Sir, – Over the past month, we have had a male blackbird performing in our garden for an hour each evening before dusk. The thrilling performance consists of repeated bursts of the signature blackbird’s tune, played note-perfect each time (as a classical flautist would), interposed with some trad (snatches of jigs and reels mainly) that seem to vary from evening to evening depending on the ambient mood.
It’s like having James Galway and Matt Molloy in the back garden. – Yours, etc,
CHRIS FITZPATRICK,
Dublin 6.