It seems that there is so much more on for flute and whistle players to attend these days and it is great to see that the inaugural Alex Green Weekend will take place in Aberdeen 1-3 March. The weekend celebrates the NE whistler with an impressive lineup of concerts and workshops organised by The Elphinstone Institute, which is part of the University of Aberdeen.
Featured performers and tutors are Cathal McConnell, Mary Bergin, Fred Morrison, Dougie Pincock, Claire Mann, Tom Oakes and Kenny Hadden in a range of events, some of which are free to attend.
It’s a good chance to see and hear so many contributors to The FluteFling Collection – five of those mentioned are included. You can get your copy here or catch Kenny Hadden over the festival weekend.
Alex Green had a unique and authentic style of playing, which has been described as “spit-staccato” (I’m sure there must be a better and more attractive descriptor — maybe someone who knows NE Scottish dialects can suggest one). A highly influential and generous musician by all accounts.
In Scotland when the clocks are turned back in October, you know you’re getting deep into Autumn, with darker days and longer nights. Which makes the thought of being indoors with others to play music so much more inviting, as it was for the first FluteFling outing to the Granite City since 2019.
Niall Kenny takes a group at the Saturday workshops (c) Gordon Turnbull
Niall Kenny and Munro Gauld had previously taught at FluteFling in Edinburgh but this was the first time Tina Jordan Rees had taught with us, so it was a departure from our previous outings. Indeed, this was the first time that none of the core tutors were teaching.
This year we were based at Ruthrieston Community Centre, with sessions at The Blue Lamp (Friday and Sunday) and at Cults Bowling Club (Saturday). The latter was unusual for us and made necessary by the lack of available venues in the city, a problem we found when organising the Edinburgh weekend in May and part of a wider problem across the country. However, we were made very welcome and had the space to ourselves.
Storms Babet and Ciarán had battered the NE of Scotland and made travel plans for many a bit tricky but we were all there to enjoy a well-attended event — the highest numbers we have had for the Aberdeen weekend.
The Friday night session at The Blue Lamp in Aberdeen. (c) Malcolm Reavell
With familiar faces gathering at the Friday night session, we eased ourselves into remembering what these gatherings are all about. Where else can you be in the company of such great flute players and fellow aficionados without apology? Digging out the musical gems from the back of the mind, sharing knowledge and news together. It was an informal way to warm ourselves up and reorient ourselves to the flute world.
Saturday
FluteFling at Ruthrieston Community Centre, Aberdeen (c) Gordon Turnbull
The Saturday venue at Ruthrieston was new to us and well-scouted by John Crawford, who once again had done a great job to ensure that a FluteFling weekend could go ahead. Sadly, John wasn’t able to attend in person until the final session, but we hope he is on the mend and in good fettle for the next outing. Kenny Hadden was of course on hand throughout the day and Coralie Mills returned to the front desk to ensure everything ran smoothly from registration to packing up and all things in between.
Tina Jordan Rees leads a workshop. (c) Gordon Turnbull
Once again, we rotated three groups around the three tutors so that everyone got a range of different perspectives and focus. The longer breaks were a great chance to catch up, try out flutes and clarify teaching points. We were joined just before lunch by flute maker George Ormiston, who was great company and had brought some of his flutes and a whistle for people to try.
George Ormiston during on the breaks between workshops (c) Gordon Turnbull
We were struck by the fact that almost all of those attending the weekend were playing modern flutes and only a handful of older flutes were being played. It’s a sure sign of how flute making has come on in recent years that so many high quality instruments are now available to musicians. We didn’t do a survey, but as well as numerous Ormistons, there were examples by Aebi, Gabriel, Windward, Lehart, Thomson, Wilkes and certainly others. Maybe next time we should do a survey.
Munro Gauld (L) and Dougie Pincock (R) in conversation. (c) Gordon Turnbull
The talk at the end of the day was an interview with Munro Gauld led by Dougie Pincock. The focus was Munro’s work in exploring some of the vast archives of Scottish traditional music, in particular rediscovering the lost music of the Gàidhlig Highlands.
