Hope you don' think I'm being rude pointing out that the tune your calling The Bonnie Lass of Fife-O (http://www.fullbodyburn.com/files/Set1/MaidFife-O-inD.pdf) should be The Bonnie Lass of Fyvie - Fyvie is a small town in the north east of Scotland, which is where the story is set
Thanks again for a great sitebest wishes
Colin
Hi, Colin:I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you about Fyvie and it's famous Bonnie Lass. I've been away for awhile and answering e-mail kept getting put off. You are absolutely correct, of course, about the name of Fyvie. Am I to understand that you are from Scotland, or just very good at geography? Scotland is one place that I would dearly love to visit, and preferably in the style of a prominent American author who goes there to write so he can find a little peace and quiet. Also, I believe, the Scotch is more affordable there... although I understand the bourbon is a bit more pricey.
I think the reason it is called Fife-O in this part of the world (at least, among the musicians with whom I typically associate) is because the phonetic meaning is more important half a world away than the geographic meaning. It's like calling the Eerie Canal the Ear-aye-ee Canal so you can rhyme it with say-lie-ors, I suppose.What to call songs with titles that vary geographically is always a dilemma for me. In this case, I deferred to the CD on which I first heard the song using the reasoning that if it had been recorded under that title, it could be written down under that title, also. Nevertheless, I will make a note (for geographical exactness) in the song description. And, I will sincerely hope that the good people of Fyvie do not hold it against me. But, just in case, if I am every fortunate enough to go there I shall go under an assumed name.
Richard Gross,
is not going to Scotland as Igor Stamburninov;
we just happen to look a lot alike.
Sorry, but the new posting called Jennifer's Sad Song is in fact Coming Through the Rye... Just thought you'd like to know. Nice song though, thanks for the download. Why is Jennifer sad? Did she know she was conning you just to get on your site?
Keith.
(New whistler, playing Sandy Jasper's manufactured D whistle
(thrillingly responsive and pure at any speed, up and down the octaves),
and her magnificent handmade Low D whistle).
Thanks; I figured it was probably something. I don't think Jennifer was particularly sad; the song just struck me as being such. Also, she wasn't exactly trying to con me... at least, I don't think she was. She did have the decency to write the tune down for me so I would remember it later. She just didn't include a title. I'll post an update, though.Sorry it took so long to get back to you. I've been on an archeological dig, and it's taken awhile to get caught up on e-mail.
Richard Gross
always wears a fedora when in Egypt
What a great site!!!
Any chance you'd consider taking of the (admittedly funny if you're an adult) Viagra cartoon so I could refer my elementary school recorder students to your site? As is, I could get in a wee bit of trouble.
Thanks.
No, really? You mean... Seriously?
I mean, I don't mind taking the tinwhistle "adaptation" of the Viagra ad down if you think that's the only thing making the site unsafe for elementary school students. It just that even with that gone, I'd be hesitant to suggest that the young and impressionable recorder student wander into my tinwhistle site. The site is officially rated "Y" (which, of course, stands for "You'd Hafta Be Nuts to Let a Kid in There!" And they say Internet ratings are designed to be confusing! It seems pretty clear to me.) and while there is nothing specifically designed to be offensive or anything, nevertheless there might be things that could offend.
Anyway, I'll look for a good graphic to replace the other... But I remain unconvinced that www.fullbodyburn.com is any place for children!
________________________________
Richard Gross
does not need Viagra and
will take the cartoon down.
Hey? Why is this site so disorgaized?
That would be because I only work on it when I am really, really drunk. Thank you for asking.
Richard Gross
is not impressed by the Consumer Confidence Index.
Well sir, after ten minutes of search I couldn't find "rest of the music" page anywhere...?
The direct link to the Rest of the Music page is:There is also a link right above where the new tunes are on the main page. In the paragraph that ends "all the songs can be found on the Tinwhistle Music page," the Tinwhistle Music part is a link. There's a second link, also, at the end of the new tunes section.What I really need, though, are buttons. Hmmm... Buttons...
Richard Gross
Warning: Fully trained and licensed poet.
I think, therefore iamb.
Hello :), I am desperatly trying to find "The Fairytale of new york" tin whistle tabs, but the problem is i am a bit useless on the tin whistle.I cant actually read the music.Would you know where i could find the tablature in an easy form so that i can understand it? Kind Regards Aisling
I'd never really thought about doing songs with a tab version before, but it wasn't too tough to figure out a way to do that. I've just posted a version of Fairy Tale of New York with whistle tab for you at www.fullbodyburn.com. You'll find it with the standard version of that song in both music lists. I may look at doing more tab versions of other songs. in the future.Richard Gross
Warning: Fully trained and licensed poet.
I think, therefore iamb.
What do whistlers call someone who dares to play whistle tunes on a recorder?
Baroque. And beyond fixin'.
RG.
