Sir James Galway Just Wants To Be A Good Flute PlayerWorld renowned classical flutist gets his mojo working with some Cuban rhythm ![]() Sir James has a collection of over 100 flutes,some of which are solid gold By Shelley Gummeson Sir James Galway is a man with a long list of notable accomplishments. He has recorded over 60 albums, sold over 30 million, has received the Order Of the British Empire, been knighted by Queen Elizabeth, was given the President’s Merit Award from the Recording Academy at the Grammy ’s 8th Annual Salute to Classical Music, and had a rose named in his honor. These are only some of the accolades heaped upon him during a long and distinguished career which shows no sign of slowing down. In fact it is heating up on his latest release O’Reilly Street. Galway, the world’s greatest interpreter of classical flute has collaborated with Grammy nominated Tiempo Libre, Miami’s hottest Cuban timba band, to bring to life this unique version of Claude Bolling’s Jazz Suites. O’Reilly Street is an exciting and progressive accomplishment: Latinizing the “Bolling Suite’s,” which were composed for flute and jazz piano trio and first recorded by flutist Jean-Pierre Rempal in the 70’s. Says Galway of the recording, “You know when the “Claude Bolling Suite” came out with Rempal, I had the impression it was a fairly good record, but I felt it was a bit dated already. I had made crossover records before,but with an orchestra. I decided I still wasn’t going to use a piano trio, I was going to use a band. Why not get the hottest Latin band around, Tiempo Libre.”
Sir James, doesn’t just travel in classical circles. He played on the Academy Award winning soundtrack for “The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King.” He has shared the stage with many notable musical luminaries, like Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Elton John, and the iconic band Pink Floyd. When asked what it was like to play with Pink Floyd at the Berlin Wall, he shares the story. “It was amazing. I had been there a couple of months before and I saw the concert advertised. I thought Oh I’d come back here and bring my kids and my godson to the concert. When I got home, there was an invitation on my phone message machine, inviting me to play at the Wall in Berlin with Pink Floyd. The kids loved it.” Was it shocking for Galway to play with a rock band? “Oh sure, are you kidding me” he says, “That’s one of the biggest rock bands in the world. Anyone who doesn’t get excited about that needs to get their hormones examined.” There are so many things that Sir James Galway has achieved, and there are so many ways that he has given back to the musical community. What does he want to be remembered for? “I would be happy if they just remember me as being a good flute player. That’ll do me.” |