"Before the Seisiún"

"Before the Seisiún"... 20x16" oil on Canvas Board by Bernie Rosage Jr., 2009.

A painting collection of Ireland would not be complete without something to represent their love of music. Music is as important to the Irish as St Patrick and Guinness! This fiddle was painted from life as my tribute to traditional Irish music. Note I said fiddle although there are no features that distinguishes a fiddle from a violin. I personally can tolerate violin music but a fiddle soothes my soul.

Traditional Irish music today is frequently encountered in the "session" ("seisiún" in Irish, pronounced se-shoon), a gathering of (usually) amateur musicians where tunes are played in unison by all the musicians who know the tune. Such events usually occur at regularly scheduled times, and usually take place in a establishment where dark foamy beverages are easily procured. The participants are generally not paid, except sometimes with free pints of dark foamy beverages, and for that reason they typically huddle in a dark corner rather than sitting on a stage.

The folk music of Ireland (also known as Irish traditional music, Irish trad, Irish folk music, and other variants) is the generic term for music that has been created in various genres on the entire island of Ireland.

Check out these videos of Irish seisiúns...

Irish Traditional Music Session

The Brazen Head Dublin - Irish Music Live


Instruments used in traditional Irish music...
Fiddle
Flute and whistle
Uilleann pipes
Harp
Accordion and concertina
Banjo
Guitar
Bouzouki
Bodhrán
Harmonica

Links of interest...

Music of Ireland

Folk music of Ireland

Most-Recorded Tunes
The Top 100 Tunes of the Century

irishtune.info