I just booked my flight to St. Louie. I don’t get in until late on Friday, April 4th, so I’ll miss the Friday evening sessions, but I’ll be at the Kevin Crawford workshop bright and early the next day.
Who is going to be there for sure? It would nice for some of us forum members to be able to meet each other in person. Any suggestions on how we might be able to identify each other? I doubt that my name tag will say norcalbob, and I don’t think I’ll recognize many of you from your avatars.
I’ll be the guy with a short, white beard and my Copley, sitting bewilderedly in the classroom.
i should be going. i have to arrange my arrangements. my picture is the same as my face in real life. we should all figure out a way to meet. there is another thread about who is going, so check that one out.
I remember that thread, daiv, but I know that plans change for folks, so I thought this thread would be more up to date. I hope there is a good turnout of folks from this forum. It would be fun to get together and maybe share a pint. Cheers!
Barring any disasters, we’re going. I’ll be the chubby gal with the crooked yellow flute in the sessions, and the chubby gal booting a practice set out the door of the beginning piping class.
We’re going! I’m scheduled for the extended reedmaking class, but I’ll be around for the sessions for sure. I’ll be the old guy with pipes, sporting a small beard this year.
LOL, Bill, I get the feeling that there may be a bunch of us “old guys with small beards” in attendance. No one is going to be able to tell us apart!
BTW, I am driving up to Indianapolis afterwards to visit family there and in Elwood. I’ve been in California for 40 years but I still have Hoosier roots planted firmly in me.
choices choices! i reaaaally want to take kevin crawford’s class but i’m gonna do micheal o raghallaigh’s concertina class instead. its not very often that music camps i can get to have such high-profile concertina players.
I leave at midday tomorrow for the St. Louis Tionol. I hope I will somehow recognize a few of you folks and get a chance to meet a few of you there.
I understand that Kevin has taught his most recent classes entirely by ear. If that’s the case, I will probably be woefully lost since I’m addicted to the dots. I will most certainly be at the head of the inexperience level; so I may have to resort to faking it “air flute” style…
This will be my first time attending an Irish Festival; heck, I have never even been to a session either. Regardless, I’m looking forward to it.
So if you see a 61 year old guy from the Left Coast with a short white beard and brown hair (less by the week, it seems ), sheepishly wandering about, please say hello, it’ll probably be me. I would very much enjoy meeting you.
“…I understand that Kevin has taught his most recent classes entirely by ear. If that’s the case, I will probably be woefully lost since I’m addicted to the dots. I will most certainly be at the head of the inexperience level; so I may have to resort to faking it “air flute” style… “
Bob,
It will take some time to start learning by ear. But throw yourself into it fully, you won’t regret it. There are some very good resouces for learning tunes by ear when you get back, from St. Louie.
One was posted today at “thesession.org” http://www.TheGrotonSession.com. They have their workshop tunes in mp3 formate, both a slow version and a fast version.
Skip Healy has a book & CD out with a slow, faster, and advanced, version of the tunes. http://www.skiphealy.com/haveyethisone
I’ve been taking a class from Dan Compton in Portland, Or. where Dan plays fiddle at near session speed accompanied by guitar and sometimes box. Then a slow version, fiddle only. He’s got 21 CD’s out now and working on his 22nd. http://www.glencottagemusic.com/catalogue.html
I’m sure there are other resouce out there. Also there is amazing slow downer. Personally I like the CD’s that have one instrutment either the flute or the fiddle, to learn from because they are less clutered than when you use Amazing Slow Downer.
The main thing I’d suggest to you is to set aside the dots for a while and Play along with a tune over and over until you pick it up. (My wife made use headphones) Over time it does get easier.
Have fun in St Louie!!
Don’t fret too much about it. Kevin breaks down the tunes into smaller phrases so that it is easier to pick 'em up by ear…and then adds them all together to create the full tune. (Or at least that is what he did at Augusta.) I am a dot reader myself and was surprised that I was able to pick up the tunes.
Just remember to record everything (or become a very good friend of someone else who’s recording everything) because that’s what’ll keep you warm through the long, cold post-Tionol nights with only the ABC’s to wrap around yourself …
I’ve had the intention to close the tune books, but it is so tempting to just pick out a new tune and start playing by sight reading. I’d love to learn by ear, so I guess I’ll get a good introduction to it with Kevin on Saturday.
I have found that even after I can play a tune pretty well from sheet music and am really just skimming over the written music, when I try to play it by ear, I can’t. It is as if my visual memory dominates, and I will actually see the written music in my mind’s eye instead of playing the tune from aural memory, because I didn’t originally learn it by ear. So reading the dots really does impair my ability to commit a tune to memory.
I learned to play instruments by reading music: I wish I had learned by ear initially.
I’ve got my recorder ready to go. I’m looking forward to hearing you tear it up at one of the sessions, Cathy.
A little voice in my head keeps saying, get thyself to bed now! It’s a very long travel day tomorrow, Sacto to Atlanta to St. Louie by midnight…uh…I’m already feeling tired…
.
), sheepishly wandering about, please say hello, it’ll probably be me. I would very much enjoy meeting you.
It’s a very long travel day tomorrow, Sacto to Atlanta to St. Louie by midnight…uh…I’m already feeling tired…