by Charlie Garratt

Created on: November 16, 2008

I listen to, and play, traditional Irish music all the time and am constantly amazed at how the many layered music builds up, with various instruments joining in, to weave a tapestry of melody and rhythm that swirls and eddies around, dragging all and sundry into its spell. The same effect appears to run through all the music of the Celtic tradition, be it Irish, Scottish, Breton or the Northern American styles of French Canadian and, possibly, Appalachian.

Some tunes are easier to get the beat from than others. Hornpipes always make you want to dance and smile. Jigs and reels tend to make you want to tap your feet or slap the table in time.

I wish that I could explain properly how the beat comes together. The beat in Celtic music seems to come from two main sources, the percussion instrument accompanying it, and the internal rhythm of the tune itself. But that's putting it far too simply and far too coldly.

The accompanying instrument can be truly percussive, such as the bodhran, bones or spoons, and/or it can be from a stringed instrument, like a guitar, mandolin or banjo, played percussively. The bodhran is primarily used in Irish music and is a basic drum made from goatskin. Other forms of Celtic music will use other types of drum or stringed instruments that are local to the areas where the music originates.

The internal rhythm is much more complicated to explain. It's a mix of the time signature of the tune, 3/4, 4/4 etc, and the emphasis put onto various beats in the bar. It also has a lot to do with the quality of the musician playing the tune. Any passable fiddle player can knock out a Celtic tune but it takes a decent talent to have listeners tapping their feet and whooping with delight. I actually know a man who happens to be a top class accordion player but who, as his party piece, mouths' a traditional, tune using his voice, diddle-ee I did-diddle I'. The man would never sing a song, nor think he had the voice for it, but when he starts this up the bar is stomping its collective feet to the beat in seconds.

So, the type of melody instrument isn't that important. Bagpipes, fiddles, mandolins, banjos, accordions and every national variation on these, are all used to create Celtic music, and they all do it admirably.

What is important is the tune itself. I think that the music in the Celtic tradition comes from a national psyche of poverty and of isolation, of being driven into remote places and of needing to hold on to an identity. A musical form is created which binds together people with the same experience. It helps them to laugh, to dance, and to enjoy life in the company of their neighbours, and in the face of adversity.

It seems to me that the beat of Celtic music comes from the beating heart of the nations it has emerged from.

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