Posted this on session.org and thought it would make more sense to be here as well.
Just curious. I’ve been trying to learn some tunes that are really tricky for flute lately. One is Eddie Kelly’s reel in Dm. That one has a tendency to drop to low A and C and just hover in places. Couldn’t find any recordings of flute players doing that tune or ones similar. Another that I think is hard but at least realistic is Molly McGuire’s in Emajor. Heard it on a CD from Sue Sternberg and Sam Bartlett. Here’s a link to the notes:
http://trillian.mit.edu/~jc/cgi/abc/tuneget?F=GIF&U=/~jc/music/book/ryan-cole/Entry/ray:davies99.freeserve.co.uk/MollyMcGuiresReel_1.abc&X=1&T=MOLLYMCGUIRESREEL
That’s kinda long, but JC’s abc finder will get you there.
Anyway… My question is:
Does anyone know of recordings (on regular irish flute with keys) of flute players tackling such tunes or any other helpful resources? There are lots of tunes that I play in Dm, Gm, etc. that are’nt particularly easy, but some tunes seem nearly unadaptable to flute. Sue Sternberg seems to relish those low gravelly tunes as does Liz Carrol.
Check out Christy Barry’s track on Wooden Flute Obsession 3. Loads of tricky keywork there.
Rob
Can’t argue with that Rob. I looked up that 3rd tune on the session.org sit and it was also called Newcastle. His setting was a bit more flute like, but it didn’t look easy. I haven’t attempted it in flute yet, but just catching a few notes on whistle I could tell that.
Besides the trickiness of keywork, some tunes that hover on notes too low for my flute (6 key Copley) and seem to need sections rendered differently. For some tunes like that you can simply change octaves and its fine. On tunes such as Lads of Louise I’ve improvised parts that seem to work so long as I don’t continually do the same thing over and over. I’ve also been working on The Ebb Tide. Its a lovely hornpipe that I first heard on Seamus Egan’s first solo album. He was 16 I think at the time. He does a lovely version, but I’ve since discovered that in the 4th bar he made up something that was more natural to flute. I’m trying to train myself to play that that passage as a fiddler might. Needless to say I’m not up to speed on that one yet.
typically any of the tunes by Ed Reevey and Martin Wynn will get you down there. The only way to make them happen is to invert some of the notes far below…or roll/treble your way over them.
dm