I got a phone call from a friend this morning asking to do her a favor. She is the Activities director at a senior citizens home and is in need of entertainment for the St. Patricks Day program.
She wants me to bring my Whistles and my Hammered dulcimer and entertain the residents there! I am so scared!!! I have only played my dulcimer maybe 4 times in public with a local gospel/bluegrass jam session where I only play background noise in the key that they are playing the tune in. It’s quiet enough that if I hit a wrong note, nobody knows, not even me sometimes. Ha Ha.
I have never played my Whistle for anybody but immediate family and maybe 3 of my friends. I just know I will hyperventilate and probably swallow the whistle. Oh God, I hope I don’t let my hammers fly and whap some old person in the head. What am I gonna Do?!!!
Ok, Breathe, Breathe, Whew, Ok now I can go on. I have a list of Irishy tunes that I can play that don’t sound too bad. Here is my list. If you think some of these won’t sound good following one another, let me know please.
Oh, HD is Hammered Dulcimer and W is for , well, you know!
HD “The Irish Washer Woman”
HD “Marcus Hernons Air”
W “Inisheer”
HD “Southwinds”
HD “An Comhra Donn” (The Brown Coffin)I won’t tell them that, it’s a hornpipe so it sounds skippy.
W “Oh Danny Boy” I know, but I gotta do it.
HD “Brian Boru’s March”
HD “Star of the County Down”
W “Cockles and Mussels”
W “Toora Loora Loora” (Irish lullaby) I am playing this by ear but if someone has the music for it I would appreciate it.
HD “Sweet Hour of Prayer”
I thought I would end with a hymn because it is a Church of the Brethren home and they like hymns. I would rather find an Irish Hymn but if I can’t learn or find another one by then, I will use it.
Kathy, relax! The people will be so happy to have you come and play for them that they won’t care if you are nervous or make a mistake - and they probably won’t even know it if you do!
In my opinion, the biggest things to remember about playing for others are:
Be able to continue on if you make a mistake - at the very least, if you can’t pick up from where you left off, try to keep the beat going and start over at the beginning of an A or B part.
If you hit a sour note, try not to make a face! I always cringe and this lets my audience know I goofed I am working on it but it’s slow going.
Pay attention to the speed that you start a tune on - I tend to play faster than normal when I am nervous, which usually gets me into trouble midway through the tune.
You’ll be great! It might help you to take a friend along for moral support if you can - I am always MUCH less self conscious playing in public with a friend along.
I’m sure you’ll be just fine! Would it help to invite a friend to come play with you, if you know someone who plays something appropriate? It might take the pressure off a little. Have fun!
If you’re still looking for an Irish hymn, you might consider “Be Thou My Vision”. A lovely old hymn supposedly based on an old Celtic or Irish tune.
I play it in G on a D whistle.
Good luck and breath deep.
I’ve played some for our residents on our Gero-psychiatric unit and they love it. Their smiles and whoops are priceless. They do seem to appreciate hymns a bunch.
take care
jim
[ This Message was edited by: livethe question on 2003-01-15 21:35 ]
[ This Message was edited by: livethe question on 2003-01-15 21:36 ]
On 2003-01-15 21:34, livethe question wrote:
If you’re still looking for an Irish hymn, you might consider “Be Thou My Vision”. A lovely old hymn supposedly based on an old Celtic or Irish tune.
I play it in G on a D whistle.
Good luck and breath deep.
I’ve played some for our residents on our Gero-psychiatric unit and they love it. Their smiles and whoops are priceless. They do seem to appreciate hymns a bunch.
take care
jim
[ This Message was edited by: livethe question on 2003-01-15 21:35 ]
[ This Message was edited by: livethe question on 2003-01-15 21:36 ]
Yes…the tune for “Be Thou My Vision” is “Slane,” which is Irish. Another good one (on the dulcimer, anyway…it’s a bit tricky on the whistle) is “St. Patrick’s Breastplate.”
Relax, Kathy…they’re going to love you! I love singing in nursing homes, because they genuinely enjoy the music, and so much love having visitors! The last time our choir sang at one, one of the nurses came up to me and one of the section leaders afterward and asked if a few of us would mind going around to some of the rooms to sing “Amazing Grace”…a favorite of many of the residents (some of whom couldn’t make it down to the lobby for our choir performance). I thought I would be terribly shy, especially as the section leader is a much better singer than I am, but I really enjoyed it…and so did the residents. You’re going to make their day
One other thing Kathy; They are going to dance. Them that can will dance. And your heart will soar like a hawk. Because what you give them they will give to you many times over. You are going to love it.
picture everybody in the audience in their underwear! lol, just kidding, but in my experience, even if you do make a mistake, people wont start pointing at you and start laughing. thats always been a big fear of mine when doing something in front of other people, but they never do. don’t worry!!!
The advice you’ve been getting is good so I’ll just add something I don’t think anybody has said. Although you shouldn’t be in a state of panic, you should feel nervous before performing. That is normal and those who don’t rarely give of their best. Even those of us who have regularly been making a public spectacle of ourselves for decades still feel nervous, especially in front of a new audience. Not too nervous mind; just nervous enough to have that edge that makes for a good performance. Good luck.
I shut my eyes and just play, and listen to the music.This way I can’t see distracting things or worry about expressions on people faces. Only the music exists!
You will LOVE it!! People in nursing homes are so starved for stimulation, that you could sit up there and read the phone book and they would appreciate it.
I used to do foot care at several nursing homes, and once in a while would entertain them with my amateur juggling. I later added some music and gradually left out the juggling. The people were crazy about it, no matter what I did.
Play stuff that is familiar to THEM in addition to your usual fare. Bicycle Built For Two, etc. Encourage them to sing along. Joke with them. Be silly. This will be one of the most rewarding things you ever do. Trust me on this one.
Old folks are the most gentle audience you could ever hope for. As Beth said, slow down. They will want your concert to last forever, so don’t rush through stuff.
For the songs (Danny Boy, Cockles & Mussels) I bet they’ll want to sing along, so encourage them to, and maybe have songsheets ready to hand out? Kids and old folks are suckers for joining in (oh no they’re not, oh yes they are etc.).
And encourage them to drink lots of milk, it’s good for their bones & teeth, and gives them a nice glossy coat too.
Here’s a link to “St. Patrick’s Breastplate” from The Cyber Hymnal (sorry for the poor quality of the MIDI…it’s an older site). Supposedly the score is on there too, but I haven’t been able to find it. It’s a beautiful tune (very Irish!), and I think it would sound great on the dulcimer (and be highly appropriate for St. Patrick’s Day). I don’t know how popular it is in other church circles, but if any of your listeners happen to be Episcopalians, they’ll recognize it instantly…it’s very popular at ordinations and clergy investitures.
Here’s a better one…from the Anglican Cyber Hymnal. It does have the score, as well as a better MIDI. I think you need may need Scorch to read it, but it’s a free download via a button on the main page HERE</A](http://www.episcopalnet.org/CHymnal/ACH/">HERE</A)>
You will do find Kathy as others have said they will greatly appreciate it and kind enough not to hear the mistakes “if you make any”
The group I play with now and before I joined did a gig at seniors residence and when they finished, they found out that one senior had died in the audience, everybody thought he was asleep!
Practice beforehand, you still have a month. And I don’t mean practice the tunes (that’s good, too, though), but practice playing in public. Whistle at the gas station while you’re waiting for the tank to fill. Sit on a city stoop and whistle. Just do it where you know people will hear you. Dealing with that nervousness is something you can learn, and it’s not hard beyond just doing it.
I am working on it but it’s slow going.