Irish Music | IrishCentral

Susan Boyle’s debut album becomes Amazon’s largest global CD pre-order in history

Susan Boyle isn’t dreaming a dream anymore – she’s living it. The Scottish star’s debut album “I Dreamed A Dream” has broken records, and was just named Amazon Music’s largest global CD pre-order in history. FULL STORY >

Multi-talented Kathleen Collins releases CD

Paul Keating: Taking its cue from the verses written by William Butler Yeats, there is a very prestigious prize awarded to an Irish traditional fiddler who rises above stiff competition every year to garner the honor. In all the years that it was awarded I can think of only one recipient who excelled at fiddling and dancing as extolled in the popular poem, and that would be Kathleen Collins. FULL STORY >

Irish folk music is the generic term for music that has been created in various genres on the entire island of Ireland. Collections of Irish folk music date from the 18th century, but ballad printers were not established in Dublin until the 19th century. By the mid-20th century, Irish folk music had fallen out fashion. Festivals such as the Fleadh Cheoil exposed people to folk. The English folk music scene also gave Irish musicians the chance to find new audiences. With the success of the Clancy Brothers in the US in 1959, it became trendy again to listen to Irish music. Later, the international success of the Chieftains made the folk music of Ireland a global brand. In the 1980s, the Pogues helped fuse Irish folk with punk rock, giving a whole new audience a chance to listen to songs influenced by the folk tradition. Enya achieved international success with New Age/Celtic fusions. Irish music also contributed a subgenre of folk metal known as Celtic metal with exponents of the genre including Cruachan, Geasa and Waylander. Audiences do not just listen to Irish music in concert halls or arenas, but in much more informal settings as well. In recent decades, patrons can listen to Irish folk musicians at pub sessions. Many fans don’t just listen to Irish music &emdash; they dance to it at weddings and saint’s days. When you listen to Irish folk music, one instrument you are likely to hear is the fiddle. The fiddling tradition of Sligo is perhaps most recognizable to outsiders, due to the popularity of American-based performers like Lad O'Beirne, Michael Coleman, John McGrath, James Morrison and Paddy Killoran. Other instruments to listen for include the flute, tin whistle and Uilleann pipes.