Seamus Tansey-Irish Flute

[KireiKittyGirlLissa]

It seems like a lot of really good Irish flute players are left-handed. I read somewhere that you're not supposed to switch the flute around, though, despite the fact that it doesn't seem to make a difference. I play Irish flute (badly) and I'm left handed, but I hold it the "right way." Maybe I should switch it and see if it'll help or just screw me up more...

[Lisnageeragh]

@KireiKittyGirlLissa Be careful about ''switching''....when you say you play''badly'' changing your hold may not improve matters ..get a good (honest!) teacher....anyway what's wrong with your playin??!! TG

[shuchen1994]

thank you for the video! could i know the source, like what documentary/dvd/programme it came from? thank you so much!

[getduloh]

are the people at 1:44 zombies?

[Mockatt]

@getduloh Yeah, they look reeeeeaaaaaly into the performance....

[celtic4ever18]

@getduloh this video looks scary

[McSpuddie]

A mismatch between instrument and melos, however technically skilled

[fiddlinvet]

The Professor. Still as good today as he was then.

[TheCherokeeboy]

crazy ornamentations. !!!!!!

[Cavanpiper]

Tansey- What an asshole. He'd probably spit on all you flute players

[Psyence1987]

@Cavanpiper I like just down the street from him and I've never heard anything but nice words from him.

[Psyence1987]

@Psyence1987 live*

[Vodkametalhead]

The Seamus Ennis of the flute :D

[TheeElusivePimpernel]

Great powerful playing and drive!

[Lisnageeragh]

@TheeElusivePimpernel Seamus was also a very good air player...and may still well be

He has a lovely tone ...like many of the older players such as Peter Horan!

[sirjemo]

As always, great playing, with crisp notation but a really musical feel. Shame for me that the video image and sound are out of sync so I can't quite appreciate his fingering and ornamentation (and how to copy it!)

[gregthepianotuner]

I could live to be 400 years old, practicing every day, and still not play anywhere near as well as Seamus Tansey.

[katiestar84]

what town was Seamus from? i love his style of playing if i were to guess i'd say somewhere in the west?

[deterdettol]

Gurteen, County Sligo.

[vampav8trix]

This is so cool.

Is he playing that flute backwards? It looks like it to me.

I am impressed.

[johnkeppel90]

He's playing it left-handed.

[celticmarine1]

It is a right-handed flute, played lefty. Many leftys have a hard time finding a left-handed flute. Many of the keys can still be played regardless. He sure makes fine work of it!

[deterdettol]

Seamus was actually known not to play the silver keys!

In fact, quite later on (from the time this clip was recorded), he manually removed the keywork from his flute, sawing off the block mounts.

Guys, really: Seamus plays a keyless flute, and plays it well!

[deterdettol]

Picture of his flute:

celticgrooves.homestead com/CG_Tansey_Seamus_King html

[bossh0ss]

no fool, he is left handed and one of our best.

[vampav8trix]

You don't have to be insulting when you reply. I was just curious as to why he was playing backwards. Not to mention, I said I was impressed. Read the whole post before you make a fool of yourself.

[bossh0ss]

your the one making the foolish comments to start with. If you seen a guy playing a guitar left handed , you would not say he was playing backwards !! or would you ?

[vampav8trix]

A guitar is usually strung upside down or is made for someone left handed. A flute is not usually made left handed. I know several left handed flute players and they do not hold their instruments that way. They hold it traditionally. I would think it would be much more difficult to learn to play a flute the way Mr. Tansey. It says a lot about his skill. As I said before, I am impressed. As soon as they start making a left handed flute, I am sure leftys will start buying them.

[bossh0ss]

Thank good left hand flutes are now available for us leftys ! In Mr Tanseys day there was no such thing, his mum bought him the flute in the clip when he was just a boy. He has been playing it since and is known as king of the flute . Shemus released a cd a few years ago called easter snow ,well worth a listen to!! sorry I did not mean to be rude to you

[OakAged72]

@vampav8trix

"They" do make left-handed flutes these days. But Mr. Tansey isn't playing a new model - it's a right-hander - look at the keys. And it says nothing whatsoever about skill. It makes no difference whether you play it left or right if you're not using the keys.

[Lisnageeragh]

@OakAged72 ...agreed ...good to hear a bit of sense...come to using keys and things would get a bit complicated.

[vampav8trix]

My husband is left handed and he owns a left handed guitar.

[leftclog51]

ha ha ha its you who is backwards

[Ismaithliomgaeilge]

This is the master at work. Genius playing. I love Tansey.

[fergansean69r]

this is one of the greatest flute recordings ever made..an absolute genius on flute and brilliant singer and bodhran player.... a great exponent of the true traditional irish music...

[muaylad]

Éire Abú...Mo cheol thú Séamus Tansey lad - fear fíor Gaelach cinnte, ní bheidh a leithéid arís ann.

[olddobbin]

a rare talent, love to invite him to perform at the bonniconlon show

[usfenderfsdlx]

i also play left handed, but i'm pretty new to the flute (i've been playing whistle left handed for a while). does the fact that the embouchure hole is often off center negatively impact a lefty players ability or make it harder to play in any way? i've been having trouble developing an embouchure that both produces a good sound and doesn't exhaust my lung capacity too quickly.

[Plur307]

Damn that crowd was going wild...

[lycante]

I loved it. Got more? Oh, and why's he holding the flute the wrong way around? :P

[Noel011]

Because he's left handed, I play like him

[lycante]

Yeah, I was being sarcastic. What kind of flute do you play?

[Noel011]

I've two tin whistles, and a dixon keyless polymere flute