Wednesday 24 November 2004 sees the launch in Montreal of a CD of what may be the most unusual work ever composed for tin whistle:
“Douze suites trad pour flageolet à une main”
(Twelve suites in traditional style for one-handed tin whistle)
by Jean Duval.
Jean writes:
I composed these suites in September 2001 (nos. 1 to 6) and October 2002 (nos. 6 to 12) as a challenge, to see whether I could make tunes that could be played on an ordinary six-hole tin whistle using only one hand in a variety of modes and keys. The styles of the suites are all inspired by traditional music, mostly Irish, Scottish and Québécois. In form and spirit, they resemble some works of the baroque period. That is why I have numbered them and given them old-fashioned titles.
I dedicate all these suites to Packie Manus Byrne, storyteller, singer and whistle player from Donegal, Ireland. Packie’s composition “The Swamp Reed March,” which can be played with one hand, provided the initial inspiration for this project, along with his liking for sets made up of slow airs and dance tunes with melodic similarities.
Using four fingers of the top hand, it is possible to get all the notes chromatically from F# to C# in two octaves, plus d’’ in the third octave. For two of the suites Jean resorted to a bit of tape over the E hole, and halfway over the same hole for another.
Jean is a very prolific composer of great tunes for two hands - he published a collection of some 300 tunes recently. The tunes here are all very plausible, even if the missing notes and frequent octave jumping does give them a certain characteristic flavour. An unbelievable achievement, really.
The CD and scores will be available after the launch - I’ll let you know how to get them. The music will give your fingers a good workout, and the suites make stunning party pieces.
Anyway, come to the launch if you can. Doors open at 6pm but get there early, the place only holds 130 people and there’s quite a buzz surrounding this event already. Details](http://www.rogermillington.com/steam/onehandlaunch.pdf%22%3EDetails) here.
Steve
PS The music (from Jean’s liner notes for the CD):
- Suite no. 1 in F sharp minor – La Peverilienne Peveril is the hamlet in southwestern Québec where I live. This suite is very “Peverilian” in style, blending traditional Scottish influences with more modern flavours.
- Suite no. 2 in G major – L’Hibernienne de l’est “Hibernia” is an old name for Ireland. Although traditional music has stronger roots in the west of Ireland than in the east, I associate this suite’s lyrical major-mode melodies with the east of the country.
- Suite no. 3 in A Myxolydian – L’Erse “Erse” is another name for Scots Gaelic, the language of the Scottish Highlands. The Highlands are, of course, the homeland of the famous Scottish bagpipes which this suite echoes.
- Suite no. 4 in A minor – L’Hibernienne de l’ouest The west coast of Ireland is the heart of traditional Irish music, and especially of the Galway style, in which the music flows sweetly and with melancholy, as in this suite.
- Suite no. 5 in B minor – La Néo-trad The expression “neo-traditional” could be used to describe a style of traditional music that originated in the 1970s with groups such as Planxty: modal harmonies, guitar and bouzouki providing a rhythmic accompaniment, etc.
- Suite no. 6 in C major – La Belle Époque I have had a few opportunities to play the waltz-lancer quadrille for dance troupes. This suite is in the spirit of the waltz-lancer, the parlour music of the early 20th Century (the Belle Époque).
- Suite no. 7 in C major – La Calédonienne The Lowlands of Scotland (Caledonia) were the birthplace of our traditional fiddle music in the 18th Century. Among the features of that period found in this suite are romantic and regular airs and strathspeys.
- Suite no. 8 in D Myxolydian – La Miltownienne Miltown Malbay is a small town in County Clare, Ireland, that hosts a traditional music festival every year. This suite is in imitation of tunes played on the Irish or uilleann pipes.
- Suite no. 9 in D major – La Magnymontoise Montmagny is a small town below Québec City on the south shore of the St. Lawrence river. It is the province’s accordion capital, with a distinct style, which inspired me for this suite.
- Suite no. 10 in E minor – La Bretonne Breton traditional music is distinguished by much older dance forms dating back to the Renaissance. This suite features three different types of dance tune with answering whistles, after an air with a bluesy flavour.
- Suite no. 11 in F major – L’Outaouaise The Ottawa Valley style is associated with fiddle and stepdance contests. Fiddlers enjoy playing showy waltzes full of chromatic runs, while stepdancers perform a hornpipe-jig-reel sequence during these competitions.
- Suite no. 12 in F sharp major Phrygian – La Transylvaine Since British Isles musicians began to include Eastern European traditional music on their recordings, we have heard more and more compositions in this broad style, as in this suite.
A website is going up shortly, once points of sale have been sorted out. Since you are in Canada you can easily order one directly from Jean - I’ve sent you a PM with his email addy.