Edinburgh weekend 2026: more fun at the Fling

The last weekend of March this year saw traditional flute players gather in Newhaven, on the outskirts of Edinburgh on the shores of the Firth of Forth, for the 2026 Edinburgh FluteFling. Here’s a first account, with photos to come.

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Friday

“Is it always as cold as this?” a woman asked me as she hurried wind-blown into the tall atrium space, shaking off rain from her jacket and unravelling her scarf. It was Friday evening at the Heart of Newhaven Community – a Victorian school building that is home to a vibrant and busy community and the Edinburgh FluteFling weekend base for the last four years.

It was the start of what turned out to be a blustery weekend, with the venue set back from the old Newhaven harbour. Events in previous years had seen warm sunny days, or the haar setting in for a fog-bound weekend. Jackets, scarves and hats were needed for this weekend though, as weather drove down the Forth valley whipping up heavy showers, sunshine and rainbows while white horses danced in the Firth of Forth.

In contrast, the atrium was beginning to fill with the warmth of old friends reuniting and newcomers gaining their bearings before finding seats in the main hall for the opening concert.

On such a night, this year’s concert certainly rewarded hard core fans of traditional flute and whistle playing. The lineup of award-winning and award-nominated musicians celebrated a rich array of variety within contemporary and traditional music.

The concert opened with Hammy Hamilton, the celebrated Irish musician, academic, researcher, educator and creator of what has become known as the “Irish Flute”. That design is a modern reworking of the older wooden classical flutes of the 19th Century, adapted for traditional music and taken up the world over.

Scottish flute maker George Ormiston had also been adapting the design in parallel to Hammy Hamilton and has supported the FluteFling. Over the weekend we were blessed with the presence of both influential innovators.

Hammy’s solo performance offered an insight into his influences and interests and he drew the audience in with stories, older tunes and singing. A personal high point was a song from Lough Neagh framed by the melody played on the flute.

Tina Jordan Rees followed on both flute and low whistle, with a mixture of her own compositions and traditional tunes. Tina’s unaccompanied performance highlighted those original melodies, which carry recognisable traditional features but often with a twist such as an unusual time signature, key or rhythmic variation. At a time when many innovations are being explored in traditional music circles, to my ears Tina’s tunes stand tall in a solo setting, remaining accessible to players of flutes and whistles and to audience members alike.

Headliners Claire Mann and Tom Oakes are both multi-instrumentalists but the final hour of the evening was mostly given over to flutes, which made for a very special occasion. With sensitive and lively interplay across a mix of different tunes types, from slow airs to punchy reels and jigs, there were settings in unusual keys and an array of flutes in different pitches

Long-standing friends, there was a natural ease to Claire and Tom’s music, despite this being just the second time they had performed together. Hopefully this is the start of further musical adventures together from them.

Towards the end of their set, they played a set of tunes associated with Cathal McConnell in tribute to him. The Fermanagh flute player, whistle player and singer has long been resident in Edinburgh and is a recognised major figure in Irish traditional music. Cathal has attended and supported FluteFling events over the years but was unable to do so this year.

The evening was rounded off by all performers coming together for a rousing set of tunes to see us all of on our way.

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Saturday

This year, the workshops were sold out within just a few weeks, despite increasing class sizes. This made for a busy Hub at the venue, which we took over once more. This year the three teaching groups remained in their rooms and Hammy, Tina and Claire as tutors were the ones that moved around to the different groups.

At FluteFling we create the classes based on current playing situations, which in recent years we have found to be a natural way of grouping people who attend rather than asking them to rate their own ability or how long they have been playing. Overall, people seemed relaxed and comfortable in their groups.

Dropping into one class, I caught Hammy sharing some of the background to the music and the flute before teaching a barndance. In another, Claire was responding to questions on different ways of introducing ornamentation into a tune she was teaching. And in a third, Tina had shown a class that a particular tune was much more manageable than it had first seemed to the group.

Teas and coffees were provided by the wonderful Heart of Newhaven team and enough time is given for the breaks between classes to allow everyone to pause from learning. The space became noisy with chatter and music. This was time for friends to catch up, grab a coffee, listen in on conversations about music or instruments, or just go and get some fresh air.

George Ormiston had his flutes and whistles available to try out, including a Bb flute and even one in A, a physically tricky one with a sonorous reward. There were discussions about instrument needs, repairs and maintenance, local sessions, recordings, and more. There were second hand instruments for sale and people broke out into quiet spaces to try them out or consolidate what they had just been learning.

