The internet can be a wonderful place, but we’d caution you to exercise good judgement before accepting everything you read. Sources for Irish traditional tunes, for example, might contain tune settings that aren’t “quite right” according to most musicians, though they can be a great place to start. And of course, these are links to sites not maintained by Ceardlann Earraigh, so we can’t take any responsibility for the content!
Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann is the largest group involved in the preservation and promotion of Irish traditional culture. They are a non-profit cultural movement with hundreds of local branches around the world, and as you can read their history they’ve been working for the cause of Irish music since the middle of the last century (1951 to be precise). Their efforts continue with increasing zeal as the movement launches itself into the 21st century with a brand new website!
Dr. Douglas Hyde was Professor of Irish at U.C.D. and President of Ireland from 1939 - 1945. This Summer School of music, song and dance, is a continuation of the work begun by Hyde over one hundred years ago.
Eigse Mrs. Crotty 2007, now in its 12th year is a five day celebration of the life and music of one of the outstanding figures of traditional Irish music which is held in Kilrush, Co. Clare. Mrs. Crotty was a pioneer of the Fleadh Cheoil movement and was elected the first President of Comhaltas in Clare, a position she held until she died.
The website of Theresa Bourke’s Fiddlers Retreat, the first and only school of its kind in Ireland that runs a Traditional Irish Music and Culture School. Whether you are a musician or simply a music lover there is a course for you at Fiddlers Retreat.
Every year, towards the end of July or the beginning of August, the beautiful village of Riverstown plays host to the The James Morrison Traditional Music Festival. The Festival commemorates the musical genius of Sligo’s James Morrison and his contemporaries. Born in Drumfin near Riverstown 1893, emigrated to America in 1915, James died in New York in 1947.
The Queen Maeve International Summer School of Irish Music and Song, held in Sligo Town, Ireland. Classes held daily in Tin Whistle; Flute; Traditonal Singing; Button Accordion; Piano Accordion; and Fiddle.
Crehan’s is a Dublin-based shop supplying musical instrument sales, repair and accessories.
Custy’s Traditional Music Shop in Ennis, Co. Clare came into being in early September, 1992. It was the brainchild of Frances Custy who saw the need for a niche shop like this to supply the ever-growing interest in quality Traditional Irish music. They stock a varied selection of musical instruments to suit all needs. Pride of place in the shop goes to local and independently produced releases, an area which is thankfully thriving in Co.Clare.
A new web-based business, trading in Irish Ballad Books which contain music scores, guitar chords and structures, historical information about each song, photographs of Ireland’s people and countryside and CDs which feature the first verse and chorus of each song.
Ray Sloan makes Irish Uilleann pipes and Scottish Smallpipes. Ray is also a piper, and his CD is available for purchase from his website. The site also contains some audio samples of the various types of pipes.
The primary focus of this site is to provide information on the bodhrán maker Seamus O’Kane, and to provide a little background information on bodhráns.
Allaboutaccordions is run by Sean Garvey, accordion player and accordion builder and is based in Walkinstown, Dublin. They stock a large range of accordions and carry a varied selection of tunings and most keys.
Is í aidhm na Comhdhála ná bá agus tacaíocht don Ghaeilge mar bheotheanga agus cumas inti a neartú agus a bhuanú le go mbeidh sí á húsáid go saoráideach agus go forleathan i ngach gné de shaol mhuintir na hÉireann.
Conradh na Gaeilge is renowned for the provision of Irish language classes for adults. They are acclaimed for being the first to provide an adult education scheme in Ireland at the end of the 19th century.
Foras na Gaeilge, the body responsible for the promotion of the Irish language throughout the whole island of Ireland, was founded on the second day of December 1999. In the Good Friday Agreement, it was stated that a North/South Implementation body be set up to promote both the Irish language and the Ulster Scots language. Under the auspices of this body, Foras na Gaeilge will carry out all the designated responsibilities regarding the Irish language.
Gael Linn endeavours to promote the Irish Language in a host of different ways, through music, song, sport, debating and courses, amongst other activities. The Gael Linn music label is a hallmark of quality traditional music and song.
The Centre is a tribute to Michael Coleman, one of the most influential traditional musicians of all time is located in Gurteen Co. Sligo.The Site contains Concert Listings for our theatre, event guide, information South Sligo area and an Online Store which sells Cds, Books, Instruments and Mp3s.
Fáilte Ireland, the National Tourism Development Authority, established under the National Tourism Development Authority Act, 2003, brings together and builds on the functions previously discharged by Bord Fáilte and CERT.
A directory of Irish web sites.
A website containing genealogy, business, personal, shopping and entertainment links relating to the Irish around the world.
Island Ireland is an Internet directory to Irish art, culture and environment with hand-picked links to Irish history, architecture, music, news, genealogy, travel, literature, folk culture, archaeology, the Irish language and more.
Tourism Ireland was established under the framework of the Belfast Agreement of Good Friday, April 1998, to increase tourism to the island of Ireland as a whole. Today the organisation employs 150 people to deliver targeted marketing programmes and work in close cooperation with travel trade, on-line operators, media, carriers and Irish industry partners.
Visitdublin.com is the foremost tourist website for Ireland’s capital with over 5,000 pages of information attracting in access of 300,000 unique visitors each month around the globe.
Steve J. Turner an Uilleann Piper gives you some information on why he feels the Uilleann Pipes, the Irish bagpipes, are the greatest instrument in existence. His love affair with the Uilleann Pipes started when a friend played an old recording of Finbar and Eddie Furey one evening many years ago. He instantly fell in love with the sound of the pipes, the energy and feeling contained within the music, and vowed there and then to learn more about this awesome and complex instrument.
