Introduction

The term "Celtic music" is rather vague: it can reasonably be connected to the traditional music of the countries which speak Celtic languages: Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany (in France) and Galitia (in Spain), but also to the music of those geographic regions that have been influenced by Celtic culture, such as the United States and some regions of Canada. The term comprises also the most recent musical forms based on the typical characteristics of the Celtic tradition.

The same term "Celtic music" is often the subject of controversy: the Celts, as a separate population, obviously have vanished over the centuries, and the only important connections remain between the musical traditions of Ireland and Scotland. The Breton musicians often play (also) Irish and/or Scottish music. It is in the USA and Canada that the musical traditions often are interlaced between them, and for this reason in those regions the term "Celtic music" is used more properly. It has to be remembered too that the term "Irish traditional music" includes various musical styles, some of which are very near to Scottish music... Finally, musical groups of a particular Celtic region often play music typical of another region. Although the term is rather vague, speaking about Celtic music at least shrinks the term to some precise geographic areas (unless we want to put it inside the melting pot of "folk music", or of "world music").

What are the origins of Celtic music? Listening to Arabic and Middle Eastern music one finds many common characteristics similar to the traditional music of Scotland and Ireland. In both cases there is a strong emphasis on the melody and the rhythm, indeed it can be asserted that between the peculiar characteristics of these musical forms the melodic-rhythmic complexity has the main role. Instead we will find very seldom important elements of "western" music, such as harmony and counterpoint.

Let's try to analyze this concept better. When we try to sing a song from the hit parade, we can easily notice that in the absence of an appropriate accompaniment, the result is very dull. In contrast, in Celtic music (as in all traditional music), the notes go with a continuous, melodic flow, without the harmony or the chords, typical elements of classic or pop music: in technical terms, melodic music, rather than harmonic (1).

Since its origins, Celtic music is therefore a solo musical form: if you listen to a traditional Irish band, formed by fiddle, flute and accordion, you will hear the sound of three solo parts executed simultaneously. The result will be more or less interesting according to the various shadings of execution between the single instruments, the personality of the single musicians, obviously their musical ability, their style of execution, the listening influences of other recorded versions and so on. Sometimes it may happen that a musician plays one octave below the others, but for more when two or more musicians play Irish (or Scottish) traditional music, they play the melody all together in the same way(2).

 

The musical forms of Celtic music

In order to begin to play Celtic music it is fundamental to understand its musical structure. In pop music, every song is subdivided in sections defined as Verse, Chorus and Bridge. Nearly all pop music is structured in this way: a typical song could be formed therefore: Verse, Verse, Chorus, Bridge, Verse. In Celtic music the parts, or sections, are described simply from alphabet letters: Part A, Part B etc. Therefore an Irish or Scottish music tune could have the structure A A B B (typical of Jigs and Reels), or A B A B. Sometimes sections C, D or E can exist. It may happen that the Parts are very different (as often are verse and chorus), but it may also happen that the differences between the Parts are small, and sometimes the sections are simple variations on a same melody. Music becomes easier to understand if you can assign these letters (A, B..) when you hear variations listening to the tune. Bluegrass music, too, is structured in the same way (only when Bluegrass comes from Traditional Celtic sources such as reels, jigs or hornpipes, not obviously if it is vocal music).

Another typical characteristic of Celtic music is the collecting of several single tunes into a "set". In Irish music, a set is made of two (or more) tunes joined together, and played as if they were one whole composition. The reason for this resides in the dance tradition. A large part of Celtic music is dance music, and the single tunes are very short. Therefore, the only way to let the dancers keep on dancing is to continue playing! Since the tunes are very short, a set of three pieces rarely exceeds 4 or 5 minutes. The choice of the tunes to arrange in set is based on the contrast between them and sometimes on the tempo of the single tunes. One of the main areas of creativity consists in succeeding to join together single tunes into complimentary sets.

Types of musical tunes

Many types of musical tunes exist, mainly of Irish and Scottish origin. It may be useful to learn their names and characteristics. The differences between them are based on the rhythmic accents, the tempo and the structure. The only way to learn to recognize these structures is listening to them, on disc or live, in concerts, in pubs, on stage...
A short description is however possible:

A) Dance music forms

Jig: It's the form with the faster tempo, and it's also the type of music more easily recognizable like "Irish music". It is in 6/8 time.
Slip-Jig: characterized by a fast tempo. It is in 9/8 time.
Reel: Very fast too, it is in 4/4. It has a greater sense of " fluidity " than the jig. The difference is mainly in the rhythmic accentuation.
Hornpipe: It can be in 6/8, 12/8 or in 4/4, but with a different rhythmic emphasis than jigs and reels.
Slide: Very near to the jig.
Set: It is more "majestic", and in some way resembles classic music.
Polka: this form of dance music is part of the tradition of the Ceili. The Ceili is an "all night long" dancing event.

B) Melodic music forms

Air: slow musical form, very melodic; it is the only one where you can find some harmonization.
Lament: Melodic like an air, but with an intrinsic element of sadness, melancholy.
Peobracht: It's a Scottish, slow, long majestic solo melodic form for pipes.


C) Other forms

March: It emphasizes a lot (obviously...) the military aspect. It makes wide use of percussion. It's in 2/4.
Compositions by O' Carolan: The music of the blind Irish harpist Turlough O' Carolan (1670-1738) has a particular importance in Irish music: in terms of musical structure its compositions are similar to the other forms, but also strong influences from the classic compositions of Italian music of the 17th Century Rinascimento (Gemignani, Corelli) are present.
Planxty: It is a tune dedicated to someone, like a nobleman (in the past), or a friend (more recently). It is not a particular type of music: the Planxty name can be given to jigs, reels or airs. Probably in origin the word "Planxty" didn't indicate necessarily a dedication. It is a wholly made up word by Carolan, and only appeared on a handful of his compositions. Although it has come to mean a dedication, that is probably not what Carolan intended.

Which is the best way to appreciate Celtic music? It's up to you whether you want to study its history and technical characteristics, to listen to recordings (by now is enough easy in Italy too), and if you can, to go to capture it live in its natural atmosphere: pubs and concert halls of Ireland and Scotland (3).

In conclusion, there isn't a single way to play Celtic music, and like every music worthy of this name, it must be played with respect and understanding of its history and (historical, social...) background. Regarding the fact that more and more frequently Celtic music is played by musicians of "not Celtic" origin (German, French,... Sicilians!) I think that a modern artist, technically prepared and sufficiently open-minded (especially in this "World Village" era) can play whichever type of music he/she likes, even if he/she isn't linked geographically to the culture from which the same music originated (4).

The song books

Internet is a rich source of Celtic music tunes, thanks to the fact that, being songs and tunes of traditional origin, and not suffering from copyright restrictions, they can be online as lyrics and/or chords, for all of those who want to deepen their knowledge.

The following web sites offer freely the lyrics and music of many songs and tune of Irish and Scottish traditional music:

The monographies online

(1) adapted from Paul De Grae: Traditional Irish Guitar, page 9; (2) adapted from Paul De Grae: Traditional Irish Guitar, page 9; (3) adapted from Paul De Grae: Traditional Irish Guitar, page 13; (4) adapted from Paul De Grae: Traditional Irish Guitar, page 13.

The present images in this page are from the Book of Kells, Trinity College, Dublin, EIRE.

Your contribution is always welcome: alfstone@iol.it

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