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Celtic music is a broad grouping ofmusic genres that evolved out of thefolk music traditions of theCeltic people ofNorthwestern Europe (the modernCeltic nations).[1][2] It refers to both orally-transmitted traditional music and recorded music and the styles vary considerably to include everything from traditional music toa wide range of hybrids.
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Celtic music means two things mainly. First, it is the music of the people that identify themselves asCelts. Secondly, it refers to whatever qualities may be unique to the music of theCeltic nations. Many notable Celtic musicians such asAlan Stivell andPaddy Moloney[3] claim that the different Celtic music genres have a lot in common.[1][2][4]
These styles are known because of the importance of Irish and Scottish people in the English speaking world, especially in the United States, where they had a profound impact onAmerican music, particularlybluegrass andcountry music.[5] Themusic of Wales,Cornwall, theIsle of Man,Brittany,Galician traditional music (Spain) andmusic of Portugal are also considered Celtic music, the tradition being particularly strong inBrittany,[6] where Celtic festivals large and small take place throughout the year,[7] and in Wales, where the ancienteisteddfod tradition has been revived and flourishes. Additionally, the musics of ethnically Celtic peoples abroad are vibrant, especiallyin Canada and theUnited States. In Canada the provinces of Atlantic Canada are known for being a home of Celtic music, most notably on the islands of Newfoundland, Cape Breton and Prince Edward Island. The traditional music of Atlantic Canada is heavily influenced by the Irish, Scottish and Acadian ethnic makeup of much of the region's communities.[8] In some parts of Atlantic Canada, such asNewfoundland, Celtic music is as or more popular than in the old country. Further, some older forms of Celtic music that are rare in Scotland and Ireland today, such as the practice of accompanying a fiddle with a piano, or the Gaelic spinning songs of Cape Breton remain common in the Maritimes. Much of the music of this region is Celtic in nature, but originates in the local area and celebrates the sea, seafaring, fishing and other primary industries.
Instruments associated with Celtic Music include theCeltic harp,uilleann pipes orGreat Highland bagpipe,fiddle,tin whistle,flute,bodhrán,bones,concertina,accordion and a recent addition, theIrish bouzouki.[9]
InCeltic Music: A Complete Guide, June Skinner Sawyers acknowledges sixCeltic nationalities divided into two groups according to their linguistic heritage.[10] TheQ-Celtic nationalities are the Irish, Scottish andManx peoples, while theP-Celtic groups are theCornish,Bretons andWelsh peoples. MusicianAlan Stivell uses a similar dichotomy, between theGaelic (Irish/Scottish/Manx) and theBrythonic (Breton/Welsh/Cornish) branches, which differentiate "mostly by the extended range (sometimes more than two octaves) of Irish and Scottish melodies and the closed range of Breton and Welsh melodies (often reduced to a half-octave), and by the frequent use of the purepentatonic scale in Gaelic music."[11]
There is also tremendous variation betweenCeltic regions. Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, and Brittany have living traditions of language and music, and there has been a recent major revival of interest in Celtic heritage in the Isle of Man.Galicia has a Celtic language revival movement to revive the Q-CelticGallaic language used into Roman times,[12][13][14][15] which is not anattested language,[16] unlikeCeltiberian. ABrythonic language may have been spoken in parts of Galicia andAsturias into early Medieval times brought by Britons fleeing theAnglo-Saxon settlement of Britain viaBrittany.,[17][18] but here again there are several hypotheses and very little traces of it : lack of archeological, linguistic evidence and documents.[19] TheRomance language currently spoken in Galicia,Galician (Galego) is closely related to thePortuguese language used mainly in Brazil and Portugal and in many ways closer to Latin than other Romance languages.[16] Galician music is claimed to beCeltic.[2] The same is true of the music of Asturias,[2]Cantabria, and that of NorthernPortugal (some say even traditional music from Central Portugal can be labeled Celtic).
Breton artistAlan Stivell was one of the earliest musicians to use the wordCeltic andKeltia in his marketing materials, starting in the early 1960s as part of the worldwide folk music revival of that era[20][21] with the term quickly catching on with other artists worldwide. Today, the genre is well established andincredibly diverse.