In particular, Munro stressed the importance of connecting the music to place, people and story. This roots the music in history and directly connects the present day musician and listener to people, events and emotions of the past, giving it an additional depth and heft that might otherwise be missing. Munro went on to describe how we can all do this for ourselves, digging where we stand. It is clear that there is much to be unearthed and brought to light, and that many were clearly inspired to do so.
Personally, I felt that there was possibly a natural synergy in rediscovering forgotten Scottish music on flutes, an instrument long forgotten in Scotland, now becoming remembered.
I have been aware of Munro’s work for a while and his talk was originally going to be at Edinburgh in 2020, which of course fell foul of Covid. For those who were not there on this occasion, the interview was recorded by Peter Saunders for The Scottish Flute Channel on YouTube and will be published in due course.
The evening session was slightly out of town, where Cults Bowling Club made us feel very welcome, giving their space over to us entirely. Lots more tunes, some Bb flutes and an A flute as well.
The Saturday session at Cults Bowling Club (c) Gordon Turnbull
Gordon Turnbull (L) and Peter Saunders (R) playing Bb flutes. (c) Chris Cracknell
Overall, there was a good turnout from Aberdeen and the surrounding area, but people had also travelled from Inverness, Stirlingshire, Dunbar, Edinburgh, Perthshire, Glasgow, Lancashire, Germany and Sweden. It was particularly delightful to finally meet Joel Hagen from Gothenburg, who had been trying to attend a FluteFling weekend since 2020. Joel plays with the Swedish group Jaerv, which are definitely worth checking out. As hoped, he treated us to some Swedish tunes, while Chris Cracknell introduced us to some German tunes as we made common cause with the flute as a lesser-known instrument in other traditions.
The Sunday Survivors’ Session at The Blue Lamp (c) Gordon Turnbull
The Sunday Survivors’ Session was well attended, with two sittings. Making the most of the daylight for driving meant that I only briefly saw John Crawford to thank him for the successful arrangements, and was literally heading out of the door when Peter arrived with George Ormiston and Munro, fresh from interviewing for the Scottish Flute Channel. From conversations with Peter, I think we are in for a treat over the rest of the winter as the interviews are published.
Thanks to everyone who helped to plan the weekend and ensure that it ran smoothly, in particular John Crawford, Peter Saunders, Kenny Hadden, Coralie Mills, Lorna Aucott, Dougie Pincock and George Ormiston, plus of course the three fine tutors themselves. Thanks too, to all of the venues for accommodating us so well.
Postscript:
Munro has since shared a link on Facebook to a blog on some of his work. He writes:
Here is the second blog of research from the An Cuinneachadh project looking at C18th music connected with Fort Augustus. This episode focuses on the then owners of the land at the southern end of Loch Ness – The Lovat Frasers. Their story is “colourful” and encompasses bigamy, treason and beheading, as well as Royal recognition and great honours for victory in the battles of Britain’s emerging empire. These events were captured at the time by music and song (the social media of their day). Playing these reels, strathspeys, marches and Gaelic songs helps us journey back 250 years to get a sense of a very different Scotland … The blog is available in either English or Gaelic.
Other traditional flute events coming up in Scotland
Wintertrad, led by FluteFling supporter Tom Oakes with Shetland fiddler Ross Couper, is 24-26 November in Edinburgh, again at the Heart of Newhaven Community and around Leith Walk. Highly recommended, with great concerts, workshops and sessions. Flutes are a big focus of course.
Tradwinds
Tradwinds afternoon workshop on Saturday 2nd December 1-4pm. Come along to work on Scottish tunes and techniques for flute and whistles with Gordon Turnbull. Some experience is needed, but it is a mixed and supportive group, teaching material supplied in advance. Fisherrow Community Centre, Musselburgh.
Tom Oakes leads a workshop at the Heart of Newhaven Community venue as part of FluteFling Edinburgh weekend 2023.