The teaching day ended with FluteFling Chair Dougie Pincock interviewing Hammy Hamilton about his life and experiences as a musician, flute maker, researcher and academic. It was fitting to finish up by deepening the understanding of the music, in particular the development of the flute since the 1970s and 80s.

After the workshops, the now-traditional curry at Rishi’s followed and once more we were looked after very well. We have long-time FluteFling supporter and previous tutor Niall Kenny to thank alongside the welcoming Lost in Leith, for arranging a space for the evening session. This was quickly arranged following the previously organised venue letting us down at the very last minute. But all was well as music and goodwill flowed.

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Sunday

Despite the challenge presented by the clocks going forward over the weekend, a large group managed to gather for the Sunday workshop with Claire. This mixed ability workshop is relatively new to FluteFling, but it is proving to be a popular one. On the whistle, Claire led us all through a slow reel that was perfect for Sunday morning vibes. Inside was coffee, tea and mellow music, while outside another shower lashed and blew by. The groups explored phrasing, discussed the merits of learning by ear and whistles in different pitches.

There was still time for a well-attended session in the afternoon at Lost in Leith, but many had journeys to make — to home in County Durham, Aberdeen, Galloway and Somerset. Others had travelled from the USA or the Netherlands to be part of a very successful weekend.

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A view from the inside

Brigid Daniel is a whistle player from Edinburgh who attended the weekend. She kindly added her thoughts on the her experiences from the perspective of someone attending.

What was it like to attend? The venues, setting, location? 
The venue works well for such an event with separate rooms to accommodate smaller groups, but also enough space for all to gather. Parking is easy close by and is near shops to buy lunch.

 

What’s it like to be in a workshop?
I attended the workshops on both days and enjoyed the different styles of the different leaders. It was good to stay part of one group and get to know the other group members. I felt completely safe to have a go at trying all the tunes – it was a supportive, friendly and non-threatening environment in which to learn. The option to record the tunes was helpful. It was also helpful to have some of the sheet music in advance.

What did you enjoy about it?
I enjoyed the chance to learn from expert players. The most useful aspect for me was learning more about ornamentation, in particular, breaking down a tune in detail and patiently trying to infuse ornaments rather than rushing through and moving on. I particularly welcomed the last workshop that focused on the whistle.

Any highlights you would like to share?
Apart from learning from the leaders, I enjoyed the opportunity to compare notes with others. There was ample time to chat informally and to pick up tips and ideas about instruments, music, sessions and events from other attendees. Everyone was very friendly and it was nice to be amongst a group of people who shared a passion for flutes and whistles.

Any tips for surviving the weekend?
I recall from when I was very new to learning by ear how intimidating it can feel. Now, with much more experience of that kind of learning I feel more confident that I will learn a tune in that way. For those who were new to learning by ear there were times when I think the teaching pace might have been a little too fast, but then of course there has to be a balance for those who pick up tunes quickly. I think the only way to address this is to ensure that there is a lot of reassurance to those who are very new to learning by ear that it doesn’t matter if they don’t get it all perfectly immediately. Even picking up some of the phrases is a good start.

What does FluteFling mean to you?
In the sessions I go to there is a tendency for there to be far more fiddles than flutes and whistles so it is a joy to spend time with a large group of flute and whistle players.

Why would you recommend coming?
I would recommend the weekend to players at any level who want to share their love of flutes and whistles in a friendly environment where there is lots to learn in a relaxed and safe space.

Have you ever been to the Aberdeen weekend or plan to?
I haven’t yet, may well one day.

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Finally

FluteFling would like to thank Hammy Hamilton, Tina Jordan Rees, Claire Mann, Tom Oakes and George Ormiston for their involvement and support, Alasdair Kampff for delivering the sound impeccably at the concert, the Heart of Newhaven Community, Lost in Leith, Rishi’s Restaurant, and the many volunteers who stepped in to help at various times. Finally, to all those who were able to come and to those who would have liked to but were unable to.

Once the dust has settled, we will fix a date to return to Edinburgh next Spring. Conversations have already started.

The next FluteFling will take place in Aberdeen 6-8 November 2026. The details will be announced over the next couple of months and Mailing List subscribers will be the first to gain access to tickets towards the end of the summer. If you would like to subscribe it is free to do so on the here on the website.