About Hugh Wallington

[⚖Hugh Wallington]

My first encounter with music was listening to Charlie Kunz on the radio playing the piano, and it’s his style of playing that inspired me to play the piano.  In my teens we were living in Nairobi, Kenya and I played piano in the school "Dance Band" ... guitar, trumpet, trombone, saxophone, double bass, piano and drums.  We were contracted to play for a number of functions in Nairobi, and spent our summer holidays playing at the ‘Blue Marlin Hotel’ in Malindi, on the coast.  We all played by "ear" and followed the chords decided by the guitarist.  Hence I have never found it necessary to read a music score.
 
Whilst in Malindi I had an encounter with a Hammond Everett Chord Organ.  It had "piano accordion buttons" on the left, a "wrist bar" to "vamp" the chords, and a single foot pedal which played bass and counterbass alternately to whatever chord was being played.  I thought it was the bees knees!
 
Years later I bought my first organ, a Farfisa Balmoral, and later replaced that with the Yamaha AR80.  This was the perfect replacement for the "Band" members.  I now had a band that was always available and did what they were told!  To this organ I added a Yamaha Keyboard, a Casio keyboard and a Leslie Speaker cabinet.
 
I spent some years in Scotland as a young man.  Went to St. Andrew's University (the engineering section was based in Dundee at that time) and joined a Scottish Country Dance Band (as pianist).  The band leader was called Andy Hay (the band inevitably was called Andy Hay and the Haymakers) and he played piano accordion ... completely by "ear" as he didn't read a note of music.  Not only that, he didn't know any of the chords either ... just hunted around his bass section until he found the sound he wanted.  So when I joined I had to record all the songs to tape so I could analyse them and put the chords in for me to accompany him.  He was brilliant.  Used to have the accordion amplified, and would play sitting down, stamping his heel on the ground to the music.  This had a remarkable reaction on the bellows of the accordion and gave the music a sort of "lift".  We had heard Jimmy Shand playing in Edinburgh .. standing in front of a mike, with every note technically perfect, but the music was not as dynamic as ours!  We also used to play the "Rock and Roll" of the day and were really carried away in our music.
 
I now own a Tyros 4 and play using Styles, and create Multi Pads to play those little counter melodies those band members would have played.
 
Hugh