KiwiCelt Wooden Flutes

This page provides some helpful links to information about playing the simple system wooden flute — commonly known as the Irish flute. These include to fingering charts, information on playing technique and styles, and sources of Irish traditional/Celtic tunes. We have also included a section of links to teachers of Irish and Celtic music in New Zealand and to sites that offer inspirational material in the form of interviews with renowned players and wooden flute historical articles. If you have anything that you would like added to this page, kindly send us an email.

Playing Help Index

Irish Flute Playing Help
Irish/Celtic Music Teachers in New Zealand
Irish/Celtic Musicians in New Zealand
Irish Traditional Music Session Information
Inspirational Interviews
Historical and Informative Links

Irish Flute Playing Help

Fingering Charts for Simple System Irish Flutes:

• Terry McGee’s fingering charts for Keyless Flute and for the Eight Key Flute.

Irish flute playing instruction and tips:

• Rob Greenway’s Irish Flute Pages — very informative site.
• The Flow — traditional Irish flute playing.
• Playing the Wooden Flute — on woodenflute.com.
• Learning to Play Irish Flute — A Guide to the Irish Flute.
• Recommended Flute Players — A Guide to the Irish Flute.
• ‘Have Ye This One?‘ — Skip Healy’s teaching book and CD set.

General Irish/Celtic traditional music resource:

• Celtic Music NZ — resource site for Celtic music in New Zealand.
• Alan Ng’s Tips for Learning Irish Traditional Music.
• Traditional Music — Nigel Gatherer’s traditional music site.
• The Irish Traditional Music Archive.
• Rambling House — Irish traditional music web site.
• Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann — Irish music and culture.
• Ceolas — the home of Celtic music on the internet.

Finding Tunes:

• The Session — a traditional Irish music site dedicated to the exchange of tunes here.
• Alan Ng’s Irish Traditional Music Tune Index.
• Tunes — Nigel Gatherer’s tune index.
• Tunedb — Richard Moon’s traditional music database.
• The ABC Musical Notation Language — about the ABC notation language.
• Concertina.net — an ABC musical notation converter.
• Pay The Reckoning — original Irish/Celtic traditional tunes, ABC notations, reviews, interviews. rants and raves.
• The Fiddler’s Companion — a descriptive index of North American and British Isles music for the folk violin and other instruments.

Wooden Flute Forums:

• Wooden Flute Forum — become a member (free) and gain access to receive a regular digest; ask questions; have your say; etc.
• The Chiff & Fipple Flute Forum — a vibrant on-line Irish flute community.

Irish Flute CD’s:

• Wooden Flute Obsession CDs — compilation CD sets of most of the world’s best traditional music flute players.
• ‘d’ flute album (check out the samples) — by Kevin Crawford.
• Check out this great list of Irish Trad CDs on the Veteran web site.

Wooden Flute Care Instructions:

• The Kiwicelt Wooden Flute Care Page — care instructions for wooden flutes.

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Irish/Celtic Music Teachers in New Zealand

Flute Teachers and Schools:

• Brendyn Montgomery — Irish flute and tin whistle teacher.
• Pat Higgins (email) — always helpful with advice, encouragement and tunes.
• Bob Bickerton — a multi-instrumentalist specialising in Celtic music.
• Ceol Aneas — master classes in Irish flute, fiddle, Uilleann pipes and more in the style of the Irish summer schools.

Other Instruments:
Fiddle:

• Charlie Montgomery — a fine fiddle player and Irish traditional musician originally from Belfast, Charlie lives in Auckland. Phone: (09) 846 8786.
• Marian Burns (email) — classical and Celtic violin teacher Marian lives in Auckland.
• Linda Whitcombe (email) — Celtic fiddle teacher, Linda lives in Auckland. Phone: (09) 578 0220

Harp:

• Anna Dunwoodie (email) — Celtic and classical harp teacher. Anna lives in Auckland. Phone: (09) 626 2442.
• Helen Webby — Celtic and classical harp teacher Helen lives in Christchurch.

Bodhran:

• Jo Taylor (email) — Bodhran teacher in Auckland. Phone: (09) 828 1334.

Uillean Pipes:

• Greg Waite (email) — teacher and president of the The New Zealand Uilleann Pipers Association who lives in Dunedin. Phone: (03) 473 6967.

Finding Teachers:

• The Music Teachers List — search the world for music teachers.

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Irish/Celtic Musicians in New Zealand

Groups:

• Glor na mban — traditional Irish/Celtic music. An all woman’s vocal and instrumental group.
• Davy Stuart and Helen Webby — Irish/Celtic music duo.

Individuals:

• Brendyn Montgomery — Irish traditional musician who plays and teaches flute, whistle and fiddle.
• Bob Bickerton — traditional Celtic musician and a multi-instrumentalist.
• Pat Higgins (email) — ITM sessions in Wellington.

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Irish Traditional Music Session Information:

• Directory of Sessions in New Zealand — maintained by KiwiFolk: Folk and Acoustic music in New Zealand.
• What is a Seisiun? — Irish traditional music session description and etiquette with links.
• What is Irish Traditional Music? — by Glauber Ribeiro
• Locations — of Comhaltas in Ireland.
• The Irish Session — an historical overview from Standing Stones.
• Field Guide to the Irish Music Session — by Barry Foy. Review or Purchase.
• Sessions — something for the evening from Music Traditions.
• Sessions — the Sessions’ sessions page.

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Inspirational Interviews

• Interviews With Flute Players and Flute Makers — A Guide to the Irish Flute.
• Rambling House Biographies — see the panel on the right side of the homepage.
• Interviews With Flute Players — interviews with ITM flute players New Zealand on KiwiCelt Wooden Flutes.

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Historical and Informative Links

• Rick Wilson’s Historical Flute Page — a history of the flute.
• flutehistory.com — the world of flute history.
• What is an Irish flute? — The Standing Stones.
• Prehistoric Music Ireland — Bronze Age Horns of Ireland.
• 4000 Year-old Music? — unique prehistoric musical instrument discovered in Co. Wicklow, Ireland.
• 9,000 Year Old Chinese Flutes — the oldest playable flutes in the world.
• Neanderthal Flute — a report on a 43,000 to 82,000-year-old flute.

If you have anything that you would like added to this page, kindly contact Shardul.

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