Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
gregate and play for the love of it. There will generally be a fiddle, a flute or tin whistle,
a guitar, a
bodhrán
(goatskin drum), and maybe an accordion or mandolin. Things usu-
ally get going at about 21:30 (but note that Irish punctuality is unpredictable). Last call for
drinks is at about 23:30.
The music often comes in sets of three songs. The wind and string instruments embel-
lish melody lines with lots of tight ornamentation. Whoever happens to be leading determ-
ines the next song only as the current tune is about to be finished. If he wants to pass on
the decision, it's done with eye contact and a nod. A
ceilidh
(KAY-lee) is an evening of
music and dance...an Irish hoedown.
Percussion generally stays in the background. The
bodhrán
(BO-run) is played with a
small, two-headed club. The performer's hand stretches the skin to change the tone and
pitch. You'll sometimes be lucky enough to hear a set of bones crisply played. These are
two cow ribs (boiled and dried) that are rattled in one hand like spoons or castanets, sub-
stituting for the sound of dancing shoes in olden days.
Watch closely if a piper is playing. The Irish version of bagpipes, the
uilleann
(ILL-in)
pipes are played by inflating the airbag (under the left elbow) with a bellows (under the
right elbow) rather than with a mouthpiece like the Scottish Highland bagpipes.
Uilleann
isGaelicfor“elbow,”andthesoundismoremelodic,withawiderrangethantheHighland
pipes. The piper fingers his chanter like a flute to create individual notes. When he taps the
chanter on his thigh, it closes the end and raises the note one octave. He uses the heel of
