Tim Britton: Transcript

Uillean pipe maker and player
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My name is Tim Britton, and I'm originally from Philadelphia. And I've been living in Fairfield, Iowa, for 20 years now. My father is a professional folk singer, so growing up in the ’60s, we were basically exposed to a lot of different kinds of folk music.

When I was, I think, around 10 or 11, I met up with some people who were—a family who were—the father played Scottish bagpipes and two out of his three kids did Highland dancing. And I was hanging out with them—they were my age—and I just got really enamored with all that. And being of Scottish and Irish in background as well as German, I just got sucked into that big time, went back to Philly and took up Highland dancing and Scottish pipes. There was a custodian at my elementary school that played Scottish pipes. My parents found out about this Irish background, which at the time was quite rare, and ended up meeting up with him. And he introduced me to the esoteric Irish traditions. That's how I got started with it. (Music)

The Fairfield community is an interesting community in that it does—the appreciation for folk arts and arts in general is very profound. And there is a community of people here who are—who that is a big part of their lives. But it's not so much Irish dancing and music as contra dancing. And the Irish music fits into that context. And there's been a growing appreciation for Irish music. (Music)

With Irish music, you know, you're talking primarily about dance music, because that's the bulk of what you're hearing. The rhythmic nuances are critical. And when you're playing with different Irish musicians, that becomes a big focus, because you have to find each other rhythmically.

In general, it's all about attention to detail. And even though you could say that about anything, I think there is this quality to Irish music that is—draws one's attention to that detail, perhaps more, as sort of a particular value, getting a sense of really chosen notes. That way you're really choosing the notes, and you're creating shapes with those melody choices—open things up for you inside aesthetically.

The other thing is the draíocht (DREE-ocht), which is like the soul of the music—both a sort of crying out and a celebratory aspect. And certainly that's—what I look for in Irish music is not just somebody who plays technically well, but that there's—they're playing because they have to, because there's something that wants out. (Music)