have gotten a different set of answers entirely

1/2 hour a day = huge results over time.

TonyHiggins · Post by **TonyHiggins** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 10:41 pm

Rest assured, the general public is utterly clueless. You can play pretty badly and people will like it. The important thing is that the more you play in front of people, the easier it gets. As the anxiety becomes less of an issue, you can relax and play more like you can when no one is listening. I can't overstate it: the public is clueless. That's why Britney Spears is making way more money than Lunasa. 'Nuff said.
Tony

McHaffie · Post by **McHaffie** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 11:21 pm

I started tinkering around with whistles for quite a while before performing live... mainly because there wasn't anything around here. But I did play at parks sometimes, and I drew a crowd every once in a while. It was a little unnerving at first, but you get used to it. Like a lot of people, it took me a long time before I could play really well in front of an audience, and I have a LONG way to go. Just listen to the Over The Waterfall clip I posted recently... needs work big time!

Biggest thing... do your best not to be intimmidated or worried about the audience. Most are happy to have a live performance experience.

My first live appearnce was fortunately in a jam session in Arkansas. Jam sessions REALLY hep you in the fact that everyone is laughing and having a good time, and the audience just kind of dissapears until they start clapping in the end!!

Take care, and don't worry. You'll do just fine. Hey, I just made stuff up at first and didn't know about or how to find tunes!!

Take care,
John

LeeMarsh · Post by **LeeMarsh** » Mon Feb 17, 2003 11:21 pm

For me music has always been about connecting and self-expression; trying to communicate that which I can't put into words. So as soon as I found a tune I could connect with, I wanted to share it. Anyone can do that from the first few weeks. The more you connect with the tune, the more those that hear will get the connection and enjoy your music.

The more you get to know your new instrument, the more eloquently you can express yourself. When we learn to speak, do we wait until we master the language before we say anything? My boy, Jonathan, at 2 learned the word "No". He was very eloquent with it, proposing it as a universal solution to every problem. He'd parade around the living room saying it. "No", every which way he could, connecting it to wall outlets, and stereo buttons, and light sockets, and a host of other things. "No", sometimes with sterness, sometimes with whimsey, sometime in the whisper of a secret. Now at 27 he's learned a lot more, connects alot more, and shares a lot more.

I think in many ways, learning this new instrument is just like learning the language. It's like gaining a new vocabulary. Each time I use it to express something from inside, it grows in clarity, connecting me to music and any who hear. For me this makes a real difference in my practice; it becomes as much introspection as exercise. It enables me to experiment with how best to draw out the things inside and give them note and timbre.

So "How long does it take to play in public"? As long as it takes for you to find a tune you connect with and feel the need to share. Play it in public, and you may not connect with everyone, but each time you do connect you'll find the true joy in playing.

So connect, play, and ...

_________________

Enjoy Your Music, Lee Marsh 
From Harper's Mill, MD.

[ This Message was edited by: LeeMarsh on 2003-02-18 00:25 ]