The Edinburgh FluteFling Weekend took place in May and marked a return to in-person events following the Covid years. With a new venue, a Friday concert added to the usual Saturday workshops, there were many adjustments to make to ensure the weekend was a success.
Returning to in-person events was always going to be tricky as I quickly found out in January, my previous time for getting a March-April event in place. I used to do it over a week, but the post-lockdown world and cost of living crisis has caused amenities to reduce hours or even close, and for prices to rise. It began to feel as if putting on a grassroots event in an increasingly corporate Edinburgh geared up for tourists and big money festivals was no longer an option.
A meeting with Dave Francis of the Trad Music Forum helped to clarify that this issue is part of a wider debate regarding smaller venues, particularly in the capital. Previously FluteFling had been able to avoid these problems, but no longer so it would seem, and we were back to the drawing board.
John Crawford kindly offered to assist as it became impossible to meet our own deadlines and an alternative date in May was settled upon. If it hadn’t been for John, it would be safe to say that the weekend wouldn’t have gone ahead at all. We explored all manner of venues and options, including not holding the event in Edinburgh at all. All of this was useful, but brought us no closer to a conclusion.
In the end, Tom Oakes pointed us towards The Heart of Newhaven Community, which proved to be a perfect venue. Providing spaces for a concert, a workshops hub, talk and sessions in one location, the staff and volunteers couldn’t have been more helpful and the venue was perfect for us. We have already booked next year’s weekend at the same venue, which will take place 19-21 April 2024.
Challenges always present opportunities of course, and of huge assistance over the weekend were Linda Harkness and Coralie Mills, who managed the desks, checked the tickets and ran the raffle. They were invaluable in ensuring that things ran smoothly in a new venue with a tweaked format, and I can’t see how we managed before without them. Particular thanks too must be passed on to Peter Saunders who made himself available on the day.
FluteFling Edinburgh Friday concert. At the door: (L-R front) Linda Harkness, Coralie Mills; (L-R back) Sharon Creasey, Gordon Turnbull. Photo: (c) John Crawford.
Since I began writing this, I see that the Edinburgh Jazz Festival is taking some of its events out of the city centre, so perhaps we aren’t alone in our experience of Edinburgh venues. Going forward though, it is clear that many hands working together can overcome these and other barriers and long may it continue.
Ali Hutton and Tom Oakes perform at FluteFling 2023 (c) Gordon Turnbull
FluteFling returned to Edinburgh with a great full weekend in May, featuring Tom Oakes and Ali Hutton in concert and workshops with Davy Maguire, Sharon Creasey and Tom Oakes.
The sun shone on a sell-out event at our new venue in the north of Edinburgh, the Heart of Newhaven Community, for our first post-lockdown weekend in Edinburgh. Just West of neighbouring Leith, it proved to be the perfect setting. (See this blog post for peek behind the scenes).
Friday
Tom Oakes had initially been invited to perform at the cancelled 2020 event, so we were delighted that he was able to take to the stage with Ali Hutton in a new duo. Support came from Sharon Creasey on her Böhm system flute, with Tom’s delicate bouzouki underpinning her strong, brilliant sound as she treated us to some of the tunes from The FluteFling Collection. It’s always a treat to listen to other flute players that we don’t always get to hear, so kudos to Niall Kenny for stepping into the other support slot despite a long shift in his day job as agricultural vet. His tone shone through as he got into the groove.
A tuning issue between Ali Hutton’s pipes and Tom’s flute at warm-up meant a last minute change as Ali took a back seat and accompanied Tom. What followed was a flute masterclass in technique, control and tone, from fast-paced cascades of newly penned tunes in tumbling time signatures to slow airs with minimal foot pedal live effects. (“The best foot pedal control from a non-driver I have ever seen”, according to Ali Hutton). Underpinned by Ali’s sympathetic guitar, sometimes driving, sometimes holding back to provide more space to the music, the packed audience were mesmerised and appreciative. For more of that considered and thoughtful control, see Tom’s album Water Street. Look out for more of Ali and Tom in the future.
