These are just a tip of iceberg. I had a pleasure to meet Cathal McConnell in Edinburgh and Deirdre Havlin in Antrim, who now plays with "London Lasses with Pete Quinn." A friend of mine in Leeds is also a lefty fluter, and so is Gordon Turnbull, the webmaster of "The Flow," who wrote an article on left-handed flute playing: http://www.theflow.org.uk/resources/resources_left.html The list goes on and on.... James Carty, too?
I bought my first whistle, sat in the car with it, and realized I didn't know which hand to put where. So I just went with what felt natural to me. Turned out be left-handed, even though I am right-handed for writing, etc.
I don't know how to play flute or whistle, but it seems to me an artificial distinction to call it left or right as both hands are fingering holes. The only difference is which one is closer to your mouth. To see a fiddle or guitar played the other way around you really are doing something quite different.
What would be more interesting is to find out if all these lefty-fluters are really left-handed in other things.
Most people picking up a whistle for the 1st time seem to naturally put their right hand on top. It's not a problem to keep that grip if you know that for the rest of your life you're only going to blow whistles or keyless flutes. (nothing wrong with that, it's all I do) Left hand on top however gives the later option of a much easier transition to keyed flutes, sax, clarinet etc. When a kid (or an adult) starts out on the whistle, who knows what musical direction they might eventually take? Start them left hand on top.
So, "lefty" whislte players aren't necessarily "lefty" fluters, and not necessarily left-handed in real life either. I'm wondering why there aren't many "lefty" fiddlers.
I am a lefty, playing guitar & whistle right handed way and the flute left handed way - this is because I started out by myself and just picked it up the other way round. I guess that was the reason for so many lefty players around.
Until recently I was convinced that if I had a choice, I would prefer to play it right-handed though. Doesn't make a difference in effort, but makes a difference in second-hand keyed flute availability.
Now that I finally got my own left-handed keyed, it doesn't make a difference again.
"I'm wondering why there aren't many "lefty" fiddlers."
I play the classical guitar left handed and nowadays also acoustic guitar, mandolin and a little banjo. All lefty versions. I guess that one problem is quite practical one, that is, the lack of lefty violins. It has always been a pain to get good lefty guitars and such so I guess the same applies for fiddles too.
Sometimes in my youth I wanted to start learning the classical fiddle. I told my teacher on the first lesson that I just can't play the way the right handed folks do and need to start with a left handed fiddle. He got very agry and told me that the only *right* way to play the fiddle is the right handed way. He also gave me a long speech of how I couldn't play in an orchestra as I would be sticking the other players in the eye with my cane, I guess that's the right word. Anyway, that was the end of my fiddlingdays then.
"I'm wondering why there aren't many "lefty" fiddlers."
Converting a fiddle for left-handed playing is a fairly substantial operation because the instrument isn't as symmetric, inside or out, as it appears as first sight. Merely swapping the strings around is nowhere near sufficient - although doing that probably wouldn't make all that much difference to the instruments at the lowest end of "cheap" - because of the intricate ways the vibrations of the strings are transmitted through the instrument to end up as sound.
Briefly, without going into the technical details, the things that need to be done to convert the handedness of a decent fiddle are (not necessarily in this order, except for the final item),
1 recut the bridge, or prepare and fit a new one
2 fit a new fingerboard with the appropriate curvature across it in the opposite direction (it may not be possible to reshape the old one)
3 fit a new nut at the top end of the fingerboard next to the peg box with grooves prepared for the left hand string set up
4 take the belly off and relocate the bass bar, or fit a new one, to the opposite side to where it was, and refit belly
5 fit a new soundpost on the opposite side to where it would be on a right-hand fiddle
6 block off the old peg-holes in the peg box, ream new ones in the appropriate locations for a left-handed instrument
7 prepare new pegs with string holes drilled appropriately for a left hand string set-up, and fit said new pegs to peg box
8 clean and polish instrument
9 fit strings left-handed fashion and do final fine-tuning of sound post and bridge
10 if you can't think of anything else to be done, bill the customer for all the work that has been done.
Left-handed string players in orchestras are rare, for obvious logistical reasons, but you do see them occasionally in smaller classical ensembles such as string quartets, or as single players in gig bands.
