Flute music recommendations

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Sirchronique
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Flute music recommendations

Post by Sirchronique »

I’m currently home from work with a fever, for the second time recently. I have been using this as an opportunity to try to hunt down some good new music to listen to on YouTube. I was hoping you might be able to offer some suggestions for flute players to check out, so I can enjoy listening to something good that I haven’t heard before while I’m sitting around here doing nothing. I’ll describe my taste a bit to hopefully help with suggestions that would be of interest.

Over the past several years the two flute players whose styles really grab me the most are Harry Bradley and Conal O’Grada. I love the heavily emphasized rhythmic pulsing of Harry’s playing, and also the heavy and raw rhythmic “organized chaos” sound Conal has. Are there any other players along similar lines that might be worth giving a listen? Heavily emphasized rhythm and power are the two qualities I like to hear most and find the most inspiring. I’d love to get some suggestions for other fluters whose playing carries a similar type of vibe.


In addition, I also dig styles that are powerful but flowing, with a lot of variations that transition segments up or down an octave, which I hear especially in the recorded music of players like Matt Molloy, Jim Donoghue, etc. I think their playing has a quality that really makes the tunes feel alive and wild.

I also like some of the more modern “technical with the fingers” type stuff, provided it doesn’t sound overly soft and weak. Recommendations along these lines would also be nice.

I also would not be opposed to suggestions that are non-ITM music, as it is nice to sometimes listen to other styles for a change. I have particular interest in Breton, Swedish, and Scottish music, but I’m open to any genre, even non-trad original styles and compositions, as long as there’s something special in their playing.


Any recommendations for me? Anything that is heavy, wild, ultra-rhythmic, unique, powerful, or technically complex would be of particular interest. I have a pretty large collection of flute music already, but I’m sure there’s plenty of excellent recorded stuff out there that would be new to me.
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by tstermitz »

I really like Catherine McEvoy who is perhaps the opposite style of your request. What I find lovely about her playing is the lyrical quality of her phrasing.

Her 1998 (?) album "Traditional Flute Music In The Sligo-Roscommon Style" is just wonderful:
https://thesession.org/recordings/279
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by paddler »

I recently stumbled across this from Larlaith Mac Gabhann. I don't know how much more you can find of his playing, but I think this is really good:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pg3zDdGOhE

For Breton, I'm a big fan of Erwan Menguy. For example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYREXxIbKI0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVUUK3wze0o

For Scottish, Callum Stewart is a great player:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWpCAYAwj9A

You can find more than the above. These are just examples.

You might enjoy Fintan Vallely's playing.

Just a few thoughts. Get well soon!
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by Tjones »

If you haven't checked this page out, it should be a good one for you ~ A Guide to the Irish Flute

http://www.irishfluteguide.info/players/
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Re: Flute music recommendations

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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by gbyrne »

Good suggestions above. However, how about the "everybody" option. Kevin Krell's series of CD's titled "Wooden Flute Obsession" 1..2..3 contain approx 40 different flute players on each CD. I bought the 3-CD collection, I think it's value at around €50/$50 including P&P.

You mentioned Cónal Ó Grada - his book on playing the Wooden Flute is fantastic - and especially given over half the book breaks down the elements of style, tone and ornamentation for approx 8 leading players. Reading that section of Conal's book in conjunction to listening to the WFO 3CD collection has been helpful to me in understanding the different styles within the tradition.

https://worldtrad.org/WFO1_CD.htm -- link for the WFO 3-CD collection with details of each CD musicians

https://conalograda.com/store -- link for CoG book
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by sfmans »

Nice to see Calum Stewart has already been mentioned - on his more recent CDs he's tended to concentrate on his uillean piping, so for your purposes particularly track down his two CDs with Heikki Bourgault (the 2nd one, Hunters Moon, has fortuitously just been reissued).

For Breton you should look into Jean Michel Veillon, a powerful player with great tone and expression; he also sometimes uses flutes made in temperaments to match the scale of the biniou (Breton bagpipes). Start with his first CD 'E Koad Nizan', but any of them will do just fine. There is also a great compilation of several Breton flute players called 'Bro Tregor VIII - Flute traversiere en Tregor' but that was issued back in 1996 so bon chance finding a copy of that!

Flute has sadly made little inroads into balfolk, but the band Mister Klof (now sadly disbanded) made a feature of the playing of Sylvian Vuidart on [Boehm] flute, so I'd certainly recommend them for a listen.

For Swedish see if you can find Andreas Ralsgård & Markus Tullberg's CD 'Traditional Flute Music From Sweden', Swedish tunes (often adapted from the more common fiddle duets) to great effect.
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by gbyrne »

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

Once you move outside the ITM tradition for inspiration some excellent French players (Erwan already mentioned)..

Sylvain Barou
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=O ... BJymt-fQns
Erwan Menguy
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=FL-G4 ... 2cx15Th4FA
Malo Carvou
https://youtu.be/uunbL0jMe5Q

Stepping back in time and outside the genre..

Ana Benić
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kl6R4Ui9blc
JP Rampal
https://youtu.be/sMtBxnVArAo
Emi Ferguson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcQluBuRCys

And moving sideways...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaAuYZleXUk
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by Mr.Gumby »

Above recommendations are perhaps interesting for all that isn' t mentioned and makes me wonder if somehow I am living in some parallel universe.