Tom and Sharon were to be teaching the following day and third tutor Davy Maguire arrived from Belfast during the concert. He joined them both on stage for a rousing set of tunes to wind up the concert and preface the session in the concert hall that followed.
Tunes after the Friday night concert. (c) Gordon Turnbull
Saturday
Flute players going through the paces during an afternoon workshop. (c) Gordon Turnbull
The sun really shone for us on the Saturday, with blue skies marking the end of a cold spring. It contributed to a special day, as we had taken over the Anchor Hub at Heart of Newhaven Community and people were able to spill out into the sunshine at the breaks between the sell-out workshops.
It was great to see so many new and familiar faces, with people catching up with each other, reconnecting and making new friends.
One big difference was the space that we had and in the middle of it all, a desk run by Coralie Mills and Linda Harkness who kept things running smoothly on the ground.
Kenny Hadden speaking on the traditional flute revival in Scotland. (c) Gordon Turnbull
As in previous years, the teaching was rounded off with a talk. Kenny Hadden gave a presentation on the history of the flute in the Folk Revival in Scotland.
Updated from the one he gave at the book launch in Stonehaven in 2022, it was an illustrated form of the introduction he wrote for The FluteFling Collection and introduced many people to a subject that is little known or misunderstood.
One highlight was the presence of Dougie Pincock, who had arrived during the day to give a talk in the evening. As a member of The Battlefield Band, Dougie had a significant part to play in the Scottish flute revival himself.
Dougie Pincock then and now, standing in front of a photo taken during his time in The Battlefield Band (c) Gordon Turnbull
Davy Maguire and Sharon Creasey listen closely as Dougie Pincock performs a set of tunes on the Highland pipes. (c) Gordon Turnbull
After a now-traditional group curry, Dougie went on to give a talk and demonstration in the hall on Highland piping and the flute.
Always a particularly engaging and entertaining speaker, Dougie is a contributor to The FluteFling Collection. Take-aways included a better understanding of the role of bagpipes in the Folk Revival, the need to learn correct versions of tunes and the importance of grace notes or articulation in Highland pipe tunes.
Following the talk, the remainder of the evening saw another session take place before we all had to make our ways home.
Sunday
Some of the contributors to The FluteFling Collection. L-R: Rebecca Knorr, Davy Maguire, Sharon Creasey (back), Kenny Hadden (seated), Gordon Turnbull (c) John Crawford
With another return to our previous traditions, brunch was in town near Sandy Bells. Rebecca Knorr joined us and we had a photo opportunity to have a gathering of tunebook contributors. Not the complete set, but the biggest number yet in the same place.
The session in a near-empty Sandy Bells was as good as any previously, with a great sound produced by all in the back space of the pub. As ever, we were joined by Cathal McConnell (also a tunebook contributor) who has become like a patron saint of the organisation.
The Sunday session in Sandy Bells. Clockwise L-R: Cathal McConnell, Sharon Creasey, Ann Ward, Martin Duckworth, Davy Maguire, Rebecca Knorr, Gordon Turnbull, Richard Elliot, Kenny Hadden.
While people had to make a move for the road home, there was still time for a final fling as a handful of us joined the excellent Waverley Bar session regulars for a short while.
The Waverley Bar session: L-R: Davy Maguire, John Martin, Geoarge Duff, Allan MacDonald (c) Gordon Turnbull
It wound up a fine weekend of music and togetherness, much needed by all of the FluteFling community after the difficulties of the past few years.
Now that we have broken the ice and found a way to do this kind of thing again, we have plans to do so again.
Not only do we have the Aberdeen weekend dates in place (3-5 November), we are already working hard for 2024, which will be the 10th anniversary of FluteFling, which we hope will be very special.
Thanks again, to all of the contributors, participants and well-wishers. In the meantime, sign up to the newsletter to keep up with these and other FluteFling activities.
