HOW THE ANCIENT IRISH EXCELLED IN MUSIC.

From the very earliest ages Irish musicians were celebrated for their skill, not only in their own country but all over Europe. Our native literature, whether referring to pagan or Christian times, is full of references to music and to skilful musicians, who are always spoken of in terms of the utmost respect.

Everywhere through the Records we find evidences that the ancient Irish, both high and low, were passionately fond of music. It was mixed up with their daily home-life, and formed part of their amusements, meetings, and celebrations of every kind. In the religious tales music is always one of the delights of heaven; and a chief function of the angels who attend on God is to chant music of ineffable sweetness to Him, which they generally do in the shape of beautiful white birds. A good example of the people’s intense fondness for music is found in an old Irish religious poem, in which the hard lot of Adam and Eve for a whole year after their expulsion from Paradise is described, when they were—as the poem expresses it—“without proper food, fire, house, music, or raiment.” Here music is put among the necessaries of life, so that it was a misery to be without it.

In the early ages of the Church many of the Irish ecclesiastics took delight in playing on the harp; and in order to indulge in this innocent and refining taste they were wont to bring with them, on their missionary journeys, a small portable harp, with which they beguiled many a weary hour after their hard work.

In very early times Irish professors of music were as eagerly sought after on the Continent as those of literature and general learning, so that they were sometimes placed at the head of great music-schools. At a later time it was quite common among the Welsh bards to come over to Ireland to receive instruction from the Irish harpers. In the eleventh century one of the Welsh kings, Griffith ap Conan, brought over to Wales a number of skilled Irish musicians, who, in conference with the native Welsh bards, carried out some great improvements in Welsh music. Ireland was long the school for Scottish harpers also, who regularly came over, like those of Wales, to finish their musical education—a practice which continued down to about 150 years ago.

Giraldus Cambrensis, a Welshman, who visited Ireland in 1185, though very much prejudiced against the Irish, says that Irish harpers were incomparably more skilful than those of any other nation he had ever heard play. From that period, in spite of wars and troubles, music continued to be cultivated, and there was an unbroken succession of great professional harpers, till the end of the eighteenth century, when, for want of encouragement in the miserable condition of the country under the penal laws, the race died out.

The Harp is mentioned in the earliest Irish literature: it is constantly mixed up with our oldest legends; and it was in use from the remotest pagan times. The old Irish harps were of a medium size, or rather small, the average height being about thirty inches: and some were not much more than half that height. They had strings of brass wire which were tuned by a key, not very different from the present tuning-key. Irish harpers always played with the fingers or with the finger-nails.

The Irish had a small stringed instrument called a Timpan, which had only a few strings. It had a body like a flat drum, to which at one side was attached a short neck: the strings were stretched across the flat face of the drum and along the neck: and were tuned and regulated by pins or keys and a bridge. It was played with a bow or with the finger-nail, or by both together, while the notes were regulated in pitch—or ‘stopped’ as musicians say—with the fingers of the left hand, like those of a fiddle or guitar. This little instrument was a great favourite, and is constantly mentioned in Irish literature.Harpers and timpanists were honoured in Ireland beyond all other musicians; and their rights and privileges were even laid down in the law. Kings had always harpers in their service, who resided in the palaces and were well paid for their services.

The harp and timpan were the chief instruments of the higher classes, many of whom played them as an accomplishment, as people now play the piano and guitar. But the bagpipe was the great favourite of the common people. The form in use was what we now call the Highland or Scotch pipes—slung from the shoulder: the bag inflated by the mouth. This form of pipes took its rise in Ireland: and it was brought to Scotland in early ages by those Irish colonists already spoken of (page 11). There is another and a better kind of bagpipes, now common in Ireland, resting on the lap when in use, and having the bag inflated by a bellows: but this is a late invention.

The old Irish had also Whistles and Flageolets, with holes for the fingers and blown by the mouth, much like those of the present day. Some flageolets were double, and some even triple, i.e., with two, or with three, pipes, sounded by a single mouthpiece, and having holes which were all stopped by the fingers. On many of the great stone crosses are sculptured harp-players and pipe-players, from which we learn a great deal about the shapes and sizes of the several instruments.

The Irish had curved bronze Trumpets and Horns of various shapes and sizes, which, judging from the numbers found buried in clay and bogs, must have been in very general use. In the National Museum in Dublin is a collection of twenty-six ancient trumpets, varying in length from 8 feet down to 18 inches. The larger ones are of most admirable workmanship, formed by hammering; curved, jointed, ornamented, and riveted with extraordinary skill and perfection of finish.

