Well, oddly enough I’ve spent the last 6 months or so immersed in classical music - which I enjoy very much. I took a class at the local university and mostly enjoyed the 2+ hours a day of practice that it required (I know that many of you practice more than that, but for me that was the most that I’ve ever practiced in my life).
Because I have been so busy, however, I haven’t made time for any of the sessions in our area - I’ve really been out of touch. Let me tell you that absence really does make the heart grow fonder. I went to a session on Saturday and went away with a renewed vigor for Irish music and my friends there.
What a nice way to start the New Year It feels a bit like a New Years resolution, but it’s time to increase my tune bank. I’m hoping for one new tune a week. We’ll see Anyone else out there hoping for the same thing?
We visited with family on New Year’s Day and their friends came over with instruments in the evening. It was very friendly and we had a lot of fun swapping tunes and singing.
We did something similar - we went to a Medieval costume party and I dressed as a bard. Folks sang songs and we played some music. One of the girls there had a wonderful voice and sang some incredible Scottish and Irish songs.
Since I’m still new to learning by ear, I’d be thrilled to get one song a week. I’m up to three, with a few others that I’m working on, and that took me just over a month. Oh…I guess that does put me at one a week. I guess I’m thrilled.
It comes with time. And adding tunes can speed up and slow down.
I’ve been playing whistle about two years and I’ve lost count of the tunes I know well enough to play from memory - not a lot by expert standards (60-70, I’d guess - I’ve learned more but lost a few) but enough that I can play for a while without revisiting tunes.
But when I started out I was doing well to add one a week. Now, I sometimes add 2-3 a week and sometimes go a month without doing more than trying to improve tunes I already know. And though I’ve branched to many other sources (the “Ireland’s Best” series, “A Dossan of Heather”, and bits and strays from elsewhere) one of my new year’s resolutions is to finish the Bill Ochs tutorial I started nearly two years ago - currently working on “The Steamboat Hornpipe”.
Keep at it. I’m still at it because I’m enjoying myself, and no matter how slow progress may seem I can tell I’m improving - pieces that seemed impossibly difficult a year back are now among my favorites.
But though I can tell I’m improving I also know how much further I have to go; a year ago if asked I would have said I was an intermediate level player - these days, I’d say “advanced beginner - low intermediate level on a good day”. There’s a lot of room for growth in the simple bit of tin with 6 holes.
My new year’s resolution, is to finish learning song’s I’ve started and add a couple new tunes each week. The big part of this is “Finish”. I have over a hundred tunes I’ve ‘learned’ well enough to stumble through; however, most are not up to session standards. To help with this, I thought I’d try the only Monday night slow session in our area. The last time I’d attended there were only 4 people there and 3 were guitars.
Last night I was suprised to find this session had about a dozen players, which they said was about average. They play slow enough that I think I can get some of the tunes transitioned to a point where I’m comfortable playing them in regular sessions. They also are concentrating on a list of around 100 tunes which should help me focus my energy.
What struck me the most about last night was the friendliness of the folks. There were probably a dozen folk playing, almost all of them took the time to introduce themselves and talk with me by the end of the night. I was suprised to find that a half dozen of them live within walking distance (less that 5 miles) of my house.
Thinking of last night, the feelings that rise from memory, are warmth of hearts and unburdened folks enjoying their music.
One of my houseguests over the holiday period was a fine saxophone player who brought his tenor with him. We jammed together several times that week with me playing electric guitar, flute, whistle and concertina at different times. As you can probably imagine, Irish music wasn’t on the menu but jazz and blues certainly were. It was a bit of a shame that none of my local musician friends dropped by.
It feels a bit like a New Years resolution, but it’s time to increase my tune bank. I’m hoping for one new tune a week. We’ll see 