The FluteFling Collection book launch and workshops 9 July 2022
Return to in-person events
John Crawford, Euan Reid, Kenny Hadden and Sharon Creasey at an outdoor session at Stonehaven. (c) Gordon Turnbull
Getting back into in-person events was never going to be easy, but we knew we had to launch the tunebook at some point. We couldn’t have chosen a better way, than at the 33rd Stonehaven Folk Festival. Just south of Aberdeen, it is a long established landmark festival in Scotland. With a number of artists appearing that included the flute or whistle — Flook, Rura and Deira from Asturias, it was definitely a good match.
Sharon Creasey, Kenny Hadden and myself, with John Crawford and Peter Saunders, had begun thinking about this last year but found it tricky with Covid levels being so unpredictable. Thinking about how we might have to manage an in-person event in such a climate was difficult. When I looked in January, there were still restrictions on room capacity and requirements for mitigation. The rules changed but could have changed again by the time we had responded. FluteFling is run in people’s spare time and there were organisations with full time staff who struggled, so it wasn’t going to be simple.
On top of that, we were collectively no longer used to playing in sessions, performing and teaching. I think I hadn’t taught for 2 years and certainly hadn’t played on stage for 3 or 4 years. There were steep relearning curves whichever way we looked. So Kenny approached Stonehaven organisers Charlie West and Meg Findlay knowing that we needed a bit of help.
To their credit, they understood the situation and used their experience to make it straightforward. The festival was only just returning after having to cancel the last two years and the performers that weekend were rebooked from the 2020 weekend that didn’t run. Clearly, trying to get back to the things that matter to us was a theme of the weekend.
John Crawford completed the necessary risk assessments for the workshops and he and Pete Saunders were volunteering, so we were well looked after and it was less to think about.
Setting up
Kenny Hadden, Coralie Mills and John Crawford ready to sell copies of the book. (c) Gordon Turnbull
The weekend was set to be a sunny one and we set our stall and new banners up in the hot and sometimes busy bar in the Town Hall on the Friday evening. Coralie Mills had kindly volunteered to run the stall, the new banners drew attention and the contactless machine was soon doing its business as we drew some friendly attention and began selling our first copies.
Having worked on this for over a year, largely in lockdown, it was difficult to gauge what kind of response the book might have. Sharon in particular had shaped it with the contributors and we could see a value in it that we hoped others would recognise. So it was gratifying to see the response from all musicians, not just flute and whistle players. Thank you to everyone who took the time to speak to us about it over the weekend.
The stall was in the bar upstairs from the concert hall and we able to quietly nip in and out to the balcony and watch some of the performances in between catching up with each friends we hadn’t seen in person for a while.
Flook performing at Stonehaven Folk Festival (c) Gordon Turnbull
Flook were in fine energetic form and, as expected, extraordinarily tight and focused. We had put up a signed copy of the tunebook as a raffle prize and were bowled over to discover that the whole band had supported us by adding their signatures. Somebody walked away that evening with quite a special prize.
Fèis and chips
Gordon teaching a flute workshop at Stonehaven (c) David Fernandez
The Saturday workshops at Dunottar Primary School were low key and with a friendly and helpful Janny and volunteers we were quickly set up. The morning workshops were beginner flute (Kenny Hadden) and beginner whistle (myself and Sharon Creasey). It was the first time that we had tried two tutors in one workshop, but it meant that Sharon and I could address individual issues and compare notes as we went along — it’s always good to hear different perspectives on the same subject.
In the afternoon, Sharon took an advanced whistle class while I took the flute class. Everyone was at different stages of returning to playing music again — some had not played for months, some had not been in sessions, others had happily been playing away in person or online. It was tricky to get the balance right, but we all had to begin somewhere.
Returning to teaching after a gap of 2 years was also a personal challenge. There was lots of talk and questions and in the back of my mind, I could hear Hammy Hamilton’s comment from Cruinniú na Bhfliúit, that he was always happy to hear talk coming from a room because it meant that people were discussing questions rather than simply learning tunes. As David Fednandez said, he was just happy to be back with others again playing the flute.
