Do you like this whistling?

anniemcu · Post by **anniemcu** » Tue Feb 26, 2008 10:33 pm

CranberryDog wrote:
talasiga wrote:
Wanderer wrote:looks like slightly less than 3/4 of the folks like it. On the other hand, only about 1/8 disliked it.
Thats just becuase the like it box was first. Had the poll been set up with the dislike it box first I am sure we would have got a diffrent result.

Very, very, good one.

Just watch... next there will be a call for a recount!

Denny · Post by **Denny** » Tue Feb 26, 2008 10:40 pm

yar....more work for the interns

Mitch · Post by **Mitch** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 12:32 am

talasiga wrote:
Wanderer wrote:looks like slightly less than 3/4 of the folks like it. On the other hand, only about 1/8 disliked it.
Thats just becuase the like it box was first. Had the poll been set up with the dislike it box first I am sure we would have got a diffrent result.

hmmm - the "donkey-vote"???

What if it was the "Goat-vote"!!!???

You must know me by now~~~I'll vote "Goat" every time! (and work-out my reasoning for it later)

(editied to admit that reason, most often, follows action)

Wanderer · Post by **Wanderer** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 7:02 am

talasiga wrote:
Wanderer wrote:looks like slightly less than 3/4 of the folks like it. On the other hand, only about 1/8 disliked it.
Thats just becuase the like it box was first. Had the poll been set up with the dislike it box first I am sure we would have got a diffrent result.

You know, I believe that there may be a grain of truth in there, even if it is a tiny one

dlovrien · Post by **dlovrien** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 8:09 am

Excellent stuff, thanks for posting it.

I find the music to be more (as others have said) "pushing/leaning forward" or "driving" than rushed. The tempo is steady and danceable.

I would certainly never fault anyone who didn't care for it - there are expert performances that I don't care for either - but I am disappointed that several folks would criticize an authoritative recording like this as though there was something wrong or incorrect about it.

Jon-M · Post by **Jon-M** » Wed Feb 27, 2008 8:12 am

dlovrien wrote:I would certainly never fault anyone who didn't care for it - there are expert performances that I don't care for either - but I am disappointed that several folks would criticize an authoritative recording like this as though there was something wrong or incorrect about it.

Very well put.
JM

Ceili_whistle_man · Post by **Ceili_whistle_man** » Sat Mar 01, 2008 5:40 am

dlovrien wrote,

I am disappointed that several folks would criticize an authoritative recording like this as though there was something wrong or incorrect about it.

I, for one, don't think there is anything 'wrong' or 'incorrect' with the recording, I just don't like the playing on this clip no matter how 'authoritive' the recording may be to others. ('do you like this playing' is what was asked first of all was it not?)
I wonder how many people voted knowing already who the player was, and therefore voted on that basis? How many people voted only on the strength of this clip? I don't care either way which way the poll goes, what does it gain? ....apart from showing that I misjudged the whistling tastes of the folk here when I said that more people would not like than like it

anniemcu · Post by **anniemcu** » Sat Mar 01, 2008 10:08 am

Ceili_whistle_man wrote:dlovrien wrote,
I am disappointed that several folks would criticize an authoritative recording like this as though there was something wrong or incorrect about it.
I, for one, don't think there is anything 'wrong' or 'incorrect' with the recording, I just don't like the playing on this clip no matter how 'authoritive' the recording may be to others. ('do you like this playing' is what was asked first of all was it not?)
I wonder how many people voted knowing already who the player was, and therefore voted on that basis? How many people voted only on the strength of this clip? I don't care either way which way the poll goes, what does it gain? ....apart from showing that I misjudged the whistling tastes of the folk here when I said that more people would not like than like it

I made my decision on 'like/dislike' before I realized who it was. Finding out who it was didn't change it.
(rantmode)
I think we tend to get caught up in 'like/dislike' as an either/or that is not really warranted a lot of the time. There are so many degrees to the subjective 'like', yet people tend to want to toss something because they didn't particularly like one aspect of it, or to embrace them because of one good point, whether it's a recording, a candidate, a magazine, or an ethnic trait.

I like listening to other people play this music. Fast, slow, near perfection, or warts 'n' all, I can enjoy most of it. I usually feel 'I wish I could play it that well', and occasionally, 'I'm glad I've gotten past that', but mostly, 'I like the way they did ___'.

I find it disturbing that there is such a tendency to be so judgemental about it. If perfection is the only acceptable state, then 99.999999% of us should just quit right now, and the vast majority of music recordings would be out the window.

I'm not saying we should venerate crap, (though that seems to be the standard in popular music at times

), I'm saying that we are prone to denegrating decent music just because we know of someone who can do it better.
(/rantmode)
Perfection is a great goal, but a lousy requirement.

