Hannah Harris

Hi Reader! For years, I've had this dream where I have my own studio that I can just practice in for several hours a day. I imagine a circular room that's upstairs, light, airy and has an amazing view of somewhere in nature. Do you picture your creative practice sessions in a similar spot? My current apartment doesn't quite fit the bill -- it's square, and hard to keep cool. But it also has amazing natural light, is upstairs, looks out mostly on grass instead of concrete, and is a space of my...

Hi Reader! This topic has been front of mind for me this week as my duo, Shannon Lee, had three different gigs over the past seven days. What makes a good performance? And then also... what makes a great one? I love both being on stage and also getting to observe other groups and their stage dynamic from the audience! Here are some people and groups that have stood out over the years to me: The Friel Sisters: The sisters themselves of course are related, but their whole band is a tight-knit...

Hi Reader! Maybe it's because I work in customer support outside of Irish fiddling, so my brain naturally tends toward troubleshooting a situation... But one thing that makes me internally sigh a little bit is when a teacher is asked a question about something they know how to do, but rather than give a direct answer, they redirect you somewhere else to find the solution. It strikes me as a missed opportunity to share your unique takeaway. Yes, we all learn from somewhere and have our musical...

Hi Reader! Isn't it funny that my favorite thing about my primarily online Irish fiddle business is getting to teach live in-person events? I'm back from my third year of teaching at Summer Wheat Traditional music camp in the heart of Michigan, and each year I get to work with such a fun group of students -- some returning, and some new. It's a small group where the most I had in a class was 6 students, meaning that there was time to get everyone's questions answered and also collect...

Hi Reader! Isn't it funny how one tiny exercise can totally transform your approach to Irish traditional music? This happened to me the first year I attended the Swannanoa Gathering in the mountains of North Carolina (11 years ago now...scary)! I was in a fiddle technique class with Andrew Finn Magill, and he gave us a bunch of handy little exercises to help make more sense of some common bow patterns and ornaments. He had a great way of tying in exercises I had come across in the classical...

Hi Reader! This letter today is especially for you if you're in a season where you're feeling frustrated with your progress on the fiddle (or if you've been there in past and need some solidarity). Maybe you've taken the lessons, attended the group classes, watched the YouTube videos, read the books, played your fiddle pretty consistently... And you're still not where you want to be. We all hit seasons where we're feeling on top of the world with practicing and implementing new ideas, and...

Hi Reader! If you were looking for one of those sweet, wow moment stories on the internet today, I may have you covered. I wasn't expecting to burst into (happy) tears at the end of a Tune Supply workshop last week, but one second we're all saying good-bye and the next I'm pacing around my apartment with my eyes streaming saying "ohhhhh my god!" But I'm getting ahead of myself. Last Sunday, I attended a workshop put on by Tune Supply that was a conversation between Marta Cook and Maida...