Gaelic folk music
| Traditional Gaelic music | |
|---|---|
| Cultural origins | Gaelic Culture |
| Typical instruments | Accordian – Acoustic guitar – Bagpipes – Banjo – Bodhrán – Fiddle – Flute – Harp – Tin whistle |
| Subgenres | |
| Cape Breton Traditional Gaelic music Irish Traditional music Manx Traditional music Scottish Traditional music | |
The traditional music of Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man[1], with the reel and jig synonymous with these traditions. The emigration of Gaels to Cape Breton has also resulted in a unique strain of Gaelic music evolving there[2][3].
The six Celtic nationalities are divided into two musical groups, Gaelic and Brythonic[4], which according to Alan Stivell differentiate "mostly by the extended range (sometimes more than two octaves) of Irish and Scottish melodies and the closed range of Breton and Welsh melodies (often reduced to a half-octave), and by the frequent use of the pure pentatonic scale in Gaelic music"[5].
Performance
The session, from the Gaelic word seisiún, is a common setting for Gaelic music, where musicians from a given locality gather to play music in a pubic setting. Gaelic music is also commonly heard at folk festivals, by pipe bands and at competitions such as mods and the Fleadh Cheoil.
Keys and Modes
In Traditional Gaelic music, the Ionian, Dorian, Mixolydian and Aeolian modes dominate[6][7], with the keys of D Ionian, G Ionian, A Dorian and E Dorian among those popular with session musicians[8].
References
- ^ Rate Your Music: Traditional Gaelic Music, http://rateyourmusic.com/genre/Traditional+Gaelic+Music/
- ^ National Geographic: Cape Breton Traditional Music, http://worldmusic.nationalgeographic.com/
- ^ Boston Irish Reporter: Remembering Gaelic Roots, http://www.bostonirish.com/arts/bcmfest-remembering-gaelic-roots
- ^ Skinner Sawyers, J. (2001). Celtic Music: A Complete Guide, Da Capo Press, ISBN 0306810077
- ^ translation by Steve Winick
- ^ Intermix: Modes and Scales, http://www.intermix.freeuk.com/modes_and_scales.htm
- ^ Scales and Modes in Scottish Traditional Music, http://www.campin.me.uk/Music/Modes/Modes-hepta.abc
- ^ Flatpicking Irish and Scottish Music on Guitar, http://www.danmozell.com/guitart.htm