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Music of Ireland

Irish music is music that has been created in various genres on the island of Ireland.

The indigenous music of the island is termed Irish traditional music. It has remained vibrant through the 20th and into the 21st century, despite globalising cultural forces. In spite of emigration and a well-developed connection to music influences from Britain and the United States, Irish traditional music has kept many of its elements and has itself influenced many forms of music, such as country and roots music in the United States, which in turn have had some influence on modern rock music. It has occasionally been fused with rock and roll, punk rock, and other genres. Some of these fusion artists have attained mainstream success, at home and abroad.


In art music, Ireland has a history reaching back to Gregorian chants in the Middle Ages, choral and harp music of the Renaissance, court music of the Baroque and early Classical period, as well as many Romantic, late Romantic and twentieth-century modernist music. It is still a vibrant genre with many composers and ensembles writing and performing avant-garde art music in the classical tradition.


On a smaller scale, Ireland has also produced many jazz musicians of note, particularly after the 1950s.

921BC: Cú Congalta, priest of Lann-Leire, the Tethra (i. e. the singer or orator) for voice, personal form and knowledge, died.

1011: Connmhach Ua Tomhrair, priest and chief singer of , died.

Cluain-mic-Nois

1168: , chief ollamh of Ireland in harp-playing, died.

Amhlaeibh Mac Innaighneorach

1226: , erenagh of Cong, a man eminent for chanting and for the right tuning of harps and for having made an instrument for himself which none had made before, distinguished also in every art such as poetry, engraving and writing and in every skilled occupation, died.

Aed mac Donn Ó Sochlachain

1269: , master of music and minstrelsy, died.

Aed Ó Finn

1329: , tiompanist, murdered during the Braganstown Massacre in County Louth.

Maol Ruanaidh Cam Ó Cearbhaill

1330: , a general entertainer, died.

Mael Sechlainn Mac Carmaic

1343: , a choral canon of Elphin, was killed by an arrow.

Donnchad Clereach Ó Maol Braonáin

1357: , an accomplished musician ... died.

Donn Shléibhe Mac Cerbaill

1360: , music ollamh of Thomond ... died.

Gilla na Naem Ó Conmaigh

1361. , Chief Musician and Tiompanist to the Síol Muireadaigh, died.

Magraith Ó Fionnachta

1364: Bran Ó Brain, a skilful tympanist ... died.

1369: John Mac Egan, and Gilbert Ó Bardan, two accomplished young harpers of , died.

Conmaicne

1469: Ruaidrí mac Donnchad Ó Dálaigh, the most musical-handed harpist in all Ireland.

1490: Diarmait MacCairbre, harper, was executed.

1553: Tadhg, son of Ruaidhri Ó Comhdhain, i.e. the ollamh of and Alba in music, died.

Éire

1561: , drowned on Lough Gill.

Naisse mac Cithruadh

1589. Daighre , a most affable, musical man, died.

Ó Duibhgeannáin

Early Irish musicians abroad[edit]

Some musicians were acclaimed in places beyond Ireland. Cú Chuimne (died 747) lived much of his adult life in Gaelic Scotland, and composed at least one hymn. Foillan, who was alive in the seventh century, travelled through much of Britain and France; around 653 at the request of St. Gertrude of Brabant, taught psalmody to her nuns at Nievelle. Tuotilo (c.850–c. 915), who lived in Italy and Germany, was noted both as a musician and a composer.


Helias of Cologne (died 1040), is held to be the first to introduce Roman chant to Cologne. His contemporary, Aaron Scotus (died 18 November 1052) was an acclaimed composer of Gregorian chant in Germany.


Donell Dubh Ó Cathail (c. 1560s-c.1660), was not only musician of Viscount Buttevant, but, with his uncle Donell Óge Ó Cathail, harper to Elizabeth I.

Early modern times[edit]

Up to the seventeenth century, harp musicians were patronised by the aristocracy in Ireland. This tradition died out in the eighteenth century with the collapse of Gaelic Ireland. Turlough Carolan (1670–1738) is the best known of those harpists,[3][4] and over 200 of his compositions are known. Some of his pieces use elements of contemporary baroque music, but his music has entered the tradition and is played by many folk musicians today. Edward Bunting collected some of the last-known Irish harp tunes at the Belfast Harp Festival in 1792. Other important collectors of Irish music include Francis O'Neill[5] and George Petrie.


Other notable Irish musicians of this era included Cearbhall Óg Ó Dálaigh (fl. c. 1630); Piaras Feiritéar (1600?–1653); William Connellan (fl. mid-17th century) and his brother, Thomas Connellan (c. 1640/1645–1698), composers; Dominic Ó Mongain (alive 18th century); Donnchadh Ó Hámsaigh (1695–1807); poet and songwriter Eoghan Rua Ó Súilleabháin (1748–1782); Arthur O'Neill (fl. 1792); Patrick Byrne (c.1794–1863); world-renowned piper Tarlach Mac Suibhne (c. 1831–1916); poet and songwriter Colm de Bhailís (1796–1906).

