Irish Music

Short History of Irish Music

Irish bagpipes (Uilleann pipes) are the oldest musical instrument (other than voice) in the Irish tradition, leading to piping ornamentation becoming an important part of the Irish music produced by all subsequent instrument. "The pipes are a peculiar musical instrument, because they emit a continuous tone; therefore, the piper must use ornamentation to make the melody stand out. This generates a rich and very specific system of ornaments: cuts, taps, rolls, cranns, etc. The piping ornaments were adapted to the other traditional instruments and more ornaments were added, and this ornamentation is a very important part of the Irish music sound."— Tricia Hutton

Plucked and bowed lyres and harps were common by the time Gerald of Wales (Girald Cambrensis) did his tour of Ireland in the 12th century. He found little to admire about the Irish natives other than their music. "The only thing to which I find that this people apply a commendable industry is playing upon musical instruments , in which they are incomparably more skilful than any other nation I have ever seen. For their modulation on these instruments, unlike that of the Britons to which I am accustomed, is not slow and harsh, but lively and rapid, while the harmony is both sweet and gay... They enter into a movement, and conclude it in so delicate a manner, and play the little notes so sportively under the blunter sounds of the base strings, enlivening with wanton levity, or communicating a deeper internal sensation of pleasure, so that the perfection of their art appears in the concealment of it."

Dance music figures largely in the folk music of Ireland. Before the advent of the baroque violin, (imported to Ireland in the late seventeenth century and being made in Ireland in the early eighteen century) the harp, pipes and flutes were the backbone instruments of Irish music. By the end of the eighteenth century, the fiddle was the instrument of choice for music for dancing, especially in North Ireland, influenced by the Scottish enthusiasm for fiddle music and reels.

"The baroque fiddle...may have been introduced from England in the second half of the seventeenth century, although the earliest evidence for such importation is not found until the early 1720s. Fiddles were being made in Dublin later in the same decade and used for the playing of Irish music... The great popularity of the fiddle in Scotland in the late eighteenth century, and a burst of reel composition associated with it, had a particular influence in the North of Ireland, and the fiddle has been especially strong there... It seems to have been the most popular instrument for the playing of Irish traditional music in the nineteenth century, and it possibly has been in the twentieth... Since the 1920s the fiddle has had a particular influence on the entire instrumental music tradition through the commercial recordings especially of three virtuoso fiddle players from Sligo: Michael Coleman, James Morrison, and Paddy Killoran, who made their local repertory and style nationally popular. " —Taisce cheol nUchais Eireann.

Ireland's adversarial relationship with England had its influence on Irish music. The well-known order from Queen Elizabeth to hang harpers wherever found and to destroy their instruments is probably apocryphal, but musicians were often suspected of spying and of rebellion with their music. What is not apocryphal is that laws were passed making it illegal for the Irish to speak their language, to own land or get an education. The lands and titles stripped from Irish aristocracy were bestowed on loyal subjects who, as absentee landlords, cut a dashing figure in London with the rents collected by land agents from increasingly impoverished Irish farmers. There was very little in the way of a local aristocracy or a middle class to support musicians; dancing masters, with a small fiddle in their pocket, traveled around Ireland hoping for a chance to earn a bit of money with dance lessons.

Lilting, or the art of chanting nonsense syllables in strict rhythm to a tune, evolved to provide dance music without musicians for many a house party in both Ireland and Scotland.

The Potato Famines of the mid-nineteenth century forced a million and a half Irish people to America, and with them came the love of their own music and a chance for the musicians among them to find work in the numerous traveling shows that brought the music to home-sick Irish Americans.

In the 1920s, the American recording industry exploded. Ethnic music markets provided ready-made customers anxious to buy, and the Irish market was huge. The recordings of Michael Coleman, an exemplary Sligo-style fiddler, became very influential. His recordings exerted a strong influence on fiddlers in America and in Ireland, and the local styles in Ireland, the result of centuries of rural isolation, began to change under the influence of American records.

Interest in traditional music waned after WWII on both sides of the Atlantic, but was revived in the 1960s with the general interest in folkloric traditions, and has continued to grow... sometimes in the direction of fusion with jazz, rock or other genres, and sometimes back to 'the roots.'

