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Píobaire, An, Volume 4, Issue 41, Page 3

Píobaire, An, Volume 4, Issue 41, Page 3
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periodical Publisher
Na Píobairí Uilleann
periodical Editor
Chairman, NPU
periodical Title
Píobaire, An
volume Number
4
issue Content
Ireally enjoyed the tionól and AGM inMay and anyone I spoke to had nothingbut the highest of praise for it. The diversenature of the various events and good plan-ning ensured its success and all thanks andcredit to everyone who took part in thelaunches, classes, lecture, recitals and the Aceand Deuce of Piping concert. The good atten-dance at the Ace and Deuce concert in LibertyHall was heartening, all the more so in thatthere had been another major concert of tradi-tional music in Dublin just two nights beforeit. One of the most rewarding reasons forattending the tionól is that it gives an extrasurge of enthusiasm to try out a tune or aspectof technique picked up during one of therecitals or wherever. The tionól is one of ourmost important and prestigious events and, inthe years ahead, its popularity will continue togrow as the word spreads. Using Dublin andour premises as a base has proven to be realadvantage in a number of respects. I wouldlike to thank all our staff who worked tire-lessly throughout the event and ensured allwent well. For those of you who like to planin advance, please note that the tionól andAGM will be held annually on the last week-end of May, so for 2008 the dates will be May23-25th. At the other end of the year, anothersignificant event, the Breandán Breathnachnight, will be held annually on the firstSaturday of December with this year’s eventtaking place on saturday 1st December. As we approach the summer school season itis no harm to offer some advice to studentswho will be attending piping classes over thenext couple of months. It is always a goodinvestment of time to make an effort to prac-tice what you have learnt each day so that youcan master as much of possible of the day’swork. It will be fresher in your mind if youcan focus on it soon after the class.Sometimes, however, it is difficult to mastercertain things during the class itself or evenduring any following practice so it is always agood idea to record whatever aspects of tech-nique and tunes the teacher covers in theclass. The recording will serve as in invalu-able back-up for further practice later onregarding more complex passages and tech-nique. I remember spending the best part of ayear going back over material I recorded fol-lowing my first visit to Scoil SamhraidhWillie Clancy in 1977. Far from being tire-some, I immensely enjoyed this exercise andbenefited greatly from it besides. Apart fromgoing over what I recorded in the class itself,I spent what must have been hundreds ofhours listening in detail to music I recordedfrom Liam O’Flynn and Jimmy O’Brien-Moran in an effort to decipher just what it wasthat made their music so special, appealingand intricate. There is a huge amount to belearnt from spending time listening to andstudying a recording of one the virtuoso play-ers and it is no coincidence that this is some-thing all of today’s great players have doneand indeed continue to do. The devil, as theysay, is in the detail, as an examination of PatMitchell’s new publication on the music ofSéamus Ennis portrays most vividly. Before embarking on another spell of tuition,students might like to reflect on how they got3continued on page 4 –
issue Number
41
page Number
3
periodical Author
[Periodical]
issue Publication Date
2007-07-01T00:00:00
allowedRoles
anonymous,guest,friend,member

Píobaire, An, Volume 4, Issue 41

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