• Smithsonian
    Institution
  • Travel
    With Us
  • Smithsonian
    Store
  • Smithsonian
    Channel
  • goSmithsonian
    Visitors Guide
  • Air & Space
    magazine

Smithsonian.com

  • Subscribe
  • History & Archaeology
  • Science
  • Ideas & Innovations
  • Arts & Culture
  • Travel & Food
  • At the Smithsonian
  • Photos
  • Videos
  • Games
  • Shop
  • Art
  • Design
  • Fashion
  • Music & Film
  • Books
  • Art Meets Science
  • Arts & Culture

There’s More to Celtic Music Than “Danny Boy”

A new album from Smithsonian Folkways will brighten anyone’s St. Patrick’s Day

| | | Reddit | Digg | Stumble | Email |
  • By Leah Binkovitz
  • Smithsonian magazine, March 2013, Subscribe
 
<i>Classic Celtic Music</i>
Classic Celtic Music (Smithsonian Folkways)

Audio Gallery

Listen to a Free Stream of Classic Classic Music


Beyond “Danny Boy” Celtic music, says Richard Carlin, a record producer who has long specialized in the genre, “runs far, far deeper than something like Riverdance.” For the just-released Classic Celtic Music, he combed the Smithsonian Folkways vaults for 23 choice tracks, recorded between 1945 and 1986, that would brighten anybody’s St. Patrick’s Day: a jig by fiddler Michael Gorman and banjoist Margaret Barry, an air with Billy Pigg on Northumbrian smallpipes, a song by the Irish vocalist Sorcha Ní Ghuairim in the lilting, haunting style known as sean-nós. Dancing encouraged but not required.


Beyond “Danny Boy” Celtic music, says Richard Carlin, a record producer who has long specialized in the genre, “runs far, far deeper than something like Riverdance.” For the just-released Classic Celtic Music, he combed the Smithsonian Folkways vaults for 23 choice tracks, recorded between 1945 and 1986, that would brighten anybody’s St. Patrick’s Day: a jig by fiddler Michael Gorman and banjoist Margaret Barry, an air with Billy Pigg on Northumbrian smallpipes, a song by the Irish vocalist Sorcha Ní Ghuairim in the lilting, haunting style known as sean-nós. Dancing encouraged but not required.

    Subscribe now for more of Smithsonian's coverage on history, science and nature.


Related topics: Folk Ireland


| | | Reddit | Digg | Stumble | Email |
 

Add New Comment


Name: (required)

Email: (required)

Comment:

Comments are moderated, and will not appear until Smithsonian.com has approved them. Smithsonian reserves the right not to post any comments that are unlawful, threatening, offensive, defamatory, invasive of a person's privacy, inappropriate, confidential or proprietary, political messages, product endorsements, or other content that might otherwise violate any laws or policies.

Comments (7)

i am a member of smithsonium how do i click in to listen to celtic music?

Posted by Justin Horowitz on May 8,2013 | 03:36 PM

Smithsonian magazine sent me to this site with the enticement that I could listen to a sample. NOT!!! Too bad - if I could have heard a sampling it would have made me go look for a way to buy a copy. And it is too bad this site doesn't offer a way to purchase or a guide to the store. Nothing like inaccessibility to whet the appetite, huh?

Posted by Robert Welch on April 2,2013 | 07:59 PM

I agree with Todd. Why mention something with retail opportunities and not say where it can be purchased? Plus it's a Smithsonian Folkways product, so doubly sad. I live in the DC area. Does anyone know where I can get 5 copies of this cd by Friday? I'd like to give them as presents if I can get them. Thanks to all. And Smithsonian, please think more retail when you produce or highlight such interesting projects.

Posted by Joyce Covington on March 9,2013 | 10:16 AM

Love celtic music hope to enjoy it

Posted by Barb Jette on March 6,2013 | 07:17 PM

It's available here: http://www.folkways.si.edu/classic-celtic-music-from-folkways/album/smithsonian

Posted by Jeff Inglis on March 3,2013 | 07:45 PM

I was hoping to acquire this through Smithsonian.com. Is it out in retail stores and which ones?

Posted by judith dare on March 3,2013 | 04:05 PM

What a wonderful collection...why is it not available in the Smithsonian store, and why is there no mention in the article of when it will become available?

Posted by TODD A. HUFFMAN on March 1,2013 | 09:40 AM



Advertisement


Most Popular

  • Viewed
  • Emailed
  • Commented
  1. Michael Pollan and Ruth Reichl Hash out the Food Revolution
  2. Never Underestimate the Power of a Paint Tube
  3. The Amazing Grace of Underwater Portraits
  4. When Did Girls Start Wearing Pink?
  5. Real Places Behind Famously Frightening Stories
  6. The Story Behind Banksy
  7. A Brief History of Chocolate
  8. The Saddest Movie in the World
  9. How Posters Helped Shape America and Change the World
  10. Will the Real Great Gatsby Please Stand Up?
  1. America’s Oldest Sweet Shop Gets a Hipster Makeover
  2. The Amazing Grace of Underwater Portraits
  3. The Story Behind Banksy
  1. Do Kids Have Too Much Homework?
  2. The Top 10 Books Lost to Time
  3. When Did Girls Start Wearing Pink?
  4. America’s Forgotten Landscape Painter: Robert S. Duncanson

View All Most Popular »

Advertisement

Follow Us

Smithsonian Magazine
@SmithsonianMag
Follow Smithsonian Magazine on Twitter

Sign up for regular email updates from Smithsonian.com, including daily newsletters and special offers.

In The Magazine

June 2013

  • The Mind on Fire
  • Burning Desire
  • 10 Epiphanies
  • Rocket Fuel
  • Accounting for Taste

View Table of Contents »






First Name
Last Name
Address 1
Address 2
City
State   Zip
Email


Travel with Smithsonian




Smithsonian Store

Stars and Stripes Throw

Our exclusive Stars and Stripes Throw is a three-layer adaption of the 1861 “Stars and Stripes” quilt... $65



View full archiveRecent Issues


  • Jun 2013


  • May 2013


  • Apr 2013

Newsletter

Sign up for regular email updates from Smithsonian magazine, including free newsletters, special offers and current news updates.

Subscribe Now

About Us

Smithsonian.com expands on Smithsonian magazine's in-depth coverage of history, science, nature, the arts, travel, world culture and technology. Join us regularly as we take a dynamic and interactive approach to exploring modern and historic perspectives on the arts, sciences, nature, world culture and travel, including videos, blogs and a reader forum.

Explore our Brands

  • goSmithsonian.com
  • Smithsonian Air & Space Museum
  • Smithsonian Student Travel
  • Smithsonian Catalogue
  • Smithsonian Journeys
  • Smithsonian Channel
  • About Smithsonian
  • Contact Us
  • Advertising
  • Subscribe
  • RSS
  • Topics
  • Member Services
  • Copyright
  • Site Map
  • Privacy Policy
  • Ad Choices

Smithsonian Institution