There are musical genres and styles specific to each Celtic country, due in part to the influence of individual song traditions and the characteristics of specific languages:[22]
The modern Celtic music scene involves a large number ofmusic festivals, as it has traditionally. Some of the most prominent festivals focused solely on music include:
The oldest musical tradition which fits under the label of Celtic fusion originated in the rural American south in the early colonial period and incorporated English, Scottish, Irish, Welsh, German, and African influences. Variously referred to as roots music, American folk music, orold-time music, this tradition has exerted a strong influence on all forms of American music, including country, blues, and rock and roll.[32] In addition to its lasting effects on other genres, it marked the first modern large-scale mixing of musical traditions from multiple ethnic and religious communities within theCeltic diaspora.
In the 1960s several bands put forward modern adaptations of Celtic music pulling influences from several of the Celtic nations at once to create a modernpan-celtic sound. A few of those includebagadoù (Breton pipe bands),Fairport Convention,Pentangle,Steeleye Span andHorslips.
In the 1970sClannad[33] made their mark initially in thefolk and traditional scene, and then subsequently went on to bridge the gap between traditional Celtic and pop music in the 1980s and 1990s, incorporating elements fromnew-age,smooth jazz, andfolk rock. Traces of Clannad's legacy can be heard in the music of many artists, includingAltan,Anúna,Capercaillie,the Corrs,Dexys Midnight Runners,Enya,Loreena McKennitt,Riverdance,Donna Taggart, andU2. The solo music of Clannad's lead singer,Moya Brennan (often referred to as the First Lady of Celtic Music) has further enhanced this influence.
Later, beginning in 1982 withthe Pogues' invention of Celtic folk-punk andStockton's Wing blend of Irish traditional and Pop, Rock and Reggae, there has been a movement to incorporateCeltic influences into other genres of music. Bands likeFlogging Molly,Black 47,Dropkick Murphys, the Young Dubliners,the Tossers introduced a hybrid ofCeltic rock,punk,reggae,hardcore and other elements in the 1990s that has become popular with Irish-American youth.
Today there are Celtic-influenced subgenres of virtually every type of popular music includingelectronica,rock,metal,punk,hip hop,reggae,new-age,Latin,Andean andpop. Collectively these modern interpretations of Celtic music are sometimes referred to asCeltic fusion.
Outside of America, the first deliberate attempts to create a "Pan-Celtic music" were made by the BretonTaldir Jaffrennou, having translated songs from Ireland, Scotland, and Wales into Breton between the two world wars. One of his major works was to bring "Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau" (the Welshnational anthem) back in Brittany and create lyrics in Breton. Eventually this song became "Bro goz va zadoù" ("Old land of my fathers") and is the most widely accepted Breton anthem. In the 70s, the BretonAlan Cochevelou (futureAlan Stivell) began playing a mixed repertoire from the main Celtic countries on the Celtic harp his father created.[21]
Probably the most successful all-inclusive Celtic music composition in recent years isShaun Daveys compositionThe Pilgrim. This suite depicts the journey of St. Colum Cille through the Celtic nations of Ireland, Scotland, theIsle of Man, Wales,Cornwall,Brittany andGalicia. The suite which includes a Scottish pipe band, Irish and Welsh harpists,Galician gaitas, Irishuilleann pipes, thebombardes ofBrittany, two vocal soloists and a narrator is set against a background of a classical orchestra and a large choir.
Modern music may also be termed "Celtic" because it is written and recorded in a Celtic language, regardless of musical style. Many of the Celtic languages have experienced resurgences in modern years, spurred on partly by the action of artists and musicians who have embraced them as hallmarks of identity and distinctness. In 1971, the Irish bandSkara Brae recorded its onlyLP (simply calledSkara Brae), all songs in Irish. In 1978Runrig recorded an album inScottish Gaelic. In 1992Capercaillie recorded "A Prince Among Islands", the first Scottish Gaelic language record to reach the UK top 40. In 1996, a song in Breton represented France in the41st Eurovision Song Contest, the first time in history that France had a song without a word in French. Since about 2005,Oi Polloi (from Scotland) have recorded in Scottish Gaelic.Mill a h-Uile Rud (aScottish Gaelic punk band from Seattle) recorded in the language in 2004.
Several contemporary bands have Welsh language songs, such asCeredwen, which fuses traditional instruments withtrip hop beats, theSuper Furry Animals,Fernhill, and so on (see theMusic of Wales article for more Welsh and Welsh-language bands). The same phenomenon occurs in Brittany, where many singers record songs in Breton, traditional or modern (hip hop,rap, and so on.).
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