Talk:Feargus Hetherington

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[Untitled][edit]

I have gone as far as I can at present with this. How can I proceed, i.e. how can I have it uploaded. I would also like to add an image. Thank you. Balquhidder2013 (talk) 16:59, 14 December 2015 (UTC)[reply]

A large number of the references don't mention him at all, let alone cover him in depth as required. He doesn't appear to pass WP:GNG Theroadislong (talk) 17:07, 14 December 2015 (UTC)[reply]

I can see you are working on this BUT the vast majority of the references simply do NOT verify the content whatsoever, they are merely external links with no mention of Hertherington. Theroadislong (talk) 20:38, 6 January 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Notability?[edit]

I know many editors have been working hard on this article, myself included, but I have to say that I'm not remotely convinced that Hetherington passes the Wikipedia:Notability (music) threshold? What exactly makes him notable enough for an article I wonder?Theroadislong (talk) 19:58, 13 January 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I think we should also consider Wikipedia:Notability (academics), given his roles at the University. (Not giving an opinion about the notability question yet; need to look into it a bit.)--Gronk Oz (talk) 02:01, 14 January 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Unsure - sorry to be so indecisive, but I am not at all familiar with the classical music world and he seems to be on the borderline of several WP:NMUSIC criteria:
- "Has received non-trivial coverage in independent reliable sources of an international concert tour, or a national concert tour in at least one sovereign country."
- "Is an ensemble that contains two or more independently notable musicians, or is a musician who has been a reasonably prominent member of two or more independently notable ensembles."
- "Has become one of the most prominent representatives of a notable style or the most prominent of the local scene of a city."
- "Has been a featured subject of a substantial broadcast segment across a national radio or TV network."

His academic status is clearer - I cannot see any part of WP:NACADEMICS that he satisfies at the moment.

I found a bit more coverage, none of which is especially compelling by itself, but it may help to inform the discussion:

http://feargushetherington.com/biography - he was a recipient of the John Ireland Prize.
https://www.polaroidblipfoto.com/entry/4896597 - he "was the recipient of awards including the John Ireland Duo Prize, with pianist Gavin Brady".

I could not verify these mentions of the prize(s), because the web site of the John Ireland Foundation (http://www.johnirelandtrust.org/) says that they conduct the contest, but does not have a list of past winners.

The above reference says that he was featured in the Strad magazine (July 2014) discussing his instruments. But I cannot find a mention at http://www.thestrad.com/cpt-latests/the-strad-july-2014-issue-is-out-now/.
Interviewed at http://www.tokafi.com/15questions/15-questions-to-feargus-hetherington/
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-11264881 - BBC News article about an upcoming tour where he will play "The Sherlock" violin (made from a tree from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's garden). The article is mostly about the violin and the tour, rather then him.
http://www.whfp.com/2015/05/12/madame-butterfly-in-kyleakin-hall/ - West Highland Free Press article about upcoming opera season, which says "solo violin ... is played by Feargus Hetherington. He is enjoying a fantastic and varied career as a solo recitalist, orchestral and chamber musician, most recently appearing on BBC Radio Scotland’s Classics Unwrapped."

I find it hard to be objective about this one, coupled with my ignorance on the topic - I think my only option is to abstain (at least for now).--Gronk Oz (talk) 14:44, 14 January 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Comments from Balquhidder. Thanks for help from everyone. The criteria below would not be met by many freelance musicians not making fame as group members. They apply perhaps to pop musicians or folk musicians. The situation with classical musicians is completely different. And yet there are numerous classical musicians with hardly any credentials and no verification on wikipedia.

I've tried to indicate that he is in demand in many roles and in many places, for solo, duo, chamber, soloist with orchestra (very rare for a classical musician) to 'being the orchestra' along with a pianist for chamber opera. How do I put across that he has many times had a standing ovation having played the 'humming chorus (with piano) for Opera Bohemia (which obviously as a chamber orchestra can't include a full blown chorus). I didn't mention prizes as a student (even the John Ireland Prize) because there's now no record of them but when he performs a John Ireland piece the society usually advertises the fact (recently in Germany for example). Nor did I mention that he and two others won the BBC Young Jazz Musician of the Year Prize as teenagers as I could not find online verification of it. There are hundreds of freelance violinists in Scotland but by and large they do not play except in orchestras and teach in schools.

This criteria he definitely does meet '"Has become one of the most prominent representatives of a notable style or the most prominent of the local scene of a city." but local could be Scotland. The style 'classical'.

He has also featured on radio but how can I find the evidence?

The Strad interview can be tracked down. He featured alongside one of the world's most famous violinists as far as I remember - I would need to find a hard copy of the edition in question. It appeared online at the time but I couldn't find it either. Can scanned evidence not be used?

I missed http://www.tokafi.com/15questions/15-questions-to-feargus-hetherington/ I'll read it and see if it fits in anywhere. Thanks. I'll check out some of the other links as well. I know he has appeared on Classics Unwrapped a number of times but only one is still live as far as I know (and this is already a link).

Sadly other important events are no longer online, the 'Total Immersion Courses' in Vermont as Joseph Swensen had to move to Indiana. He is hoping to resume shortly. The website in the meantime http://habitat4music.org/ focusses on other work being conducted at the Vermont house. Hetherington's involvement will possibly be evident again at a later stage.

There are probably other mentions and reviews of the Sherlock violin. It received huge publicity but I'm not sure if it leads anywhere. I know he thought it all too gimiky but it received huge coverage. Such is fame?

Newspaper archives would probably do the trick - but where does one start?

Thanks all. Please continue to help. I've put too much work into this to give up not. Balquhidder2013 (talk) 16:45, 14 January 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Improving education section[edit]

It's been suggested that I improve the education section. In what way? By giving dates and more details of institutions etc?Balquhidder2013 (talk) 09:54, 15 January 2016 (UTC) I probably won't be able to get hold of hard copies of evidence of any kind until the middle of next week. Please advise Balquhidder2013 (talk) 09:54, 15 January 2016 (UTC)[reply]

So how do know all of this if you don't have sources? Wikipedia is ONLY concerned with what the reliable sources say about a subject, NOT what you know about them! Theroadislong (talk) 11:01, 15 January 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Agree - sources would be the best improvement. The material in that section was all a straight copy-paste from what was in the lede before. If there is material there which can't be sourced at the moment, we have a couple of options: either tag it with {{citation needed}} or else make it a comment so it doesn't show for the readers. As a broader comment (for your next article), it is usually best to gather your sources first and build the article based on what they say, instead of the reverse situation here where the article was written first and now you're searching for sources to support it.--Gronk Oz (talk) 16:41, 15 January 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Prizes[edit]

This new section is mostly unreferenced how do you know the information? Please add references ASAP. Theroadislong (talk) 15:32, 22 March 2016 (UTC)[reply]