Celtic Music

Celtic MusicHowever, this nation also accepted Christianity
The word ´Celtic´ (read(some sources claim this to be in the 6th century
´keltick´) has found its way into thewith St. Patrick, some claim it was much earlier)
vocabulary of the modern man. Even though itand many of them stopped believing and
used to be mentioned mostly in contexts dealingworshipping the creation and started singing about
with history, nowadays you can find thethe Creator, the One who had made the wind,
´Celtic´ label on many products andthe stones and the trees, the One who had
projects. Some sources say that it is nowkindled the stars.
officially ´cool to be Celtic´. Hundreds ofBecause of rising popularity of this style
people have recently come up with some(sometimes not only a style of music, but even a
´Celtic stuff´, everything from doingstyle of living), you can buy a lot of trash if you
music and dancing to, for instance, cooking.just go around buying things labelled
The popularity of Celtic music is constantly soaring´Celtic´. Therefore, be careful when
and it deserves to be mentioned when discussingbuying yourself presents.
modern music, not only music of the British Isles.Maíre Brennan
Most of the world is surely familiar with the musicMaíre Brennan is definitely not a novice in
of the famous Enya and some of you may havethe field of Celtic music. If you haven´t heard
heard Mike Oldfield´s utterly Celtic CDof her, you must have heard about her sister,
Voyager. Another rather well known CelticEnya. Maíre plays the Celtic harp and the
project is Riverdance. These are only a fewkeyboards. She sings either in English or her native
examples out of many. The music has the soundGaelic. She is the founding member of the band
of the highlands, the sound of the past as well asClannad and since 1992 has been making solo
the present of the Scots, the Welsh and the Irish.albums, too.
Celtic blood flows through the veins of manyClannad has been around since 1973. They were
Europeans and Americans and, it seems, we arepioneers in using Celtic motives in popular music
somehow returning to this ancient heritage.and seventeen bestselling records brought them
Traditionally, Celtic musicians use acousticworld-wide popularity. The band was formed by
instruments or unaccompanied vocals. However,Maíre´s two uncles and two younger
you will find many modern bands who are usingbrothers. Her sister, Enya, left Clannad after
less-traditional instruments, such as electric andsinging with them for three years. Their first
bass guitars, keyboards, drums, mandolins, etc. toperformances took place in a pub owned by
create their distinctive Celtic features. You canMaíre´s father. Many people criticized
buy CD´s with Celtic lullabies, Celtic hymns,their singing in Gaelic, but this feature helped them
Celtic Christmas carols, Celtic rock, Celtic danceform their own identity and start a new music
music and even Celtic techno. Despite this variety,style. Many years have passed since their first
in most cases the music manages to bring theshows. Their music has continued to improve and
beauty, the richness, the joy and mirth, and thetheir fame has risen. Clannad´s music was
ideals of the old Celts to our present-day world.even used in many popular movies, such as Robin
The traditional instruments include, for example,Hood and The Last of the Mohicans. The world
the tin whistle (you can hear it in Celine Dion's Mycan also hear Maíre´s voice in the duet
Heart Will Go On), Uillean pipes, highland pipes,´In a Lifetime´ with Bono, the lead singer
bodhran (a special drum played by hand), Celticof U2. She has also had a share in the film Titanic,
harp and others. The lyrics to the music are, ifwhere her song ´Come Josephine, in My
not in English, in Gaelic (the old language of theFlying Machine´ was used. In 1999,
Celts, which is still used in some rural parts ofClannad´s album Landmarks was awarded a
northern Scotland and some islands to the northGrammy.
of Britain) or other Celtic languages, such asMaíre´s solo projects were not enjoying
Welsh or Irish Gaelic.as much success as Clannad´s. The first solo
The themes of Celtic music are many. Besidealbum that was recognised by critics was Perfect
tunes telling of everyday simple things, there areTime, which came out in 1998. Whisper to the
songs celebrating nature and its beauty. It isWild Waters arrived a year later and satisfied
known that the Celts worshipped nature, stones,both fans and critics. Both albums have a Christian
trees, stars, the wind, the sun, the moon andmessage in them, one of hope, love and peace.
other things. This is often reflected in their music.