The Homepage of Mostlywind

If you feel the need to link - feel free but please respect the fact that this is my own work - the result of many years teaching and performing and should you wish to use any of the material ~

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Latest News: Gosh - More and more work coming in and the launch of a new business - music typesetting, musical dictation, running musical courses with visiting tutors. Hard work, good humour, good food and good music - what more could you ask for? Still working on re-designing this site - but it is now a work in progress!! Also retraining as Beloved wants to come home permanently so one of us has to find a decent job!

My friends call me Kaz, and I am absolutely fanatical about woodwind instruments (and Winnie the Pooh!)

Well okay - I'll admit it - I am absolutely fanatical about everything to do with music full stop! I play all the Recorder family, Tin Whistle, Concert Flute, Baroque Flute, Piccolo, Clarinet, Oboe, Bassoon, Guitar (badly!!), Piano, all the classical percussion instruments, Saxophone and now I am learning the folk harp (Clarsach). I really think everyone should have a go at playing music. It is never too late to take up an instrument. The only necessary skill is that you want to have a go!

I started playing (many moons ago) on the Descant Recorder at far too sweet and tender an age to mention. I drove my folks so crazy, playing all the time, that they decided I should acquire my own shed to play in. J Eventually they relented and I was chosen at school to learn to play the flute.
(And the rest, as they say, is history!)

I studied Flute with John Wiggins (1st Flute BBCSSO) and Richard Chester (1st Flute RSNO) for four years (piano with Gustav Fenyo and Bela Simandi, Harmony and Composition with John Weeks) before pursuing a career mainly teaching and performing but also examining and adjudicating.

I play on a solid silver Miyazawa handmade Flute, Type II, with open holes, inline G and a B foot joint. My Clarinet is a Boosey & Hawkes B12, my Alto Sax is a Trevor James Horn and my Oboe is a Hawkes and Son (before Boosey came along!!!). Oh and my Baroque Flute is a Cahusac copy (A=440). I have a mixture of harps - 2 were made by Ardival Harps, Stathpeffer, 1 is a Camac (the electric one!) and I made a Bohemian Harp at a course on Lewis. But I still hanker after a Cafferky!

I have a kind of 'concert party' thing going with a very talented (arranged all the music for the Papal Mass at Bellahouston!!) friend called Isobel (Piano), her husband Angus (voice), my pal and talented singer Claire, her Hubby Glynn on cello and Colin - a guy I was at college with on violin. We are doing some concerts for Charity but if anyone wants to book us (I have a couple of CDs available......)

I sometimes play with a great guy called Andy. (He is an ex-marine musician and with his training having been quite different - this leads to very interesting rehearsals.) We play all sorts of music from Bach to Jazz. We call ourselves PIANOFLAUTE. Andy also has his own Jazz Band called Four-in-the-Bar. Sadly, because of Andy's band commitments and the fact I now live 110 miles away, we don't play together that often just now!

Once upon a time, I had a 'daytime' job as a part time woodwind teacher at a Local Boarding School. Only they started taking the mick and P/T to them meant a full academic timetable and sometimes I wasn't home till after 7pm - when I had been there working since 8.10am!!! No joke!! So I decided enough was enough! I miss all my students at Gordonstoun but sometimes you have to do what's best for you and put yourself first!

I do love teaching (mostly J) and I try to make the lessons as full of fun as possible. (After all music is supposed to be fun!) But I also try to encourage the students to practise (although they don't always listen!). The main criteria for having lessons with myself is that they at least try and enjoy themselves. I try to be a hard taskmaster and the minute they stop trying or do not enjoy playing anymore, they are encouraged to find something else to do with their time!

Moray Firth School - is a new independent school in the Highlands that has also employed me to teach music and some after school activities. They have a Theatre Club on a Saturday morning and the students all love performing as well as several students learning instruments from visiting tutors.

Some years ago, I have trained as an examiner with an international external exam board. This has been quite interesting and most informative. I haven't always agreed with the external exam formats of some exam boards but the only way to change things is to get in there and do it! I finished training more than ten years ago and they let me out on my own! Poor kids eh? J But it is an extremely interesting and worthwhile thing to do! Now that the exam board is accredited by the National Qualifications Agency, we are busier than ever!

While I was training to be an examiner some very 'weird' coincidental things happened. My friend introduced me to her Baroque Flute. Then I met a guy with a wooden flute who sang their praises continuously. Then just when I wasn't getting the message, I met Peter Harrison of 'Concert Royal Georgian English Music Group' - a Baroque Flute Specialist. Someone was obviously trying to tell me something so I bought a Cahusac copy (A440 - I know it should have been A395 or A415 to be really authentic! but I wanted to play with others around here too!) and have been enjoying it ever since.

Maybe one of these days I'll get Peter to give me a lesson and let him correct all my bad habits!J (And there are a lot of them!)

I also studied for an MA in Music Psychology at Sheffield University (2000-2002), and this definitely kept me out of mischief for quite a while! It is all truly fascinating stuff - if you are remotely interested in the whys, the hows and wherefores of all aspects of music, this is the course for you! They come from all over - there was a Norwegian, Australian and Canadian in my year - not to mention Greek and Portuguese.

I passed....... watch this space!! Trying to find somewhere to do a doctorate now! Too scared of failing to take it seriously though!!

I have also been adjudicating at The Official Royal National Mod and Provincial MODs (and Classical Music Festivals too) for the last few years. I have really enjoyed this. It is quite inspiring to see all the people taking part and to see their work and their obvious enjoyment of their singing and playing. It's almost a shame that someone has to win (and therefore someone has to lose!) because they all have great ability and potential. The Royal National MOD is a friendly competition and it isn't nicknamed 'The Whiskey Olympics' for nothing!! Like I said - it's a very friendly competition!!

An Comunn Gàidhealach help the local branches organise the Provincial MODs. I have become much more interested in my own culture and heritage since I first adjudicated at the Wester Ross National Provincial MOD a few years ago. (This is why I am learning Clarsach/folk harp) The Provincial MOD, apart from being a celebration of Gaelic Music, Words and Culture, can be a qualifier for The Official Royal National Mod, so it rates quite high in the competition stakes. They also have some non-qualifying classes though, which enables just about everybody to take part. I hope to expand my knowledge of Gaelic. (Which is very basic!J)

And Feisean nan Gaidheal - Gaelic Arts Tuition Festivals
organise lots of things for players of all standards if anyone is interested. There is also an organisation in Aberdeen called Scottish Culture and Tradition (SCaT) that run many interesting traditional classes.

My Life isn't all music though, and I have a wonderful Black Labrador bitch called Madubh (age 4) and 2 mad cats called Phoebe and Tigger,

I am married to a Master Mariner in the Merchant Navy and I have a lot of time just to myself for practice (Huh, what's practice? J) or at least to indulge my passions! when he is at work. His ship is nearly one of the biggest in the world. (as you can see!)

Need a Clarsach for your event? Weddings, Corporate Entertainment, Background music to eat by...... then

If you feel the need to link - feel free but please respect the fact that this is my own work - the result of many years teaching and performing and should you wish to use any of the material ~