Free Flute CD Pat FitzpatricK/Ken Murphy/Eamonn de Barra

[glinjack]

So you're new to ITM? True, much of this is very much on the faster side, and I for one prefer things slower. But the speed on these recordings is far from uncommon.
Who "supposes" that flute playing is supposed to be relaxing anyway? I get annoyed with myself when people say things after a set of reels like "Oh, I love the flute, it's so mellow". It tells me I'm still not getting the punch and drive I want. Now if they say that after Coilsfield House, I'm happy, and that tune should indeed carry you away on a pastel cloud, but that's only one of the flute's potentials.

Read what I said, "The flute playing is good but too fast " yes the flute playing is very good but on that one reel that I heard it is way too fast, If it was slowed down a bit, I would be
better able to enjoy and hear the cuts and taps and grace notes, and the phrasing of that reel would definitely be nice when played a bit slower,
Irish music is like a fine wine, you got to give it time, the right timing for each tune, if your enjoying playing the tune, why rush to get to the end.
Yes great flute playing, but please just a little bit less speed.

[gorjuswrex]

I confess I can't say I know of Pat Fitzpatrick. Having googled him I found that he has won the senior all Ireland(or else it was a namesake). Looks like some of you know more about him. Also I'm guessing that all the tracks on the CD are by him, they all come up on the track details as him, and sound like the same style / approach to me.

I'd like to know more about him. In particular where is he from? Would his playing be 'Ulster style'? I know 'Ulster style' covers a wide range when we talk about flute playing. I tend to think regional styles in flute playing are not as pronounced as in fiddle playing?

[Kirk B]

Adding 4 of the missing tune names, and leaving the remaining 2 as Gan Ainm:

01. The Green Gates, Crosses of Annagh
02. The Peeler's Jacket, The Flooded Road To Glenties, The Boys from Chicago
03. Master McDermott's, Ambrose Moloney's
04. The London Lasses, Ships Are Sailing, The Otter's Holt
05. The Old Grey Goose
06. Maid on the Green, Vincent Campbell's, The Mist Covered Mountain
07. Mulhaire's #9, The Moving Cloud
08. An Caisleán na nÓr, The Independent Hornpipe
09. Kiss the Maid Behind the Barrel
10. Johnny Boyle's, Gan Ainm, The Hag at the Churn
11. Little Katie Taylor, Touch Me If You Dare, The Bucks of Oranmore
12. Kiss the Maid Behind the Barrel (Track 09 again)
13. The Peeler's Jacket, The Flooded Road To Glenties, The Boys from Chicago (Track 02 again)

Note: Added 03. ..., Ambrose Moloney's, thanks to rama. Thanks, rama!

This migrating tune stuff is driving me nuts. I heard a lot of "The Boys of the Lough" in track 3 reel #1. The structure of the tunes must be the same.

[LimuHead]

Adding 4 of the missing tune names, and leaving the remaining 2 as Gan Ainm:

01. The Green Gates, Crosses of Annagh
02. The Peeler's Jacket, The Flooded Road To Glenties, The Boys from Chicago
03. Master McDermott's, Ambrose Moloney's
04. The London Lasses, Ships Are Sailing, The Otter's Holt
05. The Old Grey Goose
06. Maid on the Green, Vincent Campbell's, The Mist Covered Mountain
07. Mulhaire's #9, The Moving Cloud
08. An Caisleán na nÓr, The Independent Hornpipe
09. Kiss the Maid Behind the Barrel
10. Johnny Boyle's, Gan Ainm, The Hag at the Churn
11. Little Katie Taylor, Touch Me If You Dare, The Bucks of Oranmore
12. Kiss the Maid Behind the Barrel (Track 09 again)
13. The Peeler's Jacket, The Flooded Road To Glenties, The Boys from Chicago (Track 02 again)

Note: Added 03. ..., Ambrose Moloney's, thanks to rama. Thanks, rama!

Thanks for posting all that information.

To Everyone: So are we thinking all the tracks Pat Fitzpatrick?

[Ballygo]

Pat Fitzpatrick is from Gorey Co Wexford Ireland. He is the guy mentioned who won the all Ireland senior championship. His son won the under 18 all Ireland a few years back. He was in the Garda band ( police force) for many years and plays a lot around the bray area in Co Wicklow. He is a great musician.


Ballygo

[crookedtune]

I just had a first good listen. This is very fine playing. The Seery is surely a good flute, maybe underrated here, but this collection is one more reminder that the real magic is in the player. Very inspiring.

[kenny]

I've listened to a few of the tracks so far. I re-arranged the order to listen to "Kiss The Maid..." - a personal favourite, -and immediately after listened to the "Little Katy Taylor" set. I find it very hard to believe that those 2 particular tracks are by the same player. Maybe there are 3 players, but who plays what ? Anyone else like to listen to those 2 tracks back-to-back and venture an opinion ?

[Kirk B]

I've been listening to this more and more and really loving it. I went to bed last night listening to it on my iPod after consuming a generous portion of Vodka from the 1.5L bottle o'er yonder in the liquor cabinet. I drifted off and my playlist progressed through several great albums including Matt Molloy, The Bothy Band, Planxty, Kevin Burke and Mícheál O'Domhnaill and Sharon Shannon just to name a few.

I came about at around 3:30 am hearing a strange sound coming from my headphones. It sounded like someone saying, "Oh Grandma bring my hair machine, my hair machine, my hair machine." As it turns out, I was in the Middle of De Danann's "Mist covered Morning" listening to "Seamaisin". I really gotta cut back on the Vodka.

Cheers,

Kirk

[loic]

Fitzpatrick's playing is amazing (a bit too fast for time to time maybe) ! Great choice of tunes as well.
However I'm not convinced with the sound of its flute... I found it a bit poor. Am I the only one to think so ?

[gorjuswrex]

Fitzpatrick's playing is amazing (a bit too fast for time to time maybe) ! Great choice of tunes as well.
However I'm not convinced with the sound of its flute... I found it a bit poor. Am I the only one to think so ?

Are you talking about tone, tuning or something else?

[loic]

about the tone, tuning seems ok to me. It sounds dry I think. Of course it's a "pratten" kind, but I heard some pratten which sound richer...

[gorjuswrex]

Thanks, at this point I won't comment as I'd like to see what others might have to say. I just wanted to check what you were referring to by 'sound’. I suppose ideally it would be someone with good tone production who has played these and other flutes, I've only had a brief 'go' on a Seery so can't be specific.

[Jayhawk]

I listened to this download on the bus in this morning, and am listening again right now.

Some of the tracks do sound "too dry" for my tastes, but others do not. I believe there are 3 players, yes? Also, it sounds like the microphone placement is different on some of the recordings. There are so many variables when recording a flute that change the sound you hear on a recording (reverb added...many people on this site do that when posting a recording, post production clean-up which is common on commercial recordings, etc.). These recordings seem pretty bare bones to me, and I like that.

So overall, I don't think a Seery is too dry (caveat - I've owned one in the past). I do think they get lost in the discussion of good polymer flutes. Tom Doorley sure made it sound fine on the first 3 Danu recordings.

Eric

[loic]

You're right Eric, even if the tone sounds dry to me in some of these recordings, I would judge seery flute only with this recording. Nothing is better than a direct contact with the instrument, and as I have never had the opportunity to try a Seery Flute so far, I won't opine on these flutes.

Anyway this free CD is pure joy, and I like its "bare bones" style too