UNIT 3
SCOTTISH MUSIC
TRADITIONAL INSTRUMENTS _____________________________________________________________________________________________LESSON ONE: Description
Traditional Scottish Music is known all over the world. It has had important influences from Ireland and England; however, it has kept many of its traditional aspects and has its own identity.
To speak about Scottish music is to speak about Ceilidh. In Gaelic this word means: “a visiting” so Ceilidh means a group of friends or neighbours that got together after the day’s work to be in good company with a bit of story-telling and music thrown in. There were no separation between audience and performers, every one had the opportunity to dance, sing or play an instrument. There was a very friendly atmosphere. Nowadays it looks like a more serious concert.
The instruments that are usually played in Ceilidh bands are: fiddles, accordions and whistles. However, the most popular traditional Scottish instrument is the Bagpipe.
Activity 1
You are going to listen to five different kinds of instruments. Match the instruments with their definitions. Teachers' guide
Write the answers1. Fiddle ____________________________
2. Accordion _________________________
3. Clarsach __________________________
4. Whistle ___________________________
5. Bagpipe ___________________________
Activity 2 Teachers' guide
Listen to some definitions, write down all the words you can hear and then try to rebuild the sentence in order to get the concept. Compare with your partner.
Activity 3Read the definitions and describe each instrument to your partner . Look at this pattern:
What does a bagpipe look like?
It's a wind instrument
It has a bag full of air
It has ......
Bagpipes
It is a wind musical instrument. Its most important parts are: the bag, the chanter and the drone. The bag is simply a sack with air tight inside it.
The Chanter is the melody pipe and can be played by one or both hands. A drone is a note that continuously sounded throughout much or all of a piece. It is a sustained or repeated note.
The mechanism to play the bagpipes is by supplying air into the bag.
Fiddle
The fiddle is exactly the same instrument as the violin therefore it is a stringed instrument played with a bow. Its main pars are: the neck, the f-holes, the bridge and four strings. The difference between them is the music you play with it. If you play classical music it is a violin. If you play Scottish music it becomes a Fiddle. A fiddle is a really important member of the Ceilidh BandsAccordion
It is a wind musical instrument where the sound is produced as air flows past a vibrating reed. Air pressure is usually generated by bellows. A keyboard or buttons control which reed receive air flow producing different tones.
Clarsach
Clarsach is a Gaelic word for “small harp”. It is a stringed instrument. It has a triangular frame consisting of a column, a curved neck and strings that are played by plucking with the fingers. The Clarsach is the Scotland's oldest instrument but unfortunately, harping almost died out by the end of the 18th century, and the music, never written down, was lost.
Tin Whistle
It is a small wind instrument which produces sound from a stream of forced air. It is a tube made from brass with 7 holes. It is one of the easiest musical instruments to play as the fingering is not complicated.
Activity 4
Answer these questions:a. Only one of these instruments can't play two notes at the same time.
Which is that instrument?________________________
________________________________________________________________
b. Only one of these instruments can be part of the classic orchestra.
Which is that?____________________
When would it happen?____________________________________________
What is its name when Scottish music is played on it?_____________
Activity 5
Go to the Internet and look for this website http://www.thejiggers.co.uk
Look at this Ceilidh Band and answer these questions below:a. What instruments do they play?
___________________________________________________________
b. Do you think your country has that kind of events about its traditional music?
___________________________________________________________c. Do you think this music is old fashion or aimed at old people?
___________________________________________________________
d . How is the traditional music in your country?
___________________________________________________________e. Do you think that in your country people enjoy their traditional music as much as in Scotland? Why?
___________________________________________________________
Activity 6Write down all new words you have learnt. Classify them into music words and non music words.
