Private Lessons
Wooden Flute
Dadgad Guitar
Tin Whistle
Specializing in the simple-system wooden flute, tin whistle and DADGAD guitar, Rennie has been delving deep into the worlds of Irish and Scottish traditional music for over 15 years. He has learned in the traditional way by ear through playing in sessions as well as through the guidance of top New Zealand flute players Pat Higgens and Brendan Mongomery. At the age of 19 he went to live on the east coast of Canada to study with wooden flute virtuoso Chris Norman. He has traveled through Ireland on numerous occasions and learned from many top players both from Ireland, Scotland and the east coast of Canada, including, Alasdair Frazer, Conal O’Grada, Catherine MacEvoy, and David Greenberg. He has taught flute, tin whistle or guitar at various festival workshops both in New Zealand and abroad, such as Boxwood, Ceol Aneas, CelticANZ and Auckland Folk Festival as well as teaching many private students.
Wooden Flute
My Primary instrument.
Specializing in Traditional Irish and Scottish styles.
I can help with:
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Traditional Ornamentation, phrasing and rhythm
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Tone
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Learning by ear
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Improvisation
Other flute techniques including: playing in other keys, contemporary ornamentation/techniques and playing in other styles.
Dadgad Guitar
Specialized in backing Irish and Scottish traditional tunes and songs.
Skills on the DADGAD tuned guitar include:
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An introduction to DADGAD
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Chord shapes
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Rhythms
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Picking
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Fingerstyle
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Learning to back tunes on the fly
Tin Whistle
Playing traditional Irish and Scottish tunes.
While the whistle shares many characteristics with the wooden flute. It calls for its own distinct approach.