Introduction to
Traditional Irish Music
In recent years a whole family of stringed instruments have been utilised in traditional music: these include the mandolin, the mandocello, the bouzouki, the cittern, the tenor-banjo and the banjo-mandolin. Generally these are tuned like a fiddle, or tuned to an open D or G chord, and played with a plectrum. They may be used for accompaniment or for melody. While somewhat inflexible in tone, they can generate an exciting rhythmical impact. Having said that, there is suspicion in some quarters that handlers of these instruments are really failed fiddlers; on the other hand, many fiddlers or fluters enjoy a bouzouki accompaniment. The guitar is a different story. Until recently it was completely outside the traditional pale and was associated almost exclusively with so-called 'ballad' groups such as the Clancy Brothers or the Wolfe Tones. However, the folk boom of the sixties and seventies led some musicians to experiment with the possibility of playing reels and jigs on the guitar, with varying degrees of success. The trouble with the guitar is that the finger-picking style laboriously cultivated by some folk players is not really suitable for the very fast incisive rhythms of Irish traditional music; so, a John Renbourne or a Pierre Bensusan may make nice music by interpreting an Irish jig on the guitar, but it will not be traditional music; the rhythms will have to be significantly altered to accommodate the style. A more appropriate strategy is to treat the guitar somewhat like a tenor banjo, and use a plectrum. While this style of playing ignores many of the inherent characteristics of the instrument, it is better suited to the music, and players like Paul Brady (before his incursions into rock music) and Arty McGlynn have succeeded in making the guitar accommodate the full range of traditional expression. Very few other guitarists, however, have this kind of technical brilliance.

The Piano
The use of the piano in traditional music is question able, though many older musicians actively seek a piano accompaniment. It is possible to trace its presence in the music back to the early recordings of Irish music made in America and its subsequent use in ceili bands; one could also speculate about the piano's representing an ideal of musical respectability. One of the problems is that the piano's predetermined intonation sometimes clashes with that of more 'traditional' instruments; the other is that many piano 'drivers', as they are sometimes known, are insensitive and domineering. However, there are some players, notably Charlie Lennon, who are content to accompany the music instead of drowning it in a sequence of inappropriate chords; significantly, Charlie Lennon is perhaps better known as a fiddle player.

The Hammer Dulcimer
The origins of this instrument are obscure; several versions of it exist in many different musical cultures, notably in the Arab world. It consists of an open trapezium-shaped sounding board strung with piano wire or similar material; the 'hammers' are generally two lengths of wood or wire with a spoon-shaped head sometimes wrapped in wool. These are held in the hand and used to strike the appropriate string-course. The most renowned player in recent years was the late John Rea of Glenarm, Co. Antrim. The hammer dulcimer can sometimes sound strange when played with other instruments, or, for that matter, by itself; since it has no damping mechanism, notes will be sustained beyond their useful duration, and interfere with the notes that are actually struck at any given time. Derek Bell of the Chieftains has latterly brought the instrument to the attention of an uncomprehending public, calling it a 'tiompan' (an obscure and conjectural medieval Irish instrument) which in all likelihood it is not.

The Bones
Many bodhran players are bone players, and vice versa. Both fulfill similar functions: to provide a rhythmic accompanying noise. The bones in question are usually two cow-ribs which have been boiled and dried, though I notice that an English supplier of folk instruments is advertising 'bones' made of mahogany. The bones are held in the hand and used like castanets.

The Spoons
The spoons are a similar class of animal. Ordinary kitchen spoons - whether soup spoons or dessert spoons - seem quite adequate for the job, though many fanatical spoons players will go to inordinate lengths to get weapons of the right material, weight, and resonance the handles, similarly, will be customized by paring with files and wrapping with various kinds of tape. The spoons are played by gripping them between the fingers of one hand and beating them against an object such as the other hand, the knees, the table, or, as I have witnessed on several occasions, armpits, shoes, and other people's heads. Spoons players are to be admired for their resourcefulness: should their instruments happen to be mislaid, or stolen, they will resort to clicking two bottles together or rattling a handful of loose change; unhappily, decimal coinage has not got the same satisfying ring as the old copper pennies.

From the Appletree Press title: Irish Traditional Music.
Also from Appletree: Irish Pub Songs.
Also from Appletree: A Little Irish Songbook.