A Quick and Dirty Guide to Celtic and ! National Flute Association Convention, San Diego, CA, 8/11/2016 Dr. Andra Bohnet

I. Celtic Flute is a STYLE not an instrument!!!! A. It can be played successfully on the silver Boehm flute, but with a different approach than classical technique B. Playing a wooden flute with classical sensibilities will NOT make you sound Celtic!!

II. The Celtic style is learned primarily through listening to and imitating other players A. No universally accepted system exists for notation of the nuances of the style B. No definitive source exists for standard versions of the repertoire

III. Basic Tune Forms A. - 6/8, fast B. - duple, cut time, fast C. - 4/4, swing feel, moderate D. Most traditional dance tunes have two sections, each repeated E. Other Dances: - 9/8, fast; - 2/4, very fast; - 3/4; - 4/4; March - 2/4, 6/8, 3/4 or 4/4 F. Slow Air - free rhythm, highly expressive, modeled after singers

IV. Characteristics of Celtic Flute Technique in Dance Music A. Dark, reedy sound with no vibrato!!!!! B. Minimal tonguing, especially avoided on strong beats C. Abrupt, rhythmic releases, no tapers D. Rhythm is all important, don’t lose time to breathe E. Finger articulation (ornaments) F. On the Boehm flute – use middle finger F# as it simplifies ornamentation (and it’s fun to be bad ;-), avoid mechanism noise, trill keys are extremely useful in ornamentation G. Traditional Irish flute playing stays in the bottom two octaves!!

V. Basic Finger Ornaments/Articulations A. Cut - from above, accomplished by cracking a finger (or key) at least one hole above the one sounding the note to articulate the note, on the beat B. Tap or Strike - from below, accomplished by tapping finger directly below the one sounding the note, on the beat C. Roll - a rhythmic combination of a cut and a tap, often divides a note into thirds D. The above three finger articulations can be accompanied by tongue or throat articulation - they are about articulation, NOT pitches!! E. - gradually moving a finger (or fingers) off of the holes (or keys) to create a glissando between pitches F. Finger vibrato - rapid opening/closing of the holes/keys below the one opened to sound the note

VI. Other Useful Tidbits A. Most Irish music is the in the keys of D and G and their relative minors, but A minor and A mixolydian and E dorian are also common, Scottish tunes also in A major B. The key of Celtic flutes and is the note sounded when all six finger holes are closed, thus a D flute or whistle plays in concert pitch, a C flute/whistle = Bb concert C. The vast majority of the repertoire can be performed on keyless flutes and whistles in D VII. Getting Started A. Listen, listen, listen and listen some more to great players!!!! B. Buy or borrow a LOT of CDs and listen to them obsessively to assimilate the nuances of the style. Imitate what you hear. You can learn a lot from players of other instruments, too! C. Commit to learning and memorizing some of your favorite tunes. D. Play along with your CDs/mp3s, etc. Amazing Slowdowner, Audacity, Tempo Slow - software/apps which will slow down CDs and mp3 files at pitch, great for learning tunes and hearing detail in ornamentation! E. Find other musicians in your area interested in Irish music (any instruments) and get together with them F. Convince a friend to learn to do this with you; it’s a lot more fun!

VIII. Instructional Resources A. Internet Forums 1. www.thesession.org - hundreds of tunes, listings of sessions, discussion groups 2. www.chiffandfipple.com - emphasis on, but not exclusively devoted to, Celtic whistle and flute playing B. Books 1. June McCormick: Fliúit- www.draiochtmusic.com/fliuit - excellent tutor, includes CDs, two volumes available, geared towards Irish type flute 2. Grey Larsen: The Essential Guide to and , pub. Mel Bay a. Comes with 2 CDs of examples, 470+ page tome b. Very detailed, but if you were left on a desert island with this book, a CD player and a flute, you could learn to do it C. Recordings 1. Wooden Flute Obsession, 3 CD sets, amazing performances by a variety of players, available at Amazon.com 2. Great players a. Traditional: Matt Molloy, , John Skelton, Joanie Madden (plays Bohm flute), Laurence Nugent, Grey Larsen, Catherine McEvoy, June McCormick, , Mary Bergin b. Progressive: Brian Finnegan, Skip Healy, Jean-Michael Veillon, Michael McGoldrick, Sylvain Barou c. Chris Norman: one of the finest flute players/musicians on the planet!!! d. Great bands: Lunasa, Flook, Solas, Danu, Altan, Chieftains, Cherish the Ladies, Tulla Ceili Band, Mithril ;-) D. Workshops/Classes 1. Boxwood Flute Festival - www.boxwood.org, held last week in July in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia by Chris Norman, other faculty varies, but always includes Celtic flute players 2. Swannanoa Gathering Celtic Week - www.swangathering.com, Asheville, NC, held mid- July, often Kevin Crawford teaches here 3. Catskills Irish Arts Week - www.catskillsirishartsweek.org, Catskills Region., NY 4. Many others in U.S. and Ireland 5. Find a teacher at a session near you!