Denny · Post by **Denny** » Sat Mar 01, 2008 11:02 am

anniemcu wrote:Perfection is a great goal, but a lousy requirement.

haven't read much Ian Fleming have ya?

anniemcu · Post by **anniemcu** » Sat Mar 01, 2008 11:39 am

Denny wrote:
anniemcu wrote:Perfection is a great goal, but a lousy requirement.
haven't read much Ian Fleming have ya?

Stephen Seifert · Post by **Stephen Seifert** » Sat Mar 01, 2008 6:13 pm

No one is saying so, but this seems like a test to see who "get's it" and who doesn't. The implication, if you like his playing, you "get it" when it comes to Irish traditional music.

I will admit, I listened and liked but thought it sounded rushed and a little pitchy. After seeing who played this, something happened inside my brain and I realized I LOVE IT! Anyone else willing to admit this?

Peter has a point about the tape. It sounds like a bit of pitch warble was introduced while recording or during transfer to the computer. The last time I listened to O'Brien's music, this effect was obvious so I didn't give it a second thought.

Point is, I didn't "get it" but I really want to. Maybe I'm nuts. It sounds perfect now.

This all has something to do with expectations and insecurities, I suspect. Any musical psychologists out there?

fearfaoin · Post by **fearfaoin** » Sat Mar 01, 2008 6:27 pm

Ceili_whistle_man wrote:I wonder how many people voted knowing already who the player was, and therefore voted on that basis? How many people voted only on the strength of this clip? I don't care either way which way the poll goes, what does it gain? ....apart from showing that I misjudged the whistling tastes of the folk here when I said that more people would not like than like it

This is starting to sound like sour grapes.
I'd never heard of the player when I listen to the clip. I still don't know much
about him besides what I Googled after listening to this clip. I don't consider
it "authoritative", I just enjoy it. I liked it immediately and continue to do so,
and I don't have to justify that anymore than you have to justify not enjoying
it. Perhaps we can all chalk it up to subjectiveness and stop thrashing the
proverbial deceased equine?

boomerang · Post by **boomerang** » Sun Mar 02, 2008 12:57 am

my metronome indicates the beat iin the clip s approx 116 beats / min,
this i believe is well within the ballpark for reels
it is a busy tune,
lots going on, the ornamentation could i believe be selectively refined to give the illusion of more space within the already busy tune,
having said that though, if this player were backed by others in a session or band, it would be very acceptable,
I believe this player has worked hard to achieve his level of competency however i believe on some tunes less is more.
joannie madden is my whistle player supreme, because she doesnt try to over do ornamentation ( but she has the balance between too much and not enough worked out to perfection)
Overall the playing wasnt too shabby at all
regards
David

talasiga · Post by **talasiga** » Sun Mar 02, 2008 1:25 am

boomerang wrote:.....
the ornamentation could i believe be selectively refined to give the illusion of more space within the already busy tune,
......
I believe this player has worked hard to achieve his level of competency however i believe on some tunes less is more.
.....

I enjoyed reading the elegant way you were able to make these points.

I think people are entitled to express their true opinions because the topic is about whether you like the audio clip and not whether there is some mandate about the status of the music.

When members voice their opinion and share their reasons or insights about their personal likings they are doing just that. Its not an absolute position for the adoption of all. It is not denigrating the music either unless the mode of expression has a certain tenor to it. I think that most of us who honestly said we didn't like all of it or certain aspects of it have done so with a constructive and appreciative tenor.

I hope my earlier comments will come across as being in line with good tenor posts such as those by boomerang and others.

Ceili_whistle_man · Post by **Ceili_whistle_man** » Sun Mar 02, 2008 6:06 am

This is starting to sound like sour grapes.

No, fearfaoin, quite the contrary, dear whistling compadre! Picture me sliding back into my chair while slapping my open palm against my forehead and muttering "Well, who would have thought?". Those two wee emoti-thingy-ma-jigs should have given you a clue!

I like O'Brien's whistling, just not this clip, so folks, take what I say at face value.

No one is saying so, but this seems like a test to see who "get's it" and who doesn't. The implication, if you like his playing, you "get it" when it comes to Irish traditional music.

What...? Only his playing?
Emmmm....I don't think so Stephen Seifert, please explain because I certainly do get it. Does that mean that if I like a person who does very little of what was going on this track, I don't 'get it'?

I'm with boomerang on this one;

the ornamentation could i believe be selectively refined to give the illusion of more space within the already busy tune,
..........
I believe this player has worked hard to achieve his level of competency however i believe on some tunes less is more.

On Ya cobber!! Didgeyabringyadidgealong?

When members voice their opinion and share their reasons or insights about their personal likings they are doing just that. Its not an absolute position for the adoption of all.

Well said talasiga, what more needs to be said?

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Do you like this whistling?

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