“ABC” is a text-based format used by many people for transcribing and sharing traditional Irish music. ABC2Win is a popular shareware programme written to edit and print this music notation.
ForeFront is one of Irelands leading Production Companies dedicated to servicing the needs of Broadcasters, Film Makers and TV Production Companies. Established in 1988 ForeFront provides a comprehensive range of Production and Post-Production facilities.
Henrik Norbek has written a computer programme called ABCMus which does a decent job of playing back Irish music with a definable style. His page also includes a good library of tunes in the ABC notation format, similar to the tunes at
An Coimisiún le Rincí Gaelacha (the Irish Dancing Commission) was established by Conradh na Gaeilge – The Gaelic League – in the late twenties as a commission for the purpose of examining the organisation of Irish dancing as it existed at that time and to make recommendations as to how it might be better organised in the future. The influence of An Coimisiún continues to spread throughout the world and they have active classes in continental Europe, in South Africa and as far away as South America.
A calendar of Irish traditional music and dance events: sessions, concerts, classes, céilithe, summer schools (in the US and Ireland) and festivals in the Mid Atlantic region of the USA. Includes:
The CD’s Vol I and 2 “Hidden Fermanagh” highlight the rich musical traditions of the Erne County. Already well noted for its vast store of traditional music “Hidden Fermanagh” unearths many tunes from the mid nineteenth century found in The John Gunn Book and hitherto unrecorded Also tunes from the playing of Mick Hoy , Eddie Duffy, Big John McManus and Cathal MacConnell. The Book ” Hidden Fermanagh” written by Cyril Maguire which accompanies the CD contains transcripts of over one hundred tunes and thirty three songs.
A collection of links relating to Harp summer schools, artists, CDs, books, festivals and organisations.
From the commercial recordings of traditional tunes, and to the experimentation with other musical cultures, Irish Music Magazine keeps readers informed about upcoming tours, events and also festivals from the diverse world of Irish and Celtic acoustic music.
Links relating to CDs, festivals, summer schools, groups, concert tour schedules relating to Irish music.
Set Dancing News was the first web site about Irish set dancing, going online in December 1995. It was originally intended to provide information of interest to dancers in London, with listings of local, British and Irish events. This eventually broadened to Europe, North America and anywhere set dancing is found.
Back in the 40s and 50s my Dad (Donagh MacDonagh) did a programme on Radio Eireann called Ireland is Singing. Songs for the programme were sent in by listeners and the staff would set them to a tune (for the most part the songs did not come with any indication of the correct tune) and they would be sung on the programme. This resulted in a major body of songs, many of which are not commonly available elsewhere.
The exchange of tunes is what keeps traditional Irish music alive. This website is one way of passing on jigs, reels and other dance tunes. Some of the tunes are well known, and some are more obscure. It’s this mixture of the familiar and the new that makes for a good session. This site is very popular with musicians, and the discussions on the message boards can be quite lively.
Vince Hearns is a Dubliner who lives with his beautiful wife Mona at the foot of Knocknarea Mountain on the southern shore of Sligo Bay . He resided in Co. Clare (1965-72), lived in a village in Co. Cork (1972-74) and lived in Co. Carlow (1974-79). A fluent Irish speaker he has been collecting and recording traditional Irish music and song for almost forty years, some of his collected work is in the National Archive in the headquarters of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann in Dublin .
Steve J. Turner an Uilleann Piper gives you some information on why he feels the Uilleann Pipes, the Irish bagpipes, are the greatest instrument in existence. His love affair with the Uilleann Pipes started when a friend played an old recording of Finbar and Eddie Furey one evening many years ago. He instantly fell in love with the sound of the pipes, the energy and feeling contained within the music, and vowed there and then to learn more about this awesome and complex instrument.
“At First Light” comprises the talents of world renowned Uilleann Piper John McSherry, outstanding young fiddle player Dónal O’Connor, Francis McIlduff from the famous McPeake clann, Alan Burke, formerly of the band Afterhours and Rubén Bada. The band is an exciting new entry to the Irish traditional music scene, and well worth a listen.
Ceoltóiri na Sionnaine are a group of 30 musicians, singers and dancers from all corners of Munster. The group provides an outlet for young musicians involved in Comhaltas to perform and show their talents. Through interaction with professional musicians and arrangers, everyone involved has the opportunity to gain a wealth of experience and knowledge invaluable to any musician.
Dervish is one of the better-known bands playing Irish traditional music worldwide. It’s now nearly 18 years since first coming together and with four of the original members still at the helm, Dervish are more in demand than ever. Their colorful career has taken them to every corner of the globe and has seen them share centre stage with such names as James Brown, The Buena Vista Social Club, Oasis, Sting, REM, Beck and many more.
Lúnasa has become one of the most sought-after bands on the international Irish music scene. The band’s inventive arrangements and bass-driven grooves are steering Irish acoustic music into surprising new territory.
The Site includes information on: Tour Dates, Contact Details, Biography (About), Photos, Audio Samples, Video, Discography (Recordings), Reviews (Press Releases), News, Tour Dates and Links all related to the Irish traditional concertina player, Pádraig Rynne.
Site of the accordion player Vincent McGrath. Vincent McGrath was born in Ros Dumhach (Rossport), a small village perched above the Atlantic Ocean in the beautifull Erris region of Co.Mayo. He is carrying on a tradition inherited from a family of renowned musicians and dancers.