Anyhow, I'd recommend to go back to the source and put McKenna on constant rotation. Get the classic recordings of the fifties, sixties, seventies. Listen to Mick O'Connor, Mick Tubridy, Frankie Gavin, Peter o'Loughlin, John Carlos, Patsy Hanly, Gary Hastings, Tara Dianond etc. Relatively recent recordings by Francis O'Connor, Aoife Granville, Fergus McGorman and all those. Eamonn Cotter, Brian O'Loughlin, John Kelly, Bríd O'Gorman, Tim McHugh, just a few names that come to mind but the list is endless. Listen to everything, 'snowball' on from the players you like and see where you go.
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by Steampacket »

Good suggestions there from Mr. Gumby. Listen also to Dee Taster, Orlaith Maculiffe, Seamus Tansey, Paul McGlinchey, Sheila Friel, and Patsy Hanly. These are just a handful there are many more fine flute players out there

Dee Tasker:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYp1qY_CEUQ&t=3238s

Orlaith Macauliffe:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mumkJUoAyZI&t=85s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spMQr5spugE

Seamus Tansey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4-FUpCGNmE

Paul McGlinchey:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ea51MIeb0is
Warning: if you're only used to O'Grada and Bradley, then this may be too wild for you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBkziQxYhV8.

Sheila Friel:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iY-QTfh84m0

Patsy Hany:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjLcfnY8-gY
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by NicoMoreno »

Mr.Gumby wrote: Tue Jan 24, 2023 7:18 am Above recommendations are perhaps interesting for all that isn' t mentioned and makes me wonder if somehow I am living in some parallel universe.
It's the last two lines in the OP which caused the recommendations, in particular:
"I also would not be opposed to suggestions that are non-ITM music, as it is nice to sometimes listen to other styles for a change. I have particular interest in Breton, Swedish, and Scottish music, but I’m open to any genre, even non-trad original styles and compositions, as long as there’s something special in their playing."

Your suggestions would be mine, too!
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by Sirchronique »

Mr.Gumby wrote: Tue Jan 24, 2023 7:18 am Above recommendations are perhaps interesting for all that isn' t mentioned and makes me wonder if somehow I am living in some parallel universe.

Anyhow, I'd recommend to go back to the source and put McKenna on constant rotation. Get the classic recordings of the fifties, sixties, seventies. Listen to Mick O'Connor, Mick Tubridy, Frankie Gavin, Peter o'Loughlin, John Carlos, Patsy Hanly, Gary Hastings, Tara Dianond etc. Relatively recent recordings by Francis O'Connor, Aoife Granville, Fergus McGorman and all those. Eamonn Cotter, Brian O'Loughlin, John Kelly, Bríd O'Gorman, Tim McHugh, just a few names that come to mind but the list is endless. Listen to everything, 'snowball' on from the players you like and see where you go.
To be fair, I did expand my request and might have made it a bit overly broad with later paragraphs. I was especially looking for music along the same lines as Bradley and O’Grada, but I’m open to other things, as well. I’ve been trying to listen to everything and letting it “snowball” enough that I rarely come across any new (to me) music that I like on YouTube anymore, so I was hoping my request would turn up some stuff I might have missed and perhaps wouldn’t have come across on my own.

I appreciate all the suggestions given by those who have commented, even though I’m already very familiar with literally all of the suggestions given so far, aside from a few players from the list that you have given, which I will check out today. If I can’t find anything from them on YouTube, I will seek out albums. Thanks very much for that!
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by Paul Patrick »

If you like Harry Bradley's stuff you might enjoy Michael Clarkson, mighty playing.

The two of them did a duet album https://thesession.org/recordings/3424 which I've never heard and unfortunately it is apparently out of print, but you can hear a track at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXCRYCyCglg (or maybe just a house recording, but it's good either way)
and there are a couple of short videos of live tunes from the CD launch party:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbnuIYp6HsI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qdTJJKYXOk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sj_9CsMaY6w


He has a duet album with Gerry Jones: https://thesession.org/recordings/1057 and this one is available, at least via Amazon and Spotify so presumably other digital music sales platforms as well.


He also has a real trove of tunes played solo as a learning/sharing resource at https://irishflute.podbean.com/ (played once slowly then once or twice at speed).



Another of my favorites is Paul McGrattan, at least one of his albums is https://thesession.org/recordings/297 is on Spotify and there are a few clips of him on Youtube


Edit: I assumed Kevin Henry had already been mentioned, but on review it doesn't look like he has. I have his album "One's Own Place," https://thesession.org/recordings/149 , lots of great playing there
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by kenny »

https://youtu.be/aTQMbSjdgZA
I would say that Frankie Gavin's "Croch Suas E" recording would fit your criteria, if you can find it these days. Most if not all of the tracks can be found on Youtube.
eg - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3RwEb-E9Ak
It just so happens that I found an interview Frankie did with Paddy Glackin on an old RTE programme, I would think circa 1980, which focusses largely on his flute playing. I will try to post it on Youtube, and will let you know when it's done. This is a total coincidence, I found a VHS video tape which was given to me a few years back, it had no label or indication of content whatsoever, and I watched it for the first time this afternoon.
A few names not mentioned above :
Desi needs to up his profile a bit :
https://youtu.be/49OUB9Q8tdU
Here's a rare Harry track :
https://studio.youtube.com/video/N4b6PaHrLkQ/edit
Packie Duignan :
https://youtu.be/BWUmtekNSWw
Mick Gavin :
https://youtu.be/1Som2pCfDtA
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Re: Flute music recommendations

Post by Steve Bliven »

Nobody's mentioned Lizzo :P

Best wishes.

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