An bhfuil seanfhocail faoi an fidil no fidléir? (Please correct this if it needs it!)

And what exactly makes a song Sean Nos in its style? I'm working at becoming a somewhat less-than-annoying fiddler and would like to stick with traditional music. I enjoy what has been described to me as Sean Nos music but it is mostly a capella voice. Is there such a thing as Sean Nos instrumentals?

I'd love to get the music for "Green Grow The Rushes" and some other songs from the Ragús CD. Any links to good Irish Trad sheet music would also be much appreciated.

Le meas,

James

Check out www.thesession.org . The Sean Nós equivalent on an instrument is a slow air. A common slow air is "Róisín Dubh". Sean Nós means old style, sung without any backing, and there is no typical beat or rhythm to it (like reels or jigs have). You should check at thesession.org and see if there are any sessions listed in your area. The typical and traditional way to learn tunes is by ear. It gives you a better feel for the music. If there aren't any sessions or musicians around you, check out some albums and learn tunes from there. Glad to see another musician on the forum.

Slán,

Harrison

P.S. I play the tin whistle and am getting a set of uilleann pipes in about 2-3 months.

Just wanted to add that sean-nós songs can actually have a steady beat to them. Quite a number of Donegal and Conamara songs do, and a smaller number from the various Munster Gaeltachtaí. Some of the tunes originated from jigs (like the tune that Amhrán an Tae - and other songs - is set to, usually known as Rakes of Kildare) or marches (like the tune of Ar mo ghabhail 'na chuain domh) and later had words set to them. This doesn't place them outside the sean-nós category, however. And although some people don't classify drinking songs (such as every version of Níl sé ina lá) or children's songs (such as Peata beag) as sean-nós, they are certainly some of the oldest ones around! and almost all of them are metered, either strictly or more loosely (one or two beats of various lines stretched out longer than the surrounding ones).

The "amhráin mhóra" of the sean-nós repertoire (like Donal Og) are pretty much all unmetered, it's true, and they are held up as the standard all the others are judged by. However it's worthwhile to remember that they aren't the whole picture. Check out any of the old recordings of singers available from Cló Iar-Chonnachta or RTE. You can hear singers who were elderly in the 1960's singing metered songs that they learned from their grandads.

éisteacht shona dhuit, happy listening

Beth

Go raibh maith 'ad, a Bheth. Thanks for correcting me. I shouldn't have spoken about sean nós as I know almost nothing of the tradition. I learned a lot from your post.

Slán,

Harrison