Molly Roberts

Bruce, this app is brilliant! Thanks for the suggestion. It finally does all I really need - in one uncluttered screen, and the quality of the sound is excellent. I went ahead and spent the $17 for the Pro+ after looking at the options. AudioMemos has served me well in the past, but this is the next generation!

There are some very fine concertina moments at around 2:45 in this great video from the Olga Symphony's 08 Holiday concert which feature Lesley Liddle and Dave Zoeller. The number ends up involving the band plus all their guests trading instruments continuously on The Sailors Hornpipe. Of course, you may just want to keep watching . . .

If you'd like to actually spend a week with James Kelly you could sign up for the Friday Harbor Irish Music Week, March 6 - 12. James Kelly will be one of the fiddle teachers and Florence Fahy will be teaching intro and advanced concertina. Cheers, Molly

Wonderful photos, Michael. I'm looking forward to seeing the Oregon gang at Tilicum this Sunday. Thanks, Molly

Hi all, We've been playing the reel, Tuttle's (aka Bobby Casey's, Casey's, The Custom Gap, The Mills Are Grinding, The Windy Gap - per the Session). We play it as a slow reel - and the B part has a lonesome sort of sound. In the version we're using, B part, next to the last measure, you have even 8th notes: FDED DCAB. The tune - in D dorian - can be played nicely up and down the C row, but I wasn't happy with the 2nd D in that measure, considering that falls on a strong beat. Finally realized I could get some pop to it by switching to the push. While it frequently happens that I use both pull and push notes in the same phrase, even the same measure; this is the first place I've found where they were useful right together. Anybody else? Cheers, Molly

Gearoid OhAllmhurain taught it to us in 05. There were words to the tune - about a fellow who'd settled his tab at the pub - and then got to drinking some more -

fasten the legging[with concertina roll http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccsS6HMsyYM&fmt=18 __________ Dick, Very nice playing, but wouldn't that be "Fasten the Leg in Her?" I think it was an expression used in horseracing, ie "Give her a kick in the ribs." Cheers, Molly

Hi Farion, I'm a lefty, and I think it might be a little bit of an advantage on the anglo - in that my 3rd and 4th finger on the left see a good deal more action than those same fingers on the right, which are somewhat less responsive. I support the box on my right knee, so weight isn't an issue. What do the lefty EC players say? Cheers, Molly

Hi David, Here's a list of the tunes I came home with: jig set: Fairhaired Boy, Scatter the Mud, The Legacy reels: Come West Along the Road, Kilmaley, The Laurel Bush jigs: Port Patrick, The Town of Cootehill slip jig - My Mind Will Never Be Easy, waltz – Jacqueline Waltz More reels: The Fairy Queen, The Plains of Boyle There were probably some more - but that's a start. Cheers, Molly

Bruce, I quite forgot to mention that I had my first ever private lesson from Florence Fahy this past week. We've not had a concertina instructor who offered these in the past. A rare opportunity with a born teacher! Molly

Bruce, Thanks so much for posting your photos and narrative of the week! I'm still savoring the experience, and the tunes play non-stop in my head. Florence's instruction was so focused and practical that, for the first time, I chose to ignore the sheet music and learn by ear. Mind you, I'm very happy to have "the dots" to take home to share. We enjoyed a beautiful new venue and an exciting group of master teachers without losing any of the feeling of fun and family that have been the hallmark of the Friday Harbor Irish Music Camp. I'll definitely be back! Cheers, Molly

Amazing stuff! Thanks so much for posting the link.

Michael, Maybe I'm missing something - but why would you want two push C#s in a row? Cheers, Molly

Hi Kautilya, A lovely air for sure. Actually it predates O'Carolan. I believe it's by 17th Century harper Rory Dall O'Cathain. Enjoy! Molly

Thanks, David. That was first on my list to check when I got into the end, but while I was in there I wanted to check for any other probable causes. I'll take it one step at a time and let you know. Cheers, Molly OK; happy ending, I think. Last time I had a stuck reed I ended up calling Bob Tedrow, and he suggested taking the problem reed out and reversing it; that often pushing air in the opposite direction would dislodge whatever was causing the problem. This solved that particular problem. This morning I opened the box, took out the reed, did the usual check for foreign matter and then reversed the reed. Holding the concertina back together and depressing that first finger button both reeds sounded fine, but when I put it back properly the Eb was silent again. Maddening. I had a look with a bright light to see if there was anything visable, noted that the edges were all free and pretty much equidistant from the pan (or whatever you call it) and gently flipped the reed a bit; put it back, and still no voice. So I called Bob. After we went over what I'd already tried he suggested that I take a very thin knife blade and just nudge the reed slightly to one side. There actually had been an infinitesimal difference in the side margin. So I did that - and it now works. We'll see if it stays! Thanks all, and thanks Bob.

Thanks, David. That was first on my list to check when I got into the end, but while I was in there I wanted to check for any other probable causes. I'll take it one step at a time and let you know. Cheers, Molly

No, and no change in voice when it re-appears. My sense is that it re-appears after lots of action on the C#.

Hello all, The C# on the push always sounds, but the Eb pull is silent about half the time. This has been going on for a while, and just about the time I decide to take the end off - the Eb comes back sounding perfectly normal. Unfortunately that never lasts. I don't need it often, but Danny has inspired me with his lovely Mr. Beveridge's Maggot, so today's the day. Any suggestions about what to look for before I proceed to remove the end? Many thanks, Molly

Hi All, I recall that last summer at Noel Hill's Oregon workshop one of the students brought her laptop to an evening gathering and asked Noel if he'd like to hear the Wiki entry on himself. She'd only got about 2 sentences into it before he was hotly disagreeing. "It sounds as if I had been born in a mud hut! Where did they get that?" She explained that the article could be edited - and who better to do it - so a fair amount of time was spent modifying the entry to Noel's satisfaction. It was an interesting introduction to the Wikipedia process. Ideally, articles evolve over time as they are read and responded to. But that's the ideal; somebody's soapbox tirade on any given topic remains exactly as written until/unless someone else is motivated to challenge it - and to cite a convincing source. I wouldn't use Wikipedia as a reference for a scholarly article, but it does have its uses. From what I understand, some of the experts who write those references actually get their jollies arguing with each other on Wikipedia. Cheers, Molly

In the olden days the fluorescent lights in the School of Music at Florida State University hummed at a flat B flat. That came in handy a time or two.

Very graceful, Cary. I like it a lot.

discussed

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