Understanding the Tin Whistle

Grey Larsen in the 150 Gems collection has given us a most welcome follow-up to his encyclopedic volume The Essential Guide to Irish Flute and Tin Whistle (Mel Bay Publications 2003) and The Essential Tin WhistleToolbox (Mel Bay Publications 2004). The Gems feature not only meticulously-selected tunes but represent the first major offerings that use Larsen's innovative system of notating Irish ornamentation. This bookwith access to online audio will help players gain a deeper understanding of the Irish musical tradition as well as provide new material to enhance the experience of the solo player and Irish session participant alike.

For the beginner to the highly advanced player of Irish Flute Tin Whistle or Boehm-system Flute. Features a simple and penetrating new approach to understanding and notating ornamentation that goes beyond any previous method exploring ornamentation techniques never described in print before.Also includes adaptations for Boehm-system Flute players guidance on breathing and phrasing 49 ornamentation exercises history and theory of traditionalIrish Flute and whistle music and 27 meticulous transcriptions of recordings by these important Irish Flute and Tin Whistle players: John McKenna Tom Morrison William Cummins Willie Clancy Paddy Taylor Paddy Carty GreyLarsen Josie McDermott Matt Molloy Cathal McConnell Mary Bergin Desi Wilkinson Breda Smyth Micho Russel Joanie Madden Kevin Crawford Catherine McEvoy and Seamus Egan.For those who don't read music almost all theexercises examples and tunes appear on the audio download available online.'Grey has through his research patience and diligence completed a work on Irish Flute and Tin Whistle that I feel is essential reading foranybody interested in getting it right.' - Matt Molloy Irish Flute player with the Chieftains

Unique among books on the Whistle and Celtic music this book takes the role of a personal tutor. It explains in detail the peculiarities of the instrument the ancient modal scales the Irish tunes are based on and offers aresults-oriented program for quickly developing ability. As well it offers a practical method for developing breathing skills something few books discuss. But what makes this book truly unique is the discussion of mnemonictechniques and analytical listening skills which would make it an excellent resource for both parents and teachers. The author explains a simple straightforward method of internalizing the old dance tunes of the sessionrepertoire based on understanding the music's structure and the use of mnemonic cues. The scope of Mr. Esson's book makes it relevant to a much wider audience than the title would suggest.

The musical appeal of the Blues, as they began to be heard in the early twentieth century, was so infectious that musicians with open minds and ears were drawn to it as soon as they heard it. And that appeal crossed the racial and ethnic divides that characterized American society. So it was, that even before African American guitarists were recorded playing fingerstyle blues guitar, their white neighbors had already begun learning the music?listening to, watching, and imitating the musicians whose music they so admired. And what these white musicians ended up expressing in their own playing and singing was not simply imitation, but their own reconfiguration of what their models did, played in accordance with their own senses of rhythm, phrasing and how to sing the music.In Hillbilly Fingerstyle Blues Guitar, author John Miller offers transcriptions, in tablature and standard notation, of twenty-eight pieces by these white fingerstyle blues players, taken from recordings made in the period 1926?1970. Some of the featured musicians in the book, like Sam McGee, Frank Hutchison, Maybelle Carter, Hobart Smith, and Roscoe Holcomb are pretty well known, but the tunes by more obscure players like Debs Mays, Lake Howard, or Lester McFarland certainly don?t suffer by comparison, and in many instances are spectacular. The pieces have been chosen for variety, too?you?ll encounter pieces played in C, E, and A in standard tuning, as well as songs in Open G, Open D tunings and an exotic offshoot of Open G tuning. Downloadable links to all of the original performances from which the transcriptions were made come with the book, so you can get the sound of the tunes in your head. The musicians in Hillbilly Fingerstyle Blues Guitar gravitated towards the Blues because the music spoke to them so strongly that they felt compelled to make it part of their own musical language. And they did just that. These performances are strong and worthwhile in their own right, but they?ll also show you how you can honor those who have inspired you by singing and playing in your own voice. And that?s an important lesson to learn. Includes access to online audio.
1. Hillbilly Fingerstyle Blues Guitar ? An Introduction
2. Learning the Songs
3. Understanding the Tablature
4. The Songs
5. 1) Knoxville Blues?Sam McGee
6. 2) Easy Rider?Sam McGee
7. 3) Railroad Blues?Sam McGee
8. 4) Sally Long?Sam McGee
9. 5) Fuzzy Rag?Riley Puckett
10. 6) Worried Blues?Frank Hutchison
11. 7) Train That Carried The Girl From Town?Frank Hutchison
12. 8) The Miner?s Blues?Frank Hutchison
13. 9) K. C. Whistle?Lester McFarland
14. 10) John Hardy Was A Desperate Little Man?The Carter Family
15. 11) Johnson City Blues?Clarence Greene
16. 12) Brown Skin Blues?Dick Justice
17. 13) Cocaine?Dick Justice
18. 14) She Lied To Me?Emry Arthur
19. 15) Everyday Dirt?David McCarn
20. 16) Take Them For A Ride?David McCarn
21. 17) Jailhouse Rag?David Miller
22. 18) Match Box Blues?Larry Hensley
23. 19) New Chattanooga Mama?Lake Howard
24. 20) Soap Box Blues?Debs Mays
25. 21) Rabbit Blues?Debs Mays
26. 22) Graveyard Blues?Hobart Smith
27. 23) Railroad Bill?Hobart Smith
28. 24) K. C. Moan?Hobart Smith
29. 25) Mississippi Heavy Water Blues?Roscoe Holcomb
30. 26) Riley And Spencer?Fields Ward
31. 27) Raggin? The Wires?E. C. Ball
32. 28) Ain?t No Grave Can Hold My Body Down?E. C. Ball
33. Appendix?Default Chord Positions
34. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
35. Afterword
36. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
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