A Scottish Lament

[WhistlingBadger]

I recorded this tune my last day at the old place. Hard to leave so much beauty and so many good memories, but we did it for the right reasons and it's time to move on. I was kind of glad to get this video done. Stay tuned for more cheerful offerings.

 

[HoldenOn]

I recorded this tune my last day at the old place. Hard to leave so much beauty and so many good memories, but we did it for the right reasons and it's time to move on. I was kind of glad to get this video done. Stay tuned for more cheerful offerings.

Very nice, I liked the frog hehe. How long did it take you to learn the instrument like that.

 

[Gypsum]

Tannahill Weavers recorded that. Nice tune.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Very nice, I liked the frog hehe. How long did it take you to learn the instrument like that.

Thanks! Frogs were a fairly big part of life out there. I took up the whistle 20 some years ago. In that time, I've probably put in a good six months or so of serious practice.

Tannahill Weavers recorded that. Nice tune.

Yep, that's who I learned it from.

 

[Utar]

Very nice and a beautiful song, love the country side and animals. What software did you use to create your video, I found filmora9 recently to be easy to learn and creates great videos.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Very nice and a beautiful song, love the country side and animals. What software did you use to create your video, I found filmora9 recently to be easy to learn and creates great videos.

Thanks. I used Wevideo for this one. Not totally satisfied with it but it's good enough. Might check out filmora.

 

[Retired Viking]

Very nice, thank you for sharing this with us.

 

[Gypsum]

Thanks! Frogs were a fairly big part of life out there. I took up the whistle 20 some years ago. In that time, I've probably put in a good six months or so of serious practice.

Yep, that's who I learned it from.

Yeah, I figured. Don't play it myself as I'm pretty lazy about learning airs -- prefer jigs, reels, strathspeys, etc., and then never get around to slow stuff, but it's a lovely tune.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Yeah, I figured. Don't play it myself as I'm pretty lazy about learning airs -- prefer jigs, reels, strathspeys, etc., and then never get around to slow stuff, but it's a lovely tune.

What's your instrument?

 

[Gypsum]

Uilleann pipes and whistle (not low D whistle, though, as I struggle to reach the holes on most of them).

 

[WhistlingBadger]

Uilleann pipes and whistle (not low D whistle, though, as I struggle to reach the holes on most of them).

I think you told me that before, didn't you?
(I just caught myself asking if you had tried the piper's grip on the low d. Duh. Need to sleep more)

I generally prefer the high D for most stuff. It's funny that you're "lazy about learning airs." I always have a much easier time with the slow tunes; once I get them in my head, I can usually play them. But dance tunes? Whew. I've been working on a set of monstrously tricky (by which I mean extremely fun ) Scottish jigs since the lockdown last spring, and I almost have them ready to record. ha ha

 

[Gypsum]

I'm mainly a session player (back in those distant days when we could have sessions ) . So I learn what's played at sessions -- jigs and reels (and sporadic hornpipes, strathspeys, etc.). Taught myself early in my playing journey to pick up dance tunes relatively quickly.

Scottish pipe jigs can be tricky. Four parts that all have very minor variations from one another, and a lot of the Amaj ones don't sit that nicely on things like D whistles or uilleann pipes, although I play plenty anyway out of necessity....because I live here). Modern ones like Gordon Duncan tunes will have weird bits of syncopation as well -- Highland pipes don't have a lot in the way of notes or dynamics, so they use rhythm to add a bit of novelty to tunes.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

The other problem with pipe tunes (and fiddle tunes for that matter) is there's nowhere to breathe! ha ha I really enjoy playing in mixolydian mode (tunes based on the fifth scale degree), so that sits pretty well with a lot of highland pipe tunes.

Ah, to live somewhere with actual sessions! Living in a big city is the price of admission for such things, and I just can't make it in the city for very long. We have a pretty good pipe band here, with an extremely skilled pipe major (Melissa Bautz--look her up if you get a chance), but that's about it for the Celtic scene.

Always good to find a fellow trad player. Look me up next time you're in Wyoming and we'll throw together some tunes.

 

[Gypsum]

That's the art of flute and whistle playing -- using your breath as kind of an ornament. I'm a bit pants at that, since I'm more of a piper than a whistle player.

Ft. Collins has a few sessions and some good players. No idea where you are in Wyoming (it's a big state, LOL), but it's there if you're not desperately far from the border. I didn't go to Ft. Collins a lot, as there were plenty of closer sessions in Boulder/Denver, but I think some people from Cheyenne used to come down occasionally.

Whenever Covid allows international travel again, I'll end up in Colorado for a week or two, as that's where my parents live.

 

[FishGuest5123]

Beautiful video! Thanks for sharing.