Irish slow airs are taken from Sean nós a personalized mode of unaccompanied singing. Ideally anyone playing an air would have some knowledge of this very old Irish tradition.

These tunes below are my (an Englishman's) interpretation and shouldn't be taken as the best way of playing them. They are okay for general musical information but any one really interested in these sort of tunes should really listen to Irish singers and players. The same goes for all the Irish tunes on this site, as you have probably gathered!

A very popular air and very easy to play. It's a good tune for working on a strong tone. It always goes down well at a session, especially if the session tempo needs to come down a bit!!

I have only put in a couple of cuts in the written tune at the beginning. It's a good idea to work out personal ornaments. There is plenty of time in this piece to put little bits and pieces in but the tune needs to breathe so it shouldn't be too cluttered...make the main notes speak! The long notes at the end can have vibrato either the finger variety or by using the diaphragm see ornaments for some idea of this.

A good recording of this is Joannie Madden "Songs of the Irish Whistle"

D whistle Down By Yon Sally Gardens

This is a favourite of mine. It is an easy tune and can be played very slowly so attention can be given to expression and tone. I have put in a couple of trills which are not used much in Irish music but they fit in this tune and are worth learning. The tune can be taken at 4 beats to the bar. Because there is plenty of time in this piece the long notes can really be made a fuss of. Make them as bold and clear as possible and try to go from one note to the next smoothly.

C whistle Blind Mary

I heard this on Sean Ryan's CD "Take the Air". He is a fantastic whistle player and plays Susato whistles. He seems quite an eccentric character with a cheese cutter hat (which I think he wears to bed), long hair, and a bag of whistles rattling around with him. A quick rummage around to find one to his liking and away he goes!

Once again with an air, expression and tone can be practiced, don't worry too much about timing just get the feel. I haven't put the notes on paper as the timing is quite free...anyway it's good practice to learn it by ear!

I play it on a Sindt D 

D whistle Fairy Child

This tune is known as an air and can be played that way i.e. slowly. I personally prefer to play it a little faster especially with this setting which has two parts.

This tune was brought to my attention by a Northumbrian pipe player and it goes nicely with the pipes. For the workshop I have recorded the two separate parts on a C whistle and put them together in a stereo file.

I haven't added any breath marks or ornaments to the written notes and haven't used much ornamentation in the playing, the two parts compliment each other without too much added. The odd roll or triplet can be put in. For instance in the second part I have added a note between the two quavers (8th notes) top part of the last beat on bar three, making a triplet and bottom part, bar one, second beat, doing the same thing.

The tunes come out of a book of duets and trios named "The Pipers Companion" Arranged by Derek Hobbs. Published by Rossleigh Music, Rossleigh House, Windsor Terrace, Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, Northumbria, NE64 6UJ.

C whistle The Hills of Lorne