celtic/ irish tune suggestions...

[GnomeGrown]

Hi all-->

I was wondering if any of you kind folks could point me in the direction of a good irish/ celtic type tune....

what I am looking for:
something relatively straightforward...I am a new player, so not too advanced

something quintessentially celtic (or irish, scottish), a tune that captures the flavor of the land.....

a tune with tab readily available, preferably from the treasure trove here at the cafe or mandozine...

my girlfriend's family is VERY irish, and St. Patrick's day is their big holiday. I am hoping to add into the festivities this year!
well, as much as a non drinking fellow of german/ scottish descent can


any help/ suggestions are most appreciated!

[rmcintos]

IMHO (I've only been playing for a year and a half), The Swallow Tail Jig is relatively straightforward and sounds INSANELY Irish.
rob

[GnomeGrown]

thanks a bunch, that does seem to fit the bill....Insanely irish is EXACTLY what I need!

any other ideas are also welcome............

[Yonkle]

Irish Washerwoman (easy and everyone knows it) Or try "The Road To Listonvarna" and "Saint Annes Reel" is cool!

[RolandTumble]

Tobin's Favorite

[Bob DeVellis]

As a new player, you might find reels a bit challenging. They really need to be played at a pretty good clip to have their characteristic drive. Hornpipes (like the Road to Lisdoonvarna) or jigs (like the Swallow Tail) are typically played at a more relaxed pace. Also, jigs do have that characteristically Irish 6/8 format, so a jig does seem like a good choice. Also, jigs tend to sound fairly Irish even when played without a lot of ornamentation, which doesn't necessarily apply as convincingly to hornpipes.

[otterly2k]

I agree with bobd- stick with jigs... characteristically Irish and fun to play, with a LOT of choices so you can find one that suits you. I like the selections above as well as Sliabh Russell, I Buried My Wife and Danced on Her Grave (ok... terribly misogynist title, but a darn good tune), and if you're up for a challenge, try a slip jig like An Phis Fhliuch which is 3 groups of triplets (9/8) instead of 2 groups (6/8). So it would go ONE-and-a TWO-and-a THREE-and-a
instead of ONE-and-a TWO-and-a. Much fun.

Enjoy

[mancmando]

Yes - jigs is a good idea, you could try Morrisons or Banish Misfortune...

Another idea would be to play the tune to an irish song, especially as there tend to be less notes in there... The Star of County Down might be a good choice..

anyhow, have fun http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[PaulD]

If you want something with a different feel but not too hard to learn, you could try The Butterfly... a slip jig (9/8 time). Kid On The Mountain is a fun slip jig that can be combined with The Butterfly, but it's not exactly a beginner's tune (it's actually kind of a pain to learn... but great tune). There's also The Wind That Shakes The Barley... there's both a song and a tune with different melodies. I think the tune (a slow reel?) is in the Fiddler's Fakebook.

If you haven't already tried it, check out www.Ceolas.org for collections of tunes. You can find The Butterfly (and Kid On The Mountain) there at Ceolas.org - Session Tunes (http://www.ceolas.org/pub/tunes/tunes.pdf/SessionTunes.pdf).

Sláinte! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

Paul Doubek

Jiga are great. They are fairly easy and usually not that terribly long. Great fun to pick too.

[GnomeGrown]

just been pickin at swallow tail jig for a bit, real fun to play!

thanks for all the great ideas everyone!

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