To the best of my knowledge there are only two real differences between a fiddle and a violin:1. A college education.2. No one gets mad if you spill beer on a fiddle.However, there are major differences between a whistle and a recorder. I know this now as I did a little research into the topic. I went out and bought a recorder so that I could compare the whistle and the recorder side-bys-side in a nifty, scientific way.A whistle has six holes. Nice. Direct. You put fingers over them.A recorder, on the other hand, has seven holes in the front -- two of which are further divided into a left hole and a right hole, which actually makes for a grand total of nine frontal holes, PLUS, TO ADD INSULT TO INJURY, THERE'S AN INEXPLICABLE HOLE IN THE BACK!!! (This is a recent discovery for me. At first I thought mine was defective, but the nice man at the store -- when he got done laughing -- told me that it's supposed to be there.)Another MAJOR difference between the two is that a tinwhistle is (as should be clear from the name) made of brass. Or nickel silver. Or aluminum. Or plastic. Or sometimes wood. Or sometimes a combination of two or more of these materials. (Oh, yeah. And, once in a rare while, you see one actually made out of tin.)A recorder, on the other hand, is made out of translucent purple plastic. In the right light, it looks really groovy. Not in an opaque brass-plastic-nickel silver-aluminum-and/or-wood sort of way, but as groovy as see-through purple plastic can look once it fills up with spit.There are also MAJOR differences in the way that a recorder and a tinwhistle play. With a tinwhistle, you just play the tune. With a recorder, you have to find a roll of duct tape to use so you can tape up that annoying and unnecessary hole on the back so that recorder will actually work like it is supposed to work. (I suspect that hole in the back is part of a deeper conspiracy on the part of recorder manufacturers to save plastic. If a few million third-graders have to buy new recorders every year, it wouldn't be too long before that bit of purple plastic they're not putting into the recorders turned into a major asset on the company's bottom line.)So, once the recorder was in good repair and worthy of playing a whistle tune, I started playing one. I pretty much ignored that extra set of holes at the end of the recorder -- they were mocking me anyway -- and just played it. It worked reasonably well. It didn't have the wild, hairy, wonderful tone of the whistle. In fact, it sounded a little snooty. At least, as snooty as a piece of translucent purple plastic can sound when it's full of my spit. But, I was able to play the tune on it.My very scientific conclusion is this: if you want to play a snooty-sounding tune and see your own spit (albeit with a distinct purple cast) then the recorder is the way to go. If you want to play the same tune and don't mind being a bit off key, then the whistle is the instrument for you. If you have a couple of mallets and access to a ready supply of aluminum bar stock, then the homemade xylophone might just be for you.But, all this has left me wondering... If this is what happens when a whistler plays a recorder, what happens when a recoderer plays a whistle?I wonder if I can get a government grant to research this further. After all, they had a nice wooden recorder at the store also that I could try a little further experimentation with. And I'd love to find a way to pay for it at taxpayer expense.
Richard.
We're back online!!! After being down for more than a week due to "technical difficulties," Full¥Body¥Burn productions is back online! The "technical difficulties" we were having were that the elves who arrange the sheet music were revolting. Usually, they're just disgusting.
Anyway, their little revolution had to be put down with an iron fist. It took me most of the week to actually find an iron fist and then another day or two to learn to use it. But once I did, what a putdown it was!
You'll find 18 new songs added to the "New Music" list below. You'll also be glad to know that I've doubled the amount of available server space so I can have room for even more tinwhistle information.
Hello, Mike:First off, thank you for the very (very very very) clear description of the problem and where to find it. I suspect the problem is that I didn't rename that file for better access on the Intraweb. I should have taken out the spaces (represented by %20 in your link) and that apostrophe. The file is renamed now: no spaces, no apostrophe... so, you should be able to get it at this link:If that doesn't work, let me know.I'm glad you like the site; look for a post of new songs sometime in about a week!
And so a highland heathen wanders in and bothers those who would wander off those 9 comfortable notes on the pipe chanter and beg for more whistle tunes. What can I tell you, my wife says the divorce is off if I switch to the whistle from the GHB’s. I told her to keep the lawyer, I’m not parting with them….but some how I’ve been shanghi’d into playing at our band (Toronto Fire Services) Spring Fling on something other than my pipes. The pipe major, noting my musings on our last bus trip on a D whistle said “right, you’re playing that at the fling!” I said “hold the fort….I’m only faking it!” I have been using an invented fingering. I had a look at your D chart…was totally lost in seconds….I don’t get the rows of fingering beside each other under one note….. and a third octave shift….heck I get a clean scale and a half…the rest is used to terrify the rodents out of the garage.
Ok so they want me to play (on a B-flat whistle or a D….might be an A) is melody support for “Donald Where’s your Trousers” , “Wild Rover” (which I have from here…merci) and “The Last of Barrett’s Privateers”. I have a tuneable D and B-flat Susato whistle…. They are both fairly loud and they let me blow harder on the low hand than the tin Clarkes or other smaller bore whistles. This is key for a piper…we have a very hard time blowing softly….just not in our nature.
