Tinwhistle Background Notes- General Musical Terms
A great deal of Irish music is dance music and falls into the two broad categories of jigs and reels. A reel is in 4/4 time and seems familiar to us because it is used in many country and bluegrass tunes. The jig, which is in 6/8 rhythm, is more like rocking in a boat, and may seem somewhat foreign to anyone who has not previously heard Irish music.
Many jigs and reels consist of two parts, with each part being 16 measures long. Tunes in this format are often referred to as being AABB, meaning that the first part is played twice and is then followed by the second part, which is also played twice.
Reels
This type of dance music seems to be the favorite of many Irish virtuoso players because it is generally played very fast, and, for this reason, it is usually the last type of Irish music mastered by a whistle player.
Hornpipes
Hornpipes are also in 4/4 time, but unlike the reels, they are usually played at a much slower tempo and are heavily accented.
Double Jigs
Double jigs, which are in 6/8 time, usually have six eighth notes per measure and very few rests.
Single Jigs
Single jigs use a mixture of quarter notes and eighth notes which means that some notes are held longer than in double jigs. Generally, single jigs are easier to play than double jigs because there are less notes per measure.
Slip Jigs
Slip jigs, also called hop jigs. are in 9/8 time and present problems primarily for the guitar and bodhran players, who must now adapt their accompaniments to 9 counts per measure.
Ornaments.
A Christmas tree would be very bare without ornaments, and the same is true for Irish melodies played without musical ornaments. The three most common ornaments are cuts, tips or taps, and rolls.
Cuts
A cut is a note, played quickly, before the principal note, and is usually called a grace note in musical notation. This grace note, or cut, is always a note above the principal note in pitch. A cut can be used to separate two repeated notes or to emphasize a particular note.
Tips or Taps
A tip is a grace note played directly below the principal note.
Rolls
A long roll consists of a cut and a tip separating three eighth notes and takes the same amount of time as a dotted quarter note. Whistlers will often play long rolls in an accented manner, with the first note of the roll being held longer than any of the other notes.
A short roll begins with a grace note and uses a tap to separate two eighth notes of the same pitch. The short roll takes up the same amount of time as a quarter note.
Articulation
Articulation is the way in which a note is played. Although the pitch remains the same, a note can be played in a variety of ways by utilizing the fingers, tongue and mouth with different techniques. The most common methods of articulation are sliding, vibrato and tongueing.
Sliding means to first play the note below the principle note and then slide the finger off of the appropriate hole to play the principal note. Sliding is usually used in slower tunes to avoid having to play a single note too long.
Vibrato means to break the flatness of a tone by creating a wavering or breathy sound. Vibrato is either created from varying the air flow in your mouth, or by moving fingers above open holes at least two notes below that note which is being played.
Tinwhistle Background Notes- General Musical Terms
A great deal of Irish music is dance music and falls into the two broad categories of jigs and reels. A reel is in 4/4 time and seems familiar to us because it is used in many country and bluegrass tunes. The jig, which is in 6/8 rhythm, is more like rocking in a boat, and may seem somewhat foreign to anyone who has not previously heard Irish music.
Many jigs and reels consist of two parts, with each part being 16 measures long. Tunes in this format are often referred to as being AABB, meaning that the first part is played twice and is then followed by the second part, which is also played twice.
Reels
This type of dance music seems to be the favorite of many Irish virtuoso players because it is generally played very fast, and, for this reason, it is usually the last type of Irish music mastered by a whistle player.
Hornpipes
Hornpipes are also in 4/4 time, but unlike the reels, they are usually played at a much slower tempo and are heavily accented.
Double Jigs
Double jigs, which are in 6/8 time, usually have six eighth notes per measure and very few rests.
Single Jigs
Single jigs use a mixture of quarter notes and eighth notes which means that some notes are held longer than in double jigs. Generally, single jigs are easier to play than double jigs because there are less notes per measure.
Slip Jigs
Slip jigs, also called hop jigs. are in 9/8 time and present problems primarily for the guitar and bodhran players, who must now adapt their accompaniments to 9 counts per measure.
Ornaments.
A Christmas tree would be very bare without ornaments, and the same is true for Irish melodies played without musical ornaments. The three most common ornaments are cuts, tips or taps, and rolls.
Cuts
A cut is a note, played quickly, before the principal note, and is usually called a grace note in musical notation. This grace note, or cut, is always a note above the principal note in pitch. A cut can be used to separate two repeated notes or to emphasize a particular note.
Tips or Taps
A tip is a grace note played directly below the principal note.
Rolls
A long roll consists of a cut and a tip separating three eighth notes and takes the same amount of time as a dotted quarter note. Whistlers will often play long rolls in an accented manner, with the first note of the roll being held longer than any of the other notes.
A short roll begins with a grace note and uses a tap to separate two eighth notes of the same pitch. The short roll takes up the same amount of time as a quarter note.
Articulation
Articulation is the way in which a note is played. Although the pitch remains the same, a note can be played in a variety of ways by utilizing the fingers, tongue and mouth with different techniques. The most common methods of articulation are sliding, vibrato and tongueing.
Sliding means to first play the note below the principle note and then slide the finger off of the appropriate hole to play the principal note. Sliding is usually used in slower tunes to avoid having to play a single note too long.
Vibrato means to break the flatness of a tone by creating a wavering or breathy sound. Vibrato is either created from varying the air flow in your mouth, or by moving fingers above open holes at least two notes below that note which is being played.