Thank you, David. 
Many people think that “slow air” just means “slow tune”, but it doesn’t.
You’d be hard pressed to prove to me that it is an independently developed term in a tradition of music other than Irish Traditional Music (and the somewhat related styles, as in Scottish music) meaning something different from the definition I posted. People who use the term all seem to have heard of it in relation to ITM first, and then either use it correctly, or misunderstand what it is supposed to be used for.
The argument may be made that the term means whatever people use it for, but it still sticks in my craw that people use the term “decimate” to mean “completely destroy”, so that argument isn’t going to convince me!
There’s the Hare in a G String… and it’s not an Irish Hare either.
Wow! Thanks for this, Jim - it’s gorgeous. Can’t wait to try playing along.
My kids did Brigadoon in school. Isabelle played Bonnie Jean and Claire was Harry Beaton (it was a girls’ school). Thus,
I got to see one child married and the other carried in dead, all in one show. 
This is their least favourite of all
the shows they did in school, because the story is so far-fetched, I think. The Lerner & Loewe music can’t be faulted.
The girl who sang Come to Me, Bend to Me was a very weak singer (the director’s daughter 
) so I had no idea
how great a song this is. Something’s lacking when a soprano sings a guy’s song anyway…
it’s a bachair
I didn’t want to disappoint ya Peter
Brigadoon is my joint all-time favourite musical show. The other being Carousel. I find both stories equally believable.
And the “slow” in Slow Air (Fionn Mall) doesn’t really mean slow per se, but distinguishes goltraí and suantraí from geantraí in the 3-part traditional division of Irish music types.
In all honesty, I don’t think that division has seen any practical use since the middle ages or thereabouts.
I notice older players used to refer to ‘air’ and that could include many things, Boolavogue, Skibbereen, Moonlight in Mayo and all manner of song. Slow air seems to be used more for Sean Nos airs but it’s not particularly well defined.
Speaking of the Scottish stuff, I’ve been totally groovin’ on [u]this simple tune[/u] for days, now, played by Aly Bain accompanied by a slew of others. It’s called Bonaparte’s Retreat, but it’s not the tune as I’ve known it heretofore. Pardon me while I go hit “Replay”. 
The nice thing about this arrangement (beyond the playing), to me, is how the parent connection to the music of the American Deep South is pointed out.
Well, it’s my theory and I’m stickin’ to it. Forsooth. 
How come when I play the geantraí, it works on the audience like the suantraí, and on me like the goltraí?
You betcha. Note the high B sung toward the end of the tune. That’s great fun on the flute.
I’d think not! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fLfFeO8h5Q
nice though, innit 
It’s just one more reason to kick myself for never having taken up the fiddle. 
Kick yourself if you must. But the world thanks you.
And…? You know full well what I think about that. 
don’t beg dear
Hi Nanohedron
If you liked Bonaparte’s Retreat, then Aly Bain playing Waiting for the Federals would be a nice follow on. (Though I think he should have used it’s proper name - The Seneca Square Dance).
Transatlantic Sessions 5 has been recorded, hopefully it will be broadcast soon.
David
Any American tune played slowly by Aly Bain
(I was also going to suggest “Waiting for the Federals” but wasn’t sure if it was a slow tune when at home over there)
Is that what they traditionally call pibroch?
I look forward, with pleasure, at your response to this first.
thanks, mate.
I think pibrochs are in a category of their own. Their are loads of Scottish Airs that are not connected with any word set or piborochs and are lovley listening pieces if you will. Just as thier are Irish slow airs not connected with words but Scotland seems to have them in spades.
By the way I’m sure I read somewhere from Jay Ungar that Ashokan Farewell was composed in the style of a scottish air which makes perfect sense to me. My favorite air at the moment is a listening piece called Freddie’s tune from a shetland player recorded by Aly Bain and Tom Andersen.
Someone metioned that airs are always connected to words or the song tradition sung in Irish however there are many that are not and so I think if I say air, it can mean both the melody of a sean nos song connected with words and a sort of listening piece not connected with words that is not a jig, reel, mazurka, waltz, various other dance form. So by extension any American song melody or listening piece {I’m sure they exist though hard to put a finger on, though John Hartford’s Man of Constant Sorrow thing would certainly qualify} influenced by the way by Scottish and Irish music, that is not meant to be danced to can be an air. Wow what a run on sentence.
I’ll leave the explanation of Pibroch to someone who really knows their shite however something like Neil Gow’s Lament for his second wife or Oh The Airds are not piborch the ‘classical music’ of the bagpipe.