Some thoughts on listening
I am a traditional Irish fiddle player and learned my music from Seamus Connolly, a great and highly respected fiddler from County Clare. It was a real honor for me to get to know Seamus and to have his guidance as I worked to unravel the riddles of traditional Irish music. Possibly the most valuable lessons I learned from Seamus were about the art of listening, for in addition to sharing with me his insights about fiddle technique and elements of style, he spoke frequently about how his listening to musicians of an earlier generation had informed his playing.
Like many Irish musicians of his era, Seamus had been profoundly influenced by the recordings of the great fiddlers of County Sligo: Paddy Killoran, James Morrison and above all, Michael Coleman. He had spent a great deal of time as a young man studying those recordings and learning to execute the intricate bowing and ornamentation that were characteristic of Sligo fiddling. Because these Sligo elements were what Seamus had worked most consciously to learn as his own personal fiddle style evolved, they were what he taught about in fiddle lessons. I was grateful for the time he spent with me listening to Coleman recordings and interpreting what we heard together. I also applied the listening techniques Seamus taught me to my hearing of my own playing, and after awhile I realized that although Seamus used all the bowings and ornaments of Sligo music, his music had a very different sound. There was a flow to his music - a little something about the way he moved from one bow stroke to the next - that was distinct from what the Sligo players were doing. After musing about this awhile, I turned my attention to some of the fiddlers that Seamus had listened to and admired as a young boy (Sean Ryan, Bobby Casey and Paddy Canny to name a few). Listening, enjoying and studying the music of these older generation musicians gave me a deeper insight into Seamus's playing. I could hear that further back in his musical history, before he was introduced to the music of Sligo, he adopted a musical voice that came from his exposure to the musicians of his region, and that voice has remained with him ever since.
I share this chapter of my musical journey to illustrate the advice that I would offer to any traditional musician: Listen. Not only to the musicians that you admire, but to the musicians that they admired as well. Don't settle for the inspiration you derive from your musical hero; look to your hero's heroes too. What you hear will very likely delight and intrigue you. Remember that the traditional musician you love came to where he/she is largely because of how, and to whom, he/she listened. By listening a bit farther back in time you will deepen your understanding of what it really is about your musical hero's music that speaks to you. The choices you make as you develop your own musical style will draw from ever richer sources, and you will become as real contributor to your tradition as you draw from its past to create music that is new and uniquely your own.
Laurel Martin
Like many Irish musicians of his era, Seamus had been profoundly influenced by the recordings of the great fiddlers of County Sligo: Paddy Killoran, James Morrison and above all, Michael Coleman. He had spent a great deal of time as a young man studying those recordings and learning to execute the intricate bowing and ornamentation that were characteristic of Sligo fiddling. Because these Sligo elements were what Seamus had worked most consciously to learn as his own personal fiddle style evolved, they were what he taught about in fiddle lessons. I was grateful for the time he spent with me listening to Coleman recordings and interpreting what we heard together. I also applied the listening techniques Seamus taught me to my hearing of my own playing, and after awhile I realized that although Seamus used all the bowings and ornaments of Sligo music, his music had a very different sound. There was a flow to his music - a little something about the way he moved from one bow stroke to the next - that was distinct from what the Sligo players were doing. After musing about this awhile, I turned my attention to some of the fiddlers that Seamus had listened to and admired as a young boy (Sean Ryan, Bobby Casey and Paddy Canny to name a few). Listening, enjoying and studying the music of these older generation musicians gave me a deeper insight into Seamus's playing. I could hear that further back in his musical history, before he was introduced to the music of Sligo, he adopted a musical voice that came from his exposure to the musicians of his region, and that voice has remained with him ever since.
I share this chapter of my musical journey to illustrate the advice that I would offer to any traditional musician: Listen. Not only to the musicians that you admire, but to the musicians that they admired as well. Don't settle for the inspiration you derive from your musical hero; look to your hero's heroes too. What you hear will very likely delight and intrigue you. Remember that the traditional musician you love came to where he/she is largely because of how, and to whom, he/she listened. By listening a bit farther back in time you will deepen your understanding of what it really is about your musical hero's music that speaks to you. The choices you make as you develop your own musical style will draw from ever richer sources, and you will become as real contributor to your tradition as you draw from its past to create music that is new and uniquely your own.
Laurel Martin
posted by Childsplay at
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