this video clip shows a very talented player … with a finger posture that simply should not produce the quality of ornaments he is getting…going to show that doesn’t matter how you hold the flute, only the results!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=UUhwlpQOgn5X1YIpen0Jhc_A&v=_ISXPg-Xzx4
I didn’t notice anything too unusual. He’s got somewhat longer fingers than normal, but that’s about it.
Ah. Tommi. I used to count him as a good friend, but he sees to have ditched me for reasons that I don’t understand. 
…going to show that doesn’t matter how you hold the flute, only the results!
I find the apparently involuntary exaggerated movements of the player’s left pinky to be quite fascinating … but the music is very pleasant to listen to … whatever it takes that doesn’t hurt 
Of course, Tommi has always maintained that you can only get ornaments like his by holding the flute that way.
Right. Other than the dancing pinkie/pinky finger I don’t see anything unusual. Am I missing something?
Feadoggie
Looks fairly normal to me…pinkies are like singer’s faces…they’re always doing something weird the performer is not aware of.
Lovely playing, and I’d forgotten about the Moving Cloud. I wanted to learn it when I was a new player, set it aside for later but later never came. So…guess which reel I’m learning next? 
Eric
The Moving Cloud is much much easier than it seems.
Ben - you’re dead on mate. Looking at the dots on the session.org, it’s not bad at all. I think I last attempted it back in 2000 or so.
Eric
When I was learning the Moving Cloud, I found that this alternate fingering of high C makes things a lot easier: OXX XXO. Just don’t blow too hard or you’ll get high a…ouch!
Yeah. REALLY high A!!! 
So many people comment on the pinky thing. I do it on all the stuff I play: whistles, pipes, flutes…It comes from playing the Bohme style flute where you almost always vent Eb. It just becomes automatic. I think my Copley sounds best when the Eb is vented anyways and I had Dave tune it accordingly.
This guys a great player!
With Tommi it definitely doesn’t come from playing a Boehm style flute. ASAIK he’s never played one, and he certainly hasn’t for many years. And he’s not all that many years old! (Relatively. )
Which pinky was Feadoggie referring to ?
I saw that vid the other day and the first thing I noticed was the draped-over (piper’s) grip on the upper hand. I’ve tried that on my flute but I have to roll the upper section so that the g# key is almost completely under the long f key. I find that a piper’s grip is tough to pull off on a keyed flute.
Then of course I noticed the pinky.
Kirk
Hello Lads!
First of all: Thanks for the comments, I’m very happy to read that you enjoy the music! 
The Mooving cloud is a great reel and I really enjoy it!!! 
I’m so sorry Mr. Hall deceided to talk about personal things in front of an audience “stranger” to our personal relationship.
Very rude thing, in my opinion, and has nothing to do with music.
I studied classical flute for 4 years (12 to 16 yo), then I focused solely on irish flute, because I have a really strong passion for irish traditional music and I think it’s the best for me, since I am…12!!! 
I think classical studies really helped me for many reasons: producing the tone on a flute is probably one of the most difficult things in the world (among many other 
), especially about breath pression, tone stability and stuff like this. Classical studies helped me in the sense that gave me the idea of how to start a constructive reflection in my head and a sort of comparison with the irish style.
Also, musical theory is not necessary at all, but it can be very, very useful in the sense that it saves you time, I think.
I do not think that my “personal interpretation” of the “piper’s grip” is the only way to obtain certain effecte, or ornaments. Very silly thing. What I think is that, for me (and of course, as you can notice, for my personal physicality), this is, if not the only, the the easiest way to play as I like, wich means the only way
Hope to meet you all in Ireland soon (October!!!)
Tommy
I seem to have offended you again, Tommy. Never my intention, I assure you. I apologise.
I don’t see anything really unusual about that kind of grip. Whatever works, works. I’m fairly sure McGoldrick holds his upper hand this way, as do many others i’m sure.