Words from Harry Bradley

[Akiba]

"Here's what's on my mind: People sometimes ask me advice on how to play music (first mistake!) Here's what I SHOULD say to them, but am usually too shy or distracted to: Don't aspire to play shi* just because it is the flavour of the month. Lavish your attention on the music, learn to hear it: Learning to hear it is the key to learning to do it. Learning tunes by ear at normal speed from recordings - no safety net - is a start. Don't always assume you can hear everything that is going on in a piece of great playing (take it from someone who has a pretty good ear that discovered an awful lot from listening to the master pipers slowed down to below 20% speed for the purposes of detailed transcription). Aspire to be an artist, who attends to the processes of practice, learning, listening... not just a performer beloved of people who cannot hear like musicians (with a few exceptions... maybe). If you don't engage closely to the slow processes of learning to listen, copy, emulate whatever music to you contains greatness, then it's quite unlikely that you will develop your own unique voice. You'll probably just get stuck at the 'getting by' or 'a reasonable copy' stage that is the norm.

It's not for everyone, Brian. I quite accept that people just play music for enjoyment, as a hobby etc... Sessions are fine sometimes, often they are a pain in the hole if I want to play well. I see thier social function and all that, but I can't always say they are good for my or other people's playing. Just being good enough to scrape by in a session without annoying too many people (and, let's face it, there are some very lazy-arsed musicians out there in this regard) might be lowering the bar which, as far as I can see, is worse than raising it for people who are up to the jump.

Well, it's just a fact, albeit not a popular one maybe, that some people put more effort into their process and, just maybe, are entitled to enjoy a civilised tune that engages their abilities now and then (that's bollocks in the real world actually; the session is more generally seen as a free-for-all where everybody can muck in for better and worse... and there is merit in that, but not always, and sometimes it's clearly contrary to the playing of and promotion of good music). I don't give a sh*t what other people think really, never did (well, maybe a few certain people at times). That's part of going for it: Keep your head down and your eye on the ball. If I did give a sh*t then I probably wouldn't be playing in the way that I do which, if not particularly accomplished, is at least a bit distinctive. But I've really not got the fire in my belly like I used to. I do on the pipes (in terms of being a student of them and their music) but not to the same level of commitment as in the heady days of my misspent youth, alas."

From Harry's Facebook posting.

[LorenzoFlute]

Does he know that you quoted him on this forum?

[drewr]

Typical initial response on this forum as of late, I'm afraid.

I, for one, appreciate the quote. I'm not completely up-to-date one intellectual property rights issues, but I don't believe a Facebook posting qualifies as published material where consent may be required. Again, thanks for the post.

[Nanohedron]

Typical initial response on this forum as of late, I'm afraid.

Firstly, I don't see how you can defend such a sweeping statement. Secondly, you're focusing on something that has nothing to do with anything. Thirdly, it's a fair enough question. While I too enjoyed reading his thoughts, they are addressed to a particular individual elsewhere and not a reply in a thread here, and that plus the personal nature of it made me feel a bit like I was eavesdropping on material I may not have been intended to be privy to.

Harry's a member here. If he objects, we can take it down.

[crookedtune]

(Regarding the OP): Points taken. But if I hadn't gotten involved in sessions, I would almost certainly have never played with another ITM-focused musician. Bad outcome there.

I think the point is to keep your ears open, your wits sharp, and be discriminating about what you do. And there's nothing so wrong with enjoying the social aspects of the session. Not all of us are as serious, musically ambitious or naturally gifted as Harry Bradley.

[clark]

I am so grateful to be living in a small enough Irish music community that a duffer like me can be in a band and play regular pub gigs and occasional concerts. The kind of care, attention and nurturing that we lavish on a tune we are developing for performance never happens in a seisiun. Sure, there is no reason I couldn't do this on my own; but I don't think I would - at least not to the same depth. I am driven and inspired by my band mates to play at my very best most of the time. Even though my very best only reaches the dizzying heights of "not bad" I know it is really my best (I'm realistic and sanguine about my raw talent vs. tenacious practice quotient).

The seisiun experience for me is something else. The regular pub seisiun out here is friendly but musically rather sad with tunes often played too slowly and sloppily. With most of the participants never having been to seisiun anywhere else - and many not even listening much to the music (reading music and playing the notes that are written for Christ sake); it stays right there and doesn't seem to progress. I get introduced to new tunes alright, but they don't become mine till I go home and find out how the tune really wants to be played. I keep going for social reasons...plus the free Guinness.

There is an occasional ad-hoc house seisiun/party that pops up where all the best Irish musicians in town get together (hardly any ever go to the regular pub seisiun). These are usually rip roaring affairs that result in some really special creative moments. These moments are surprising and exciting and a nice compliment to the kind of meticulous work we do in the band. I think both are needed.

Clark

[kkrell]

See: C&F Consolidated Concordat on Policy, #11.

[benhall.1]

See: C&F Consolidated Concordat on Policy, #11.

Not sure it quite applies, Kevin. As far as I can see, the argument concerning this current thread is about whether or not it's right to quote Harry's Facebook post. But surely that can't be classed as "copyrighted material" can it? Well, not unless we're talking about Facebook's own rights in the material ...

Nano has said it: if Harry raises an objection, we'll respond.

[Julia Delaney]

Why would Harry mind being quoted? He's just saying that attention to the music -- and to your own playing -- is more important than only going to sessions. When he said "Learning tunes by ear at normal speed from recordings - no safety net - is a start." I assume he meant that this is just the start of the learning process. He follows this by saying "Don't always assume you can hear everything that is going on in a piece of great playing ... discovered an awful lot from listening to the master pipers slowed down to below 20% speed..."
Playing in sessions with a bunch of people who just mash the tunes isn't always a lot of fun for somebody who has carefully worked at learning the tune with some sensitivity, and wants to play with that same sensitivity with other people. Sessions are fun, in a way. Even large sessions. It's a social function, though, rather than a purely musical function. The music sounds best to me played solo or with one or two other players who are on the same page as you.

[jim stone]

John Skelton, in a workshop, cautioned us against thinking that sessions are the be all and end all of Irish flute playing.

[Julia Delaney]

I spend about ten hours playing on my own to one hour playing with my pals. The ratio will vary from week to week. This week I played at a festival for about ten hours -- but the point is that I spend many more hours alone with The Amazing Slow Downer than I do in a session. I used to think that playing gigs made me a better musician. Looking back I see that the drive to make beautiful music was subsumed in the hustle for gigs.

[FascinatedWanderer]

with tunes often played too slowly
Clark

?

[JackCampin]

I've never heard of him. Should I?

[Thomaston]

I've never heard of him. Should I?

Not necessarily. There's a ton of people out there recording ITM albums... it's hard to keep up with them all. I do highly recommend you get his album "Bad Turns & Horse-Shoe Bends" ASAP, however. Great flute playing there.

[LorenzoFlute]

I've never heard of him. Should I?

Not necessarily. There's a ton of people out there recording ITM albums... it's hard to keep up with them all. I do highly recommend you get his album "Bad Turns & Horse-Shoe Bends" ASAP, however. Great flute playing there.

Harry is not one of many, he's one of the most famous flute players, and for a good reason, he's amazing.