ThePipingSparrow

Another clip out of the sketchbook. I love arpeggiators, and the effects they make. This piece, along with the vocal-like track I overlaid kind of makes me think of flowing water. Enjoy, and if you would like such videos, but longer, please advise in the comments.

I spent most of my childhood years in Exeter, prior to being emigrated to Canada. I remember many parts being very beautiful, but there were still areas where the damage from the war were evident. Parts were kind of rundown, and other parts plain spooky. Ewan MacColl wrote this song as a kind love song to Manchester in the late 1940s. So many people have covered it, most notably the Pogues. It is my little, affectionate memory of the city where I spent ten formative years. Some of the photos are my own, and some came from public groups. I do not own all of them, nor, obviously do I own the song. My cat decided to photobomb the video shoot, so I gave him a cameo. The accordion you hear is not the one illustrated. It is actually a late 1950s Hohner arietta.

Fun with colour filters. It's amazing how much you can do with a phone camera and some Quality Street wrappers. Music is an old sketch of mine. I was having fun with VST instruments at the time.

Just a little fun playing around with effects. I was in these woods, and was entranced by their beauty. My first attempt had a kind of horror movie effect, which wasn't what I wanted. I wanted to convey serenity and beauty: not fear. I found this old musical sketch in my 'sketchbook' from back in 2014, and I think it fit. Enjoy.

Here's an old traditional tune. I made the backing accompaniment, and added the violin on top. Hopefully I will be able to afford a better microphone one of these days :-) It will make the violin sound much better. It is real snow that you see falling, I had to play, and get the cameras back indoors quickly. It was a lot of fun making it. Enjoy

Sometimes spelled Siubhan Ni Dhuibhir (Susan O'Dwyer), this is a beautiful old folk tune. Excuse my Gaelic pronunciation, I worked hard at it, but I am, regrettably unable to speak the beautiful language. There are translations online, but it's basically about a Byronesque young man singing of how he met this beautiful girl, spent the money he should have spent on new boots drinking with her, and then laments his ill health. Speaking of boots, there was record breaking cold at the time of filming. My hands were frozen, and the boots were not stylish, but warm, and safe for going over snow covered ice. At a certain age, this gains importance. Enjoy.

I have loved this traditional tune since first hearing it played by the Irish band 'Horslips" about 40 years ago (if you haven't heard them, check them out. They are absolutely awesome). Enjoy

Here is a beautiful old Celtic tune. I am unsure of the original composer. It fit well on the cold, snowy night when I filmed this. The stove was happily going in the studio (as you can see) and the long winter night was brightened by some music. Enjoy.