IX. Traditional Irish Sessions A. A group of musicians who gather together to play tunes and socialize, often in a pub B. Generally there is a leader who is in charge, even if it appears to be quite informal C. Each ongoing session will have it’s own unique repertoire of tunes, but much commonality exists among Irish musicians D. Some sessions are labeled “slow” and are accommodating to beginners or players new to the idiom, some of these may use sheet music X. Session Etiquette A. No sheet music, players are expected to know the tunes by memory/learn by ear B. Defer to the leader(s) and observe the “pecking order” of the other players C. If you don’t know the tune, play air flute while you’re trying to learn it D. Above all be rhythmic!!! Wrong notes, or even the wrong tune, will be forgiven if it fits into the rhythmic groove E. If you are asked/invited to start a tune, make sure you know its name and can play it all the way through with impeccable rhythm F. Don’t record unless you ask permission G. One whistle player at a time, please!!!!

XI. Instrument Options A. Boehm Flute - cylindrical bore, widely available, excellent intonation, encounters prejudice by some hardcore traditional Irish musicians B. - conical bore, vary widely in quality and intonation, keyless models more affordable, instruments from some makers long wait especially for keyed flutes, difficult to try/compare before purchase, finger stretch can be an issue, wood allergies and instrument cracking possible, fingers like a whistle

XII. Flute Makers A. If you’re reading this, you already own at least one flute; use it to play Irish music! B. Irish style flutes 1. Forbes & Yola Christie - Windward , Nova Scotia, www.windwardflutes.com, beautiful high end instruments, check them out in the Exhibit Hall!! Forbes used to work for Brannen & Powell. 2. Patrick Olwell - 434.277.9215, the longest wait time, up to 15 years, high end instruments 3. Dave Copley - Copley & Boegli Flutes, OH, www.copleyflutes.com, serviceable flutes in wood and delrin 4. Walt Sweet “Shannon flute - www.wdsweetflutes.com/shannon, a very nice flute for $275 5. Avoid internet specials made in Pakistan, non-Western tuning, ouch!!!!! If it sounds too good to be true it is. C. Whistles - start with one in D!!!!!! 1. Almost any cheap whistle is great to start on - decent makers are Clarke, Walton, Oak, Generation - these will not be tunable and usually have a plastic mouthpiece on a brass or nickel tube. Oak is my favorite of this group- $11ish online 2. Susato whistles - www.susato.com, my favorite entry level whistle. Made of plastic, Oriole model @ $28.90 can’t be beat, to go slightly upscale the Kildare model @ $48.90 is a monster! The Kildare comes in ALL keys and you can get sets of one head+three bodies. Excellent pitch, loud, maybe not so characteristic of a sound. 3. Michel Burke - www.burkewhistles.com, high end whistles, artist quality for $230! 4. Michael Copeland - the holy grail of whistles, hard to find now, begin around $375

Contact Information: (I’d love to hear from you!) Andra Bohnet: [email protected], [email protected] Professor of Flute: University of South Alabama, 251-460-6696 Mithril Celtic Band: www.mithril.us – Clinton Flute Project: www.clintonfuteproject.com Silverwood Quartet (flute and strings) - find our all of my music on iTunes and www.CDBaby.com Principal Flute, Mobile Symphony Orchestra: www.mobilesymphony.org

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