Celtic music of Ireland and Scotland

 History: Celtic music has been around since the 1600s, traditionally used for weddings, funerals, and other rituals. The music developed with oral tradition in the Northern regions of Ireland and is continued today. The music likely originates from Celts coming to Ireland around 2000 years ago. The Celts are a cultural group from Europe prior to the Roman conquest. During the Irish potato famine and the Scottish Highland Clearance many Celtic descendants moved to North America, specifically Nova Scotia, New York, Boston, and Chicago. They brought their music and traditions with them and served as a connection to their homeland.

Instruments: 

• The Fiddle is a major player in Celtic music. A fiddle is essentially a violin, but played differently and often made with steel strings as opposed to the nylon of the violin.

• The Celtic Harp is a regional harp, believed to have originated from Egypt. It is strung with 34 gut strings and used for not only music, but as an addition to storytelling.

• The Tin Whistle is a metal aerophone, often small enough to be transported anywhere. One interesting thing I read is that oftentimes at Irish parties when the Tin Whistle is pulled out, everybody gets excited like when somebody at a bonfire here pulls out a guitar.

• The bagpipes are arguably the cornerstone of Celtic music. Hailing from Scotland, the bagpipes are an aerophone played while the user is standing.

• The Celts prefer the wooden flute.

• The Melodeon is a type of Irish accordion, the difference is that it has buttons instead of piano keys.

• The Bodhran is a type of round Celtic drum made with goat skin and held in one hand while being played with the other hand or a beater.

• The Concertina is a small and hexagonal accordion. It is very simple to learn and often taught to children.

• Bones are a traditional Celtic instrument played as two pieces of wood held together and slapped between the hand and leg.

Elements: Celtic music is often played in ensembles, but harmony is rare. They like to play the melody in unison. Many Celtic songs will be played with little rest for the aerophone players, meaning circular breathing techniques and strong lungs are necessary. Repetitiveness is common for the melody, but other parts of the music are often improvised. Pentatonic scales (or scales of 5 notes) are common instead of the usual seven to make this improvisation easier, very similar to the blues. The use of microtonal bends makes a twang in Celtic music as well. As far as language goes, the music can be in both English and Gaelic, but Gaelic is not as commonly spoken anymore.

Examples:

Here you can see an ensemble of Celtic instruments playing some traditional Irish tunes. The instruments here are a harp, fiddle, flute, Bodhran, and a guitar. 

This is a traditional Irish love song called Eleanor Na Run. It is sung in Gaelic and tells the story of a man in love with a beautiful Irish woman.

this is a modern Irish step dance group, an example of how Celtic music and culture still influences modern northern Ireland. 

Here is a great example of modern Celtic music. Made by The Celtic Woman, Tír na nÓg is part English part Gaelic and has elements of Celtic music just modernized. The name of the song is reference to an Irish legend of the Tír na nÓg which is a paradise land inhabited by the warriors of the ancient Irish gods. The paradise is said to have an abundance of youthfulness, beauty, and joy. The song is about this land of beauty and the traditional Irish legend. 

The Irish rock band U2 released their song Tomorrow and a very noticeable cultural influence is the bagpipes in the beginning and throughout the song.

Works Cited:

Croft, T. C. (2021, February 23). What makes Celtic music unique? Kilts. Retrieved December 2, 2022, from https://www.kilts-n-stuff.com/what-makes-celtic-music-unique/

Farrant, D. (2022, August 8). 13 Celtic Musical Instruments you should know. Hello Music Theory: Learn Music Theory Online. Retrieved December 2, 2022, from https://hellomusictheory.com/learn/celtic-instruments/

The history and origins of traditional Irish music. IrishCentral.com. (2022, August 1). Retrieved December 2, 2022, from https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/irish-traditional-music-history

Home. History of Celtic Music. (n.d.). Retrieved December 2, 2022, from https://www.celtic-weddingrings.com/celtic-resources/history-of-celtic-music

Rachelle. (2019, June 3). 17 fascinating facts about Irish music. Soundscaping Source. Retrieved December 2, 2022, from https://soundscapingsource.com/17-fascinating-facts-about-irish-music/

Take online courses. earn college credit. Research Schools, Degrees & Careers. Study.com | Take Online Courses. Earn College Credit. Research Schools, Degrees & Careers. (n.d.). Retrieved December 2, 2022, from https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-celtic-music-types-history.html