Thanks Daiv. But it would really be interesting to find out how many Lefty flute players are essentially right handed.
Also what makes it more appealing to a left-handed person to push the flute out to the left, when right handed fiddle and guitar players push their instrument out to the left?
Will, are you out there? Have you got an answer from your Neuroscience/Music books???
I disagree that left handed players are "wrong". I am lefthanded and have a left handed button accordian which I had adapted for left handed play.
I was recently berated at a teacher training course that I should relearn the box and play right handed. It was pointed out to me that some good box players are leftys but play righthanded. Maybe tese players would be even better if they were playing with their dominant hand.
At Tourmakeady last year half of the flute class were leftys. It looked very symmetric.
Why are there so many lefty flute players?
Why are there so many lefty flute players?
Tulla U-12 Ceili Band: http://www.custysmusic.com/mall/CustysTraditionalMusicShop/tulla12.html
Gleann na Coille Ceili Band: http://comhaltas.ie/music/detail/comhaltaslive_218_7_gleann_na_coille_reels
Allow Ceili Band: http://comhaltas.ie/music/detail/comhaltaslive_217_3_allow_ceili_band
Turloughmore Ceili Band: http://comhaltas.ie/music/detail/comhaltaslive_217_2_turloughmore_ceili_band
Leeds Ceili Band: http://comhaltas.ie/music/detail/comhaltaslive_216_1_leeds_ceili_band
Damien Stenson: http://comhaltas.ie/music/detail/comhaltaslive_218_2_innisfree_ceili_band_jigs
Seamus Tansey: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abi-lhnXoSY
Catherine McEvoy: http://www.custysmusic.com/mall/CustysTraditionalMusicShop/catherine_and_john_mcevoy.htm
John Wynne: http://www.custysmusic.com/mall/CustysTraditionalMusicShop/john_wynne_with_every_breath.htm
Michael Hynes: http://www.custysmusic.com/mall/CustysTraditionalMusicShop/denis_liddy_and_michael_hynes_waifs_and_strays.htm
Mike McGoldrick: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbVBffGQAOk
Gary Shannon: http://comhaltas.ie/music/detail/comhaltaslive_217_1_gary_shannon
John Brady: http://comhaltas.ie/music/detail/comhaltaslive_198_segment_1_the_brady_family
These are just a tip of iceberg. I had a pleasure to meet Cathal McConnell in Edinburgh and Deirdre Havlin in Antrim, who now plays with "London Lasses with Pete Quinn." A friend of mine in Leeds is also a lefty fluter, and so is Gordon Turnbull, the webmaster of "The Flow," who wrote an article on left-handed flute playing: http://www.theflow.org.uk/resources/resources_left.html The list goes on and on.... James Carty, too?
# Posted on July 22nd 2007 by slainte
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
Maybe they started that way on whistle.
I bought my first whistle, sat in the car with it, and realized I didn't know which hand to put where. So I just went with what felt natural to me. Turned out be left-handed, even though I am right-handed for writing, etc.
# Posted on July 22nd 2007 by mickray
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
I don't know how to play flute or whistle, but it seems to me an artificial distinction to call it left or right as both hands are fingering holes. The only difference is which one is closer to your mouth. To see a fiddle or guitar played the other way around you really are doing something quite different.
What would be more interesting is to find out if all these lefty-fluters are really left-handed in other things.
# Posted on July 23rd 2007 by Donough
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
Most people picking up a whistle for the 1st time seem to naturally put their right hand on top. It's not a problem to keep that grip if you know that for the rest of your life you're only going to blow whistles or keyless flutes. (nothing wrong with that, it's all I do) Left hand on top however gives the later option of a much easier transition to keyed flutes, sax, clarinet etc. When a kid (or an adult) starts out on the whistle, who knows what musical direction they might eventually take? Start them left hand on top.
# Posted on July 23rd 2007 by cabers
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
Here's an interesting comment on Seamus Egan's flute and whistle playing: http://www.thesession.org/discussions/display/2142/comments#comment38890
So, "lefty" whislte players aren't necessarily "lefty" fluters, and not necessarily left-handed in real life either. I'm wondering why there aren't many "lefty" fiddlers.