Among the household of every king and chief there was a band of trumpeters—as there were harpers—who were assigned their proper places at feasts and meetings. Trumpets were used for various purposes:—in war; in hunting; for signals during meetings and banquets; as a mark of honour on the arrival of distinguished visitors; and such like. For war purposes, trumpeters had different calls for directing movements—for battle, for unyoking, for marching, for halting, for retiring to sleep, for going into council, and so forth.The ancient Irish were very fond of a Craebh ciuil [crave-cule], or ‘musical branch,’ a little branch on which were suspended a number of diminutive bells, which produced a sweet tinkling when shaken: a custom found also in early times on the Continent. The musical branch figures much in Irish romantic literature.

The music of ancient Ireland consisted wholly of short airs, each with two strains or parts—seldom more. But these, though simple in comparison with modern music, were constructed with such exquisite art that of a large proportion of them it may be truly said no modern composer can produce airs of a similar kind to equal them.

The Irish musicians had various ‘Styles,’ three of which are very often mentioned in tales and other ancient Irish writings: of these, numerous specimens have come down to the present day. The style they called ‘Mirth-music’ (Ganntree) consisted of lively airs, which excited to cheerfulness, mirthfulness, and laughter. These are represented by our present dance tunes, such as jigs, reels, hornpipes, and other such spirited pieces, which are known so well in every part of Ireland. The ‘Sorrow-music’ (Goltree) was slow and sad, and was always sung on the occasion of a death. We have many airs belonging to this style, which are now commonly called Keens, i.e., laments, or dirges. The ‘Sleep-music’ (Suantree) was intended to produce sleep; and the tunes belonging to this style were plaintive and soothing. Such airs are now known as lullabies, or nurse-tunes, or cradle-songs, of which numerous examples are preserved in collections of Irish music. They were usually sung to put children to sleep. Though there are many tunes belonging to these three classes, they form only a small part of the great body of Irish music.

Music—as already remarked—entered into many of the daily occupations of the people. There were special spinning-wheel songs, which the women sang, with words, in chorus or in dialogue, when employed in spinning. At milking-time the girls were in the habit of chanting a particular sort of air, in a low gentle voice. These Milking-songs were slow and plaintive, something like the nurse-tunes, and had the effect of soothing the cows and of making them submit more gently to be milked. This practice was common down to fifty or sixty years ago; and I well remember seeing cows grow restless when the song was interrupted, and become again quiet and placid when it was resumed. The same custom was common in the Highlands of Scotland. While ploughmen were at their work they whistled a sweet, slow, and sad strain, which had as powerful an effect in soothing the horses at their hard labour as the milking-songs had on the cows: and these Plough-whistles also were quite usual till about half a century ago.

Special airs and songs were used during working time by smiths, by weavers, and by boatmen. There were, besides, hymn-tunes; and young people had simple airs for all sorts of games and sports. In most cases words suitable to the several occasions were sung with lullabies, laments, and occupation-tunes. Examples of all the preceding classes of melodies will be found in the collections of Irish airs by Bunting, Petrie, and Joyce.

The Irish had numerous war-marches, which the pipers played at the head of the clansmen when marching to battle, and which inspired them with courage and dash for the fight. This custom is still kept up by the Scotch; and many fine battle-tunes are printed in Irish and Scotch collections of national music.

The man who did most in modern times to draw attention to Irish music was Thomas Moore. He composed his exquisite songs to old Irish airs. They at once became popular, not only in the British Islands, but on the Continent and in America; and Irish music was thenceforward studied and admired where it would have never been heard of but for Moore.

Of the entire body of Irish airs that are preserved, we know the authors of only a very small proportion; and these were composed within the last two hundred years. Most of the remaining airs have come down from old times, scattered fragments of exquisite beauty that remind us of the refined musical culture of our forefathers. No one now can tell who composed “The Coolin,” “Savourneen Dheelish,” “Shule Aroon,” “Molly Asthore,” “Eileen Aroon,” “Garryowen,” “The Boyne Water,” “Patrick’s Day,” “Langolee,” “The Blackbird,” or “The Girl I left behind me”; and so of many other well-known and lovely airs.

The national music of Ireland and that of Scotland are very like each other, and many airs are common to both countries: but this is only what might be expected, as we know that the Irish and the Highland Scotch were originally one people, and kept up mutual intercourse down to recent times.