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Downhill Breeze (A Tune for Fin​)​, feat. Steve Byrnes (music)

from an t​-​Each​-​Iarainn [The Iron Horse] by Hamish Napier

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about

There’s a very moving story behind this tune. A couple from Aberdeenshire got in touch to say that their son Fin was a big fan of my music. His parents explained that he was a child with disabilities, and so life was not at all easy for him. They said he had to lot to put up with - but he met it all with a smile. Like me he loved nature and the outdoors, and music. They wanted to let me know that every time they played him some of my music he seemed to react in a very positive way. His parents asked me if would I write him a tune. I got to work and wrote, arranged and recorded (with the help of ace guitarist and drummer Steve Byrnes) a slow march-like reel - along the same lines as The Whirlpool (a track which he espeically liked apparently). This was all during lockdown so we were only in touch remotely. Fin’s father had mentioned, “one of the things Fin loves to do is to pretend he's a bird when we're walking down the hill beside our house when the wind's blowing. I suppose it gives him a sense of freedom.“ I loved that and so called the tune ’Downhill Breeze’. When the commission was ready, I shared the mp3 with the family. The parents played it to Fin right away. He absolutely loved it and they sent me a video of his very animated and excited reaction - he was whooping along to it. He seemed to connect with it in a very strong way, and It clearly made him feel very happy.

I was very saddened indeed to hear about Fin’s passing a month later. The piece was played at the funeral and a few years later I performed the tune for Fin’s parents during a gig in Aberdeenshire Sometimes there are no words you can find, and only music will express what needs to be said. This tune is in memory of Fin.

credits

from an t​-​Each​-​Iarainn [The Iron Horse], released December 14, 2023
Hamish Napier - piano, whistle flutes and percussion
Patsy Reid - fiddle and strings
Steve Bynes - acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass guitar and MIDI drums.

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Hamish Napier Grantown On Spey, UK

Hamish is a multi-instrumentalist and composer from the Scottish Highlands.

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