Section 2 of the book, which includes chapters 3 through 6 focus on the instruments: their history, how to hold them and how to breathe. Larsen has collected many vintage photographs that show old instruments and the book also includes numerous drawings that clarify some of the details.

Section 3 is the longest and is dedicated to ornamentation, a major element of Irish music critical to the flute player’s unique expression. These embellishments descend from the Irish bagpipes. Since a bellows powered these pipes, the only way to initiate a repeated note was with a special finger articulation. This led Irish pipers to evolve an elaborate vocabulary of fingered embellishments. This language was inherited by the Irish flute and whistle, and never before Larsen has anyone so thoroughly explained on paper the complete range of these ornaments and how to play them. Section 4 centers on articulation, phrasing and the use of breath.

The sections at the end of The Essential Guide to Irish Flute and Tin Whistle include complete versions of several traditional Irish tunes: jigs, reels and hornpipes;  27 transcriptions from some of the most important “The flute is really magical,” Larsen exclaims. “Your breath is producing the sound. Not wood. Not a metal string. You can’t see what is making the sound. It is very ethereal. It’s such a direct route into your soul.”

Grey Larsen discovered Irish music in the early 1970's and then embarked on a passionate and devoted journey that continues to this day. In the ensuing decades he has become one of America's most highly regarded flute players. His accomplishments in the field and compositions in the tradition are equally respected by musicians in Ireland, America, and across the globe.