One reads about Regional Fiddle Styles. They still exist, although the original hundreds of styles have shrunk down to a handful, thanks to the availability of music media and transportation devices that eliminate isolation. In short, the closer to Scotland, the faster the song and the more aggressive the bowing. The southern-most counties are known for non-aggressive slides and polkas. My personal favorite is the Clare style, a bit south of the middle and bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, a style which makes no apology for being both a bit slower and evocative... although when I went into a record shop in Doolin and asked for some Clare style fiddle CDs, I was asked if I wanted West or East Clare and informed that Martin Hayes exemplified East Clare style - but then, everything is East of Doolin. I have also developed a taste for Sligo style, thanks to Kevin Burke, whose impeccable timing and Zen-Master approach to tune and ornaments won my heart decades ago. Sligo is described as fast and bouncy, but Kevin Burke has a way of savoring every note in a fast tune... as I said, a Zen Master of Irish fiddle.

Melodic Modes for the Irish Fiddler

The improvisational nature of Irish music is as important as the modal underpinnings. Improvisation is often accomplished with a simple grace note, a slurred bow instead of two short bows, or coming into the start of a phrase up bow instead of down. The essence of Irish music performance is to keep it honest and to keep it asymmetrical so that the pulse of the music rolls like a wheel. After you know the skeleton melody of a tune thoroughly enough to sing it, don't repeat a phrase using the same combination of ornaments and bowing twice in a row. Change it up a little.

"Once the structure of a tune is firmly in a fiddler's head, he can vary the ornamentation, substitute one phrase for another, or even create elaborate variations, all with the greatest of ease and possibly without even realizing. Unlike with classical music, where there is one right way and a million wrong ways to play a tune, a traditional melody in the hands of a skilled fiddler is a living, breathing thing that belongs as much to the performer as it does to the composer, if such a single person ever existed." —Chris Haigh

Ornaments are executed with the left hand on the fingerboard. Kevin Burke teaches that an ornament, although technically a series of notes, is not melodic; it is an interruption of the vibration of the string. Play the main note clearly. Play the ornament note(s) quickly and lightly, and do not worry about intonation. The interruption of the vibration, not a new vibration, is what you are aiming for.

Here is a short-and-sweet reference table. Like everything else in Irish fiddling, these are not hard and fast. For instance, some folks use a third finger instead of a second when ornamenting a note on the first finger. (Right - say that three times fast.)

Cuts

Do not delay the regular note for the grace note: The regular note is on the beat, the grace note precedes..

Double Cuts

Rolls

• A roll, AKA a long roll, has the duration of a dotted quarter note.
• A short role has the duration of one quarter note. Some squeeze the five notes of the long roll into a short role; others use four notes.

Slides

Double Stops

Triplets

Rhythmic Modes for the Irish Fiddler

Improvisation can be both melodic and rhythmic, and kinetic bowing is an important part of improvisation. It can be as simple as starting one phrase down bow and the next up bow. Accenting into the end of a bow stroke will give an off-beat, driving pulse. This accent pattern can also be used for slurs connecting two notes, especially when the second note is on the first beat of a measure.

"Basic Bowing: The idea is to slur into the beat. The most basic form consists of two notes per bow with the beat falling on the second note. De-DOM where DOM is the beat. This gives a much subtler emphasis than using a new bow for each beat. You have to compensate for the resulting lack of emphasis by using increased bow speed/pressure to emphasize the beat. Using increased bow speed/pressure in the middle of the bow gives a De-DOM sound, or a WAAAH in the middle of the bow." — Joe Carr

Hornpipes

"We have seen earlier that the note-values, as written, should not be considered exact, but rather as an indication of the melody line. In that respect, the horpipe is no different. Even though a dotted rhythm is shown, the note values, as played, lie somewhere between this and even quavers; the rhythm is dotted, but not to the extend indicated by the notation." —Matt Cranich

• McDermott's Hornpipe, Michael Coleman.
• Rights of Man, a teaching video by Katie Henderson.