Kenny Hadden and Gordon Turnbull perform at Stonehaven Folk Festival (c) Martin Duckworth
Straight after the workshops, Kenny and I did a performance spot in the marquee in the square. We played some of our tunes from the book, including a duet. As many musicians elsewhere had said, it was good to get back to performing. Some of it felt familiar, other parts a bit alien after the last few years, but the sound was good and the audience enjoyed it.
The Asturian band Deira followed us on stage and were complimentary. As we dashed across the road to the book launch, their amazing sound rang out across the square and I made a mental note to try and hear more of them.
Kenny Hadden giving a talk at Stonehaven on the revival of the flute in Scottish traditional music (c) Gordon Turnbull
In the function room of No. 44, around 50 people had gathered to hear Kenny, who had set himself up to give an illustrated talk on the revival of the flute in traditional Scottish music.
With a big display screen and good sound, his meticulous trawl through the archives was an expansion on his essay in The FluteFling Collection that had people talking afterwards.
I think most people learned something new and to others it was a complete revelation. There were good questions from an engaged audience afterwards and I hope that there will be other chances to hear Kenny present this again.
Kenny, Sharon and myself followed the talk with a short recital of our own contributions to The FluteFling Collection. Peter Saunders was there and you can hear some of the performance on Peter’s YouTube channel:
An Aberdeen-based Polish whistler and David Fernandez at the book launch session. (c) Gordon Turnbull
There was a short session afterwards and friends were able to catch up with each other. Somehow, there’s never enough time to do everything we would like to do.
We were fortunate in that the Festival had donated the space to us and provided a sound technician to help set us up. With pubs and bars filled with music across the town, we also our own space to play and could hear each other.
The bookstall still needed manning and people were getting hungry after a long day
Deira performing at Stonehaven Folk Festival (c) Gordon Turnbull
I managed to catch Deira perform after the launch. The trio have a tight and driving sound that reminds me of Rura, but playing traditional Asturian and original tunes with a creative use of live loops and effects.
It’s easy to see how they went down well at Celtic Connections just before the pandemic and I recommend checking them out.
Kenny Hadden and Sharon Creasey on whistles at Stonehaven. (c) Gordon Turnbull
We ended up taking fish suppers to the splendid boardwalk that runs along the shore. A tune was soon struck up and we were joined by the Paddy Buchanan Band who had done a great performance on the Friday night. It was a fine evening to cap a fine day.
Easy like Sunday lunchtime
Gordon, Sharon and Kenny (c) David Fernandez
On Sunday, we took some time to tie up the loose ends, drink coffee and reflect on the launch, thinking of what happens next.
There was such a buzz from being with people again, many of whom we hadn’t seen for a couple of years, and playing music together. The support and goodwill towards FluteFling was overwhelming, so thank you to everyone who helped to make it happen and to those who managed to attend.
Our thanks go to the organisers for accommodating us and making us feel so welcome. This was most certainly a case of a bigger organisation being true to their roots and seeing the opportunity to give a helping hand to a smaller organisation such as ourselves to get going again in the post-lockdown world. We were able to provide workshops in return and so the benefit was mutual and we would consider similar arrangements in future.
Our thanks too, for Tasgadh for the grant and support that enabled the publication of the book in the first place and to the amazing contributors who were so keen to be part of this project. To order your own copy of The FluteFling Collection in Print or eBook format, visit the FluteFling Shop.
It was a memorable weekend and we resolved to have a similar event in Edinburgh. Covid and personal circumstances have delayed this, but we all look forward to the next one. Sign up to the newsletter to hear about it first.
It seems that there is so much more on for flute and whistle players to attend these days and it is great to see that the inaugural Alex Green Weekend will take place in Aberdeen 1-3 March. The weekend celebrates the NE whistler with an impressive lineup of concerts and workshops organised by The Elphinstone Institute, which is part of the University of Aberdeen.
