Just took a look at the cute pictures of the furry busking fiddle and flute player and realised that in all my life I have never seen a busking ITM flute player:(. I’ve come across busking ITM fiddle players, box players, mandolin players, banjo players, tin whistle players, low whistle players, guitar players, bodhran players, uillean pipers etc but not a single person playing the Irish flute (only silver flute and recorder players). So, I’m wondering am I in the wrong plays at the wrong time or are they in fact a rarity ?
Afraid I have to admit to once busking solo flute at the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare. It was hard work (as it was too exposed) and I packed it in after 1/2 an hour. I don’t think the flute sounds that good when played outside, at least to the player, you don’t get any accoustic feedback unless you’re surrounded by walls.
Best solo busker I heard was a sax player in Brighton one evening - magic
I’ve busked in KC, St. Louis, San Francisco and Baltimore…but I’ve not met any other busking flute players actually busking. However, I know of several others who’ve busked in the past.
I busk on an Irish flute in St. Louis.
I don’t just do ITM, though–a good deal
of old time Americana, blues, middle eastern
music, but I do a good deal of ITM too.
I did when I lived in Münster, Germany – on flute, low whistle and flemish bagpipes, together with a percussionist who also played the didge. Cool music we made…people liked it. Acoustics were fine as Münster featured quite narrow alleyways - didge and flute projected wonderful.
Didn’t do any busking since moving to Frankfurt though…
I’ve seen busking simple system fluters on the waterfront in Vancouver, B.C., downtown Philadelphia, and during an arts and crafts fair in my small town. Two of them played Irish trad; the guy in Philly was playing Christmas carols, wearing fingerless gloves, in December, with no sign or sound of suffering from the cold.
Christmas is great for flute busking, because the
carols sound great on Irish flute and people
are conditioned to giving money. You just
have to wear your electric undies.
Not flute, but a couple of years ago I was at a local park to fly some kites, and the wind dropped, so I picked up some juggling props and just practiced for a while. Oblivious to the world, just improvising. Wasn’t doing a routine or anything.
Suddenly I became aware of a small crowd of European tourists watching me, so I stopped and smiled at them, and they applauded and came forward and dropped money on my prop bag. I felt very strange; I was just hanging out and fooling around. I did get to teach one of their number how to juggle a simple three-ball pattern, though, so I figure I earned the dough for that.
Flute related: I’ve seen Boehm-flute buskers in the area here, but never a whistler or wooden-flute player. Open areas around here are often so windy that you can’t play effectively outdoors, anyway, if you play flute or whistle.
I used to busk with my flute in the Montreal metro. To be heard, I got a little battery-driven pignose amp, and miced my flute using a radio shack lapel mic, which I attached to my flute just up from the soundhole with an elastic band.
As long as I kept the amp below half volume, the sound was reasonably undistorted.
I don’t make a ton of money doing it, but then I wasnt’ that great a flute plyer, either.
So, busking flute players are out there . Now I am wondering: What about outdoor conditions - is it okay to play a wooden flute outside? I’m asking because sometimes to get a bit of undisturbed practice time to myself I go into the local wood (a place nobody comes too) and play my Seery (I am only a beginner, so I don’t want anyone to hear me). I also have a wooden flute, a Hamilton, but never dared to take it along because I am afraid the wood is too sensitive and I don’t want anything happen to to my precious instrument. So how about busking - did you think it was okay to play your wooden flute outside or did you play a delrin/polymer one just in case?
I don’t busk, but I find that playing out side does have its learning points. Wind effects how you use your embouchure . The sound is affected too seems to me like your notes go out rather than being bounced right back at you. I feel that it encourages you to play with power. Like you I play in out of the way places where fewer people can hear me.
Playing in the winter is tough, my fingers get cold fast, and gloves do not close the holes well.
I agree about embouchure. One solo gig outdoors, and I play differently: much more focussed, faster airstream, and producing more backpressure. Ornaments seemed muddy, so I started lifting my tapping finger higher and really tapping. Without any natural reverb, any breathing mistakes were amplified - little gaps seemed bigger. Also, when the opportunity presented itself to move to a location out of the breeze and against a wall, I jumped at it. A little reflected sound helped.
Blackwood is tough stuff and there is no serious problem
playing outside if you use ordinary common sense.
To wit, I’m not out there when its below freezing
and I allow the flute to warm up slowly in its case
before I take it out inside. If there is any danger it has
to do with rapid temperature change.
One thing I was told here several times when I started
is that blackwood, anyhow, is durable, tough wood
and one doesn’t have to live in fear about damaging it.
At the same time there are other risks busking.
One is that the flute will fall on cement, which will
mark its finish; another, less likely, is that
somebody will run off with it. I wear a shoulder bag
when I play and put the instrument I’m not using
in it.
I find that uncexpected thing certainly do happen out there.
I have to think through what I’m doing.
More recently I’ve been playing a Sweetheart G flute when
busking. This has excellent volume, it sounds good, it
carries better than a D flute, it’s not an expensive instrument,
and its a lot easier to finger, especially playing for hours.
But it’s good to have two flutes, as one of them gets
soggy, often, and breaking flutes down and swabbing
is a bit complicated under the circumstances. I have
a Sweetheart A flute that I’m using too.
P.S. Every indication I have is that rosewood is
tough, too.
When I was busking I also used a Hammy Hamilton flute Vanessa.
I never had any harm come to it, Hammy’s flutes are very robust and unless it is deliberately dropped or damaged in some way, I cant see how it could get hurt. The only thing I would say, is to oil your flute well a couple of days before taking it out, as the temperature changes can sometimes affect the tone.
Take care!
Well, very few flutes that are dropped are dropped deliberately.
I’ve damaged instruments on several occasions while buksing, especially
whistles. I was playing with a banjo and guitarist. We often shifted
from G or D to C, so I shifted from a D whistle to a G whistle.
These were before me on a pad on the ground and, well,
kaa kaa happens.
On one occasion a fellow tried to run off with our jar of money–
that was really interesting. Lots of things flying in various
directions.
During an outside gig one St. Pats day our band was on a stage in a public square on the ocean. There was about a 30 knot wind blasting in off the ocean right into our faces. While the mics with wind screens handled it quite well (if everybody sidled right up to them), my flute notes were blown completely away. I could not get a single note out until I tuned my back to the wind (and the audience) where everything was fine. I played the entire gig with my back to the audience. The whistle player just tuned the head of the whistle upside down and got behind the mic and was fine.
One of the greatest Irish flute players ever used to play a lot outside, busking at fleadhs, and also just busking in Sligo, Roscommon - Pat Mahon. I haven’t seen Pat since 1999 - but he’s still around living in Easky, Co. Sligo. A great singer too - well worth a listen. The most powerful moving flute playing you’ll ever hear.
Thanks for this info. Sounds like a terrific musician.
Busking is, for many of us, anyhow, where you go
when you want to perform but you’re not much good.
Aspiring musicians can benefit from a place to
go to be bad.
However there are some very good people busking,
e.g. on the subways in Boston, but I haven’t heard
anybody good playing ITM–not on this side of the
great puddle, anyhow.
I remember a kid playing a Bb generation whistle in
a storefront in Ireland who was lovely,
and a girl playing concertina wonderfully, too.
It’s terribly hot now in St. Louis, and the only place
I can make money is directly in the sun. Not very
pleasant, but I’m making money.
I wish I really could play the flute; indoor gigs would
be cooler. But I suppose few impressive abilities are
less rewarded monetarily than musicianship. Apparently
the supply of talented and accomplished people far
outstrips the demand.
,
?
