Characteristics Of Traditional Irish Music

Traditional Irish Music and its Revival:

When people think of a ‘folk music revival’, the one most often thought of (at least in America) is the American folk music revival, and some of the biggest figures in that revival: Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, The Kingston Trio, etc. However, the United States is not the only country where a folk music revival has occurred; England, a variety of Latin American countries (such as Argentina and Brazil), Australia, and even more countries have seen their traditional styles of music revived at some point. The focus of this paper is the Irish folk music revival of the 60’s and 70’s and the similarities it has to the American folk music revival of the same era.

Multiple bands and people were responsible for revitalizing

It began as an oral tradition, as many forms of traditional music do, and unaccompanied vocal songs were called sean nós and described as being “highly ornamental where the voice is placed at the top of the range” (“Irish Traditional Music”, Wikipedia). In many cases, the melody is varied in each verse. There were also Caoineadh songs, which is Irish for a lament. This type of song is about sorrow and pain and were originally thought to be sung (for money) at funerals. Ireland is also known for its dancing music, which includes mostly reels and jigs but also hornpipes and some

In Ireland, traditional Irish music aided to revive the country’s sense of self after years under the colonial power of Great Britain, and as mentioned previously, Irish folk music’s influence can be seen in a variety of different genres, particularly rock, pop, and country music. An interesting band with Irish influence is The Shamrock Wings, a band that combines Irish and Caribbean sounds.

Both the American and Irish folk music revivals came at interesting, tense times in both countries, and have many similarities; the often political sentiments expressed through the music influenced many socio-political movements at the time, and the revivals had far-reaching and widespread effects on the music and culture then and now. While the American folk music revival is better well-known (at least in the United States), it is interesting to learn about how folk music has been revived elsewhere and how the movements reviving the music share many