|
contents | world | |||||||||||||
| The Celts Reinvent Traditional Irish Music The Celts mix the traditional and the cutting edge on their new PBS special/live DVD and studio album, 'Christmas with The Celts, ' combining ancient, earthy Irish instruments with cool drum loops, synthesizers, and guitars. Here's just a few of the traditional instruments with rich histories you'll hear The Celts play: Uilleann Pipes: These Irish bagpipes are not as loud as the more famous Scottish highland pipes, but can play a wider range of notes. They're played by pulling air into the bellows with the elbow ("uilleann" is the Gaelic word for elbow). Bodhran: Made of goat skin and played sideways, the bodhran is a traditional Irish drum with a very deep sound. Hundreds of these were used with the highland pipes during war to scare the enemy. Irish Whistle: Also called penny whistle, the Irish whistle produces a beautiful and haunting set of tones. Scottish and Irish Fiddle: The Scottish and Irish fiddle are actually identical instruments; they differ only in the style they are played. Great variations exist within each style depending the specific county from which the player hails. Airing on over 65 PBS stations (and counting) nationwide this December, 'Christmas with The Celts' was filmed last year before a sold-out audience in frontman Ric Blair's adopted hometown of Nashville and will also be released as a studio CD/ live DVD on Nov 15 via Celtic Isle Records. The band will perform multiple holiday shows this year, including The Ryman Auditorium in Nashville on Dec. 14th, and Cincinnati's Taft Theater on the 16th. write your comments about the article :: © 2011 Jazz News :: home page |