Jigs

The time signatures and the triplets on printed music will be confusing to classical musicians. 6/8, 9/8 and 12/8 are actually felt as 2 pulses, 3 pulses and 4 pulses per measure, with an emphasis and a SLIGHT lengthening on the first note of each pulse. Those triplet-looking notations, and variations thereof, comprise one pulse. Newcomers to the world of playing jigs may start out by counting 1-2-3-4-5-6, but the more experienced players will be playing internally to 1-2, 1-2, which aids in getting the pulse right.

Jigs are dance music, but that does not mean that you should start each measure with a strong downbow. Add a bit of subtlety by occasionally slurring from the end of a measure (the 3rd note in the last pulse) to the beginning of the next measure (1st note in the next measure). You can also do this as a transition from one pulse to another; first measure to second, second to third (slip jig); third to fourth measure (slide). Make the slur stronger as you slur into the second note in the slur. This will maintain the emphasis on the most important beat while adding a bit of kenetic energy with the slurring. Observe the video below. Bowing is an important part of the Irish improvisational tradition; Mr Hayes switches up his bowing as he moves from one intensity to another.

• Breanndan O Beaghlaoic, Tommy Peoples, Laoise Kelly on RTRadio 1, John Murray Show. A wonderful example of the ceili band style.

Double Jigs

• Michael Coleman, Monaghan Jig, YouTube. A recording of the Sligo-style fiddler who was a recording star in the early 20th century.
• Martin Hayes & Dennis Cahill, Sean Ryan's Jig. Youtube. Martin Hayes is a contemporary Clare fiddle player like no other. One of his trademarks is his ability to take a fast jig and slow it down so that every note and ornament resonates. Dennis Cahill's skill as an accompanist also shines here.

Single Jigs

Slides

Slip Jigs

Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill, The Night Poor Larry was Stretched, Slip jig starting at 1:12.

Polkas

Kevin Burke's suggested bowing for the opening measure of Cuz Teahan's Polka had us start up bow and then crescendo from the start to the end of the slurs. Gave it a lot of swing!

Reels

The defacto bowing for a fast dance reel is downbow on the first beat. However, Kevin Burke has a very effective alternate bowing pattern that he uses, one which maintains some emphasis on the first beat of the measure but which provides a kinetic kick. If you break the measure down into eight eighth notes (which accomodates the dotted quarter notes frequently found in reels), your bowing goes: Upbow on the first three eighths, downbow on the next three eighths, and then one bow for each remaining eighth.

• Kevin Burke, Boys of Bluehill tutorial.
• Michael Coleman, The Morning Dew, YouTube.
• Martin Hayes, Clonagroe Reel and West Clare Reel.

Waltzes

Lilting

• Comhaltas Live music programs that include lilting.
• Rhiannon Gibbons starts out slow and traditional and ends up... well... rock and roll?
• Joe Harris, All-Ireland Lilting champion, 1975.
• Dolores Keane and John Faulkner, Dance to your Shadow. The syllables and the harmony make it into a compelling performance.
• Rafferty Brothers, mighty lads both, lilt on an RTE TV show, 1982.
• Seamus Brogram lilts Mason Apron, 2007.

Sean-Nós Songs

This list of the features of Sean Nós are from the Leaving Cert Music website.

• Ornamentation. Sean nós singers use ornamentation to to express emotion. Ornamentation is usually improvised, therefore a song would never be performed the same way twice. Ornamentation can be melodic or rhythmic.
• Free rhythm/metre.
• Solo singing (unaccompanied).
• Variation. The tune and rhythm of songs are varied from verse to verse and from performance to performance.
• Personal styles. Singers often develop their own style of performance.
• Regional Styles. In the past, singers would learn to sing by listeneing to other singers in their region. This gave rise to regional styles of singing much the same as accents in language. The regions are; Connemara, (highly ornamental) West Cork/Kerrry, (nasalisation and glottal stop) West Waterford, and Donegal (simpler more melodic style).
• No Dynamics.
• Little or no vibrato.

Airs

Airs are often written out as 3/4 time, but they are not really waltzes; if the beat is consistent, it is often soft and the beats are not compatible with waltzing.

• Tommy Walsh and Turlough perform Inisheer, Mr Walsh's extremely popular air as performed by himself and his band Turlough. This recording features lyrics at the end.
• Inis Oirr lyrics on SOngsInIrish.com.