Popular music[edit]

Early popular performers[edit]

Performers of popular music began appearing as early as the late 1940s; Delia Murphy popularised Irish folk songs that she recorded for HMV in 1949; Margaret Barry is also credited with bringing traditional songs to the fore; Donegal's Bridie Gallagher shot to fame in 1956 and is considered 'Ireland's first international pop star';[28] Belfast-born singer Ruby Murray achieved unprecedented chart success in the UK in the mid-1950s; Dublin native Carmel Quinn emigrated to the US and became a regular singer on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts and appeared frequently on other TV variety shows in the 1950s and '60s. The Bachelors were an all-male harmony group from Dublin who had hits in the UK, Europe, US, Australia and Russia; Mary O'Hara was a soprano and harpist who was successful on both sides of the Atlantic in the 1950s and early 1960s; Waterford crooner Val Doonican had a string of UK hits and presented his own TV show on the BBC from 1965 to 1986.

Celtic music

Sean-nós singing

Lilting

Irish traditional music session

List of Irish ballads

Irish rebel music

List of Irish musicians

List of All-Ireland Champions

List of Irish music collectors

List of artists who reached number one in Ireland

List of songs that reached number one on the Irish Singles Chart

One Hit Wonders in Ireland

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Boydell, Brian: Rotunda Music in Eighteenth-Century Dublin (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1992).

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Mangaoang, Áine; O'Flynn, John & Ó Briain, Lonán (ed.): Made in Ireland: Studies in Popular Music. (Routledge, 2020).  978-1-138-93652-2.

ISBN

McAvoy, Mark: Cork Rock: From Rory Gallagher to the Sultans of Ping (Cork: Mercier Press, 2009).

McCarthy, Marie: Passing it on. The Transmission of Music in Irish Culture (Cork: Cork University Press, 1999).

Ó Canainn, Tomás: Traditional Music in Ireland (London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1978; new ed. Cork: Ossian Publications, 1993).

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: Sunlight & Shadow. A Listener's Guide to Irish Classical Music (Leckemy, Co. Donegal: Seóirse Ó Dochartaigh, 2016).

Ó Dochartaigh, Seóirse

O'Dwyer, Simon: Prehistoric Music of Ireland (Stroud, Gloucestershire: Tempus Publishing, 2004).

Pine, Richard: Music and Broadcasting in Ireland (Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2005).

Pine, Richard & Acton, Charles (eds.): To Talent Alone. The Royal Irish Academy of Music, 1848–1998 (Dublin: Gill & Macmillan, 1998).

Porter, James: The Traditional Music of Britain and Ireland: A Select Bibliography and Research Guide (New York: Garland Publishing, 1989).

Power, Vincent: Send 'Em Home Sweatin'. The Showband Story (Cork: Mercier Press, 1990; rev. ed. 2000).

Prendergast, Mark J.: Irish Rock. Roots, Personalities, Directions (Dublin: O’Brien Press, 1987).

Shields, Hugh: Narrative Singing in Ireland (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1993).

Smith, Thérèse: Ancestral Imprints. Histories of Irish Traditional Music and Dance (Cork: Cork University Press, 2012).

Smyth, Gerry: Noisy Island. A Short History of Irish Popular Music (Cork: Cork University Press, 2005).

Smyth, Gerry & Campbell, Seán: Beautiful Day. Forty Years of Irish Rock (Cork: Atrium Press, 2005).

Vallely, Fintan: The Companion to Irish Traditional Music (Cork: Cork University Press 1999),  1-85918-148-1.

ISBN

Wallis, Geoff & Wilson, Sue: The Rough Guide to Irish Music (London: Rough Guides Ltd., 2001),  1-85828-642-5.

ISBN

Walsh, Basil: Michael W. Balfe. A Unique Victorian Composer (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 2008),  978-0-7165-2947-7.

ISBN

Walsh, Basil: Catherine Hayes, The Hibernian Prima Donna(Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 2000),  0-7165-2662-X.

ISBN

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: The Keeper’s Recital. Music and Cultural History in Ireland, 1770–1970 (Cork: Cork University Press, 1998).

White, Harry

White, Harry & Boydell, Barra: The Encyclopaedia of Music in Ireland (Dublin: UCD Press, 2013).

Zimmermann, Georges-Denis: Songs of Irish Rebellion. Political Street Ballads and Rebel Songs, 1780–1900 (Dublin: Allen Figgis, 1967; 2nd ed. Dublin: Four Courts Press, 2002).

Irish Traditional Music Archive

A History of Irish Music, by W. H. Flood

– national resource and archive centre for contemporary Irish classical music

Contemporary Music Centre, Dublin

– global movement promoting Irish traditional music and culture

Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann

– an online tune database and discussion site for adherents of Irish Traditional Music

TheSession.org

IRMA.ie – The Irish Recorded Music Association

– Arts Council-funded website on research of Oriel song, harp and fiddle

Oriel Arts Project

– Arts Council of Ireland Website that specialises in the promotion of contemporary Irish Music

BreakingTunes.com

– Irish (mostly) dance tunes with sheet music and chords

Vashon Celtic Tunes

– The Traditional Tune Archive : The Semantic Index of North American, British and Irish traditional instrumental music with annotation, formerly known as "The Fiddler's Companion"

TTA – The Traditional Tune Archive