# Posted on July 23rd 2007 by slainte
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
I am a lefty, playing guitar & whistle right handed way and the flute left handed way - this is because I started out by myself and just picked it up the other way round. I guess that was the reason for so many lefty players around.
Until recently I was convinced that if I had a choice, I would prefer to play it right-handed though. Doesn't make a difference in effort, but makes a difference in second-hand keyed flute availability.
Now that I finally got my own left-handed keyed, it doesn't make a difference again.
# Posted on July 23rd 2007 by EastPole
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
"I'm wondering why there aren't many "lefty" fiddlers."
I play the classical guitar left handed and nowadays also acoustic guitar, mandolin and a little banjo. All lefty versions. I guess that one problem is quite practical one, that is, the lack of lefty violins. It has always been a pain to get good lefty guitars and such so I guess the same applies for fiddles too.
Sometimes in my youth I wanted to start learning the classical fiddle. I told my teacher on the first lesson that I just can't play the way the right handed folks do and need to start with a left handed fiddle. He got very agry and told me that the only *right* way to play the fiddle is the right handed way. He also gave me a long speech of how I couldn't play in an orchestra as I would be sticking the other players in the eye with my cane, I guess that's the right word
. Anyway, that was the end of my fiddlingdays then.
# Posted on July 23rd 2007 by Risto
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
"I'm wondering why there aren't many "lefty" fiddlers."
Converting a fiddle for left-handed playing is a fairly substantial operation because the instrument isn't as symmetric, inside or out, as it appears as first sight. Merely swapping the strings around is nowhere near sufficient - although doing that probably wouldn't make all that much difference to the instruments at the lowest end of "cheap" - because of the intricate ways the vibrations of the strings are transmitted through the instrument to end up as sound.
Briefly, without going into the technical details, the things that need to be done to convert the handedness of a decent fiddle are (not necessarily in this order, except for the final item),
1 recut the bridge, or prepare and fit a new one
2 fit a new fingerboard with the appropriate curvature across it in the opposite direction (it may not be possible to reshape the old one)
3 fit a new nut at the top end of the fingerboard next to the peg box with grooves prepared for the left hand string set up
4 take the belly off and relocate the bass bar, or fit a new one, to the opposite side to where it was, and refit belly
5 fit a new soundpost on the opposite side to where it would be on a right-hand fiddle
6 block off the old peg-holes in the peg box, ream new ones in the appropriate locations for a left-handed instrument
7 prepare new pegs with string holes drilled appropriately for a left hand string set-up, and fit said new pegs to peg box
8 clean and polish instrument
9 fit strings left-handed fashion and do final fine-tuning of sound post and bridge
10 if you can't think of anything else to be done, bill the customer for all the work that has been done.
Left-handed string players in orchestras are rare, for obvious logistical reasons, but you do see them occasionally in smaller classical ensembles such as string quartets, or as single players in gig bands.
# Posted on July 23rd 2007 by lazyhound
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
they play lefty because nobody told them they were doing it wrong!
if it were me, i would relearn the instrument if i had learned it the wrong way.
donough-- i think they call it left because a.) it goes to the left when you play lefty, and b) left-handed players are more often to play that way.
# Posted on July 24th 2007 by daiv
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
Thanks Daiv. But it would really be interesting to find out how many Lefty flute players are essentially right handed.
Also what makes it more appealing to a left-handed person to push the flute out to the left, when right handed fiddle and guitar players push their instrument out to the left?
Will, are you out there? Have you got an answer from your Neuroscience/Music books???
# Posted on July 24th 2007 by Donough
Re: Why are there so many lefty flute players?
I disagree that left handed players are "wrong". I am lefthanded and have a left handed button accordian which I had adapted for left handed play.
I was recently berated at a teacher training course that I should relearn the box and play right handed. It was pointed out to me that some good box players are leftys but play righthanded. Maybe tese players would be even better if they were playing with their dominant hand.
At Tourmakeady last year half of the flute class were leftys. It looked very symmetric.
# Posted on July 26th 2007 by southpaw