I’m guessing you can find music for Donald’ Trousers as fast as Madona’s lips licking…. Barrett’s Privateers is likely more tough but a wicked tune which we regularly sing once a far quantity of ale is down our holes. If you need to source a wave file on Barrett’s please let me know.
Also we call them “embellishments” but what fingering can you give me to support things beyond single grace notes, or doublings? There seem to be few to none in the way of whistle tutors around (live ones) so I need to figure out how to play more than just tune notes and bagpipe embellishments on the whistle. “I want to perdy it up buba! “
Any help in locating some music on these two would be greatly appreciated. And just remember, these loves of ours are one of the few times in life when two straight men can talk about having a good blow and didn’t involve a woman.
Cheers
Doug North
I have a good friend who lives in Toronto; I wonder if you know him -- Ben Hafey. I know Toronto is a big place and the odds are against it, but Ben is an institution unto himself... so, who knows? I understand he's world famous in Canada.
I've attached a couple of pieces of sheet music for you. I would have just posted them, but the site is experiencing "Technical Difficulties." I am told it will be down through next week. However, there will be an update just as soon as it is back online. Oh yes, there will be an update!
The multiple columns of possible fingerings attached to one note is done for two reasons: (1) for some notes, one fingering will work better than another to get the note in tune with a given whistle -- there's a lot of variation from whistle to whistle -- and (2) because some fingerings are faster than others considering surrounding notes in a given system. For example, if you're flying over a C-natural in a tune in D, it is much much faster to play the note with the second and third holes covered instead of half-fingering the first hole if you're playing a fast series of notes running from, say, second F-sharp through first G.
As for embellishments, I'd always thought we stole those from bagpipers. Huh.
Anyway, I've also attached a page called "ornamentation" that explains -- as you may have guessed -- ornamentation.
Hope that helps.
Richard
Oh Richard you’re a grand laddie. Many thanks.
Don’t know Ben but as big as the GTA is (almost 5million people) the music scene, in things like piping, is much smaller, so it’s normally a matter of degrees of separation. I don’t know him, but some one I know will. Hot dog you came up with Barretts’ 15 drunken pipers and 5-8 more drummers howling that tune out at 2 AM is something only other drunks should be subjected to.
Keep in touch…might push a wave file at you of my rendition of Donald and see what you think I might do fingering side to tweak up the “ornamentation”. Figures..piping calls it embellishment as in over embellish which is what most pipers talk much about but half the time skip… whistlers call it “ornamentation” like the tune was a Christmas tree to be decked out….less about the braggery of the work more about the look. I like it!
Cheers
Doug North
TFS P&D
whistle duets? i would love you forever, possibly. they would be intensely useful due to the fact that i am competing in a TINWHISTLE-OFF!
Possibly, huh? You tease.I've just posted a flute and whistle duet based on Cherish the Ladies. It also works on a pair of tinwhistles. Is it kinda what you're looking for? I know I've got a few more tunes around here that were acutally written for a pair of pan pipes that work on a call and answer sort of musical idea. If I can figure out where I put them...
Hi!
I'm just a suffering bastard with too much time that lives in the middle
of Poland (Lodz, pronounced "Woodge") and has happened across your site
while researching tin whistles.
How's that for a longwinded intro?
I like to think that I'm learning to play the folk harp and the bowed
psaltery and with my 43rd birthday fast approaching, I thought it'd be
nice for the wife and in-laws to give me a tin whistle to toot.
As if the neighbors weren't annoyed enough already!
What's my deal here? I just wanted to thank you for a one stop all I
could possibly want to know (and much that I didn't) site on my soon to
be new annoying habit!
Great info, great humor. Great Scott, Batman!
Thank you kindly, I'll leave you be now,
Tim, and American lost in Poland
That's absolutely amazing. I just got home from Worchester, which is also pronounced "Woodge," where I learned a new type of dance that's called The Lodz. The coincidence is so ironic that my eyebrows just fell off. You don't really miss them 'til they're gone.
I'm glad you're enjoying the site. Thanks for stopping by.
_____
Richard Gross
Warning: Fully trained and licensed poet.
I think, therefore iamb.
John Martyn's May You Never is one of my favorite all time songs. my quite limited whistling talents don't extend to being able to sound it out. Any chance a version in D is out there? or you're interested in trying your hand at one?
thanks very much
m
Sorry; I'm not at all familiar with the song. I quick Google made it sound like this John Martyn fellow might be worth finding out about, though. If I can figure anything out on the song, I'll see about posting it for tinwhistle.I do expect to have a new set of songs posted within a week or so, though. The elves have been working late into the night on them.
Richard GrossFeel the energy --
Election time is over!
Superviagra!
