The Irish Art of Lilting and What it Means For You
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- Опубліковано 28 тра 2021
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Music Used:
• Storytelling Mayo & Do...
• Deck The Halls - Chris...
• Helan går
• Lilting: Queen of the ...
• Dermot Power singing o...
• Seamus Ennis-An Poc Ar...
• Robbie McMahon The Mas...
Video at the end:
• Can Anyone Play The Fi...
All other videos/pictures are either from UA-cam, Wikipedia, or are self-produced.
as an irish person, i had no idea there was a word for this. i thought it was just something everyone instinctually did when they hear some eye-diddly-eyedle music
I'm also Irish and thought the same. All my kids babbled like that before they could even speak. I would think this is a universal phenomenon, not just an Irish thing, but who knows. Potatoes and now this. How lucky can one nationality get!?! Lol
@@bobhughes9628 hahahahaha
I'm English and this was a surprise as well.
Same from the diaspora, 2nd gen American here... I am familiar with the concept of portaireacht having a name but that's not improvised, those are exact lyrics. Good example being the non-words in "rare auld mountain dew"
Same here I’m Irish and I thought it was as universal as humming, watched this whole video in disbelief
This little irish bit of culture is proof that no matter how hard times got or how harsh the winter or how tuff the boot upon our necks, we shall always have music to dance free.
This made me tear up man. What a beautiful and absolutely correct comment. This music doesn't really require a language at all, so even during times where our language was banned, we could still sing and dance to our hearts content. The Irish spirit truly never dies. Éirinn go Brách 💚🤍🧡
My grandad was from Ireland, and had the habit of humming, singing and lilting as he went through his daily life. The Irish are a lyrical people, and grandad was no exception. He had more of a free-form style of lilting, but with particular repetition of "rub-a-dubs" and "rik-a-tai-ais" and other non-lexical norms that sounded funny and silly to a young boy. I hadn't thought about it in years, until I watched your video. Sure wish I had a recording of him lilting with his thick brogue.
1 year on I am reading your comment, in a bar in ireland new years eve have good one
@@frankdunne2401 It is not New Year's Eve. It is Christmas Eve.
@@dashroodle9507
Bloody scientists ! Born on Wednesday, the lot of em ..
@@peregrinegrace8570 hahaha. What are you talking about?
You won't hear anyone under 70 yo lilting in Ireland, especially in the cities. They are too busy trying to be anything but what brings in the international tourists. You'll have to visit the Irish-speaking areas (Gaeltacht) before the decade is over. They are bleeding young people who don't want to live like that.
Most percussionists (African/Afrocuban) have a saying: "if you can say it, you can play it". Indian music has a spoken form that allows a player to internalize the music as well.
My friend told me this about playing the guitar long ago, too. He said you have to be able to do it vocally first. Otherwise, it is just button mashing strings.
The word for the spoken sounds in Indian music is bols, which is plural of bol referring to the individual sounds. It's incredible watching people play the Tabla.
It’s basically the noises you make when you can’t remember the lyrics to a song!
In America we call this jack blacking it
@@lucasorourke8759 Greatest song in the world! this is a ttribuuuuuttte!
One step up from humming.
amen
Well actually it's for when there is no words and you can't afford an instrument
My father would do this for me as a young child. I had an intestinal disorder and was in constant pain. My father would would hold me and bounce me gently on his knees and "lilt" a made-up song he called the "dumpy dee's" until I fell asleep. It would take hours. I remember seeing the sunrise through my window. He would get 3 to 4 hours sleep and go to work, then do it all over again. He never complained. I love you forever, dad. Rest in peace.
How lucky to have a Dad like that.
I'm so sorry for your loss, he sounds like a wonderful father.
As a child, I had the same experience with my dad who was from Co. Mayo. I was born in Mayo too but brought up in England from the age of four. Never knew there was an actual name for this.
What a dad! Hope you’re free of pain now ?
My dad always lilting when I was kid.
My Irish immigrant grandparents did this all the time when I was growing up, I never knew it had a name
You're blessed with good genes and beautiful.
@@Dman3827 incel moment
@@Dman3827 Leave young girls alone, lmao. You're like 30 years old.
based and whitepilled
For anyone who doesn't know, "Puss" (or "Pus") is a word nativised to Irish English, Scotsm and Ulster-Scots from a goidelic word for mouth. Where I come from it usually refers to one's face, but can still be used to refer to someone's mouth, so, it could make sense as meaning 'mouth music' or 'face music' in more regional dialects/languages of Scotland and Ireland.
I didn't realise that was of irish origin, considering how common it is in the english lexicon. For instance, calling someone a "sour puss." It does seem to be somewhat archaic in the US, however.
„Puss“ means kiss in Swedish 💋
I've heard "one in the puss" being used to describe being hit in the mouth by someone. It's definitely a rural or regional thing.
People saying "don't be a sour puss" when someone is frowning makes so much more sense now!
I am Slovak and we use this slang term for both mouth and kiss: "pusa". So I instinctively guessed the puss right.
Edit: when I think of it, we probably borrowed it from Austrian German
It's weird that "scatting"/scat singing wasn't mentioned as an obvious connection.
I never thought about it, but the feeling of "it's easy to get into, but you better plan ahead or else you stumble through ill-fitting sounds or too repetitive a pattern" made it click in my head
Or take traditional hindustani Tintal tabla music: Use "bol"s (kind of like lilts, explicitly as mnemonics for the rhytm) to define the "theka", then play it... Here Ustad Zakir Hussain, ua-cam.com/video/ZtRPB8xHP8M/v-deo.html --- both scat and tintal is predominantly improvised, as opposed to typical irish 'ditties'.
I’m pretty sure Lilting predates scatting. Just like Irish step dancing predates tap dancing.
@@irishgrl Sure, that would be my guess as well
I was thinking the same thing
@@irishgrl American Clog dancing is derived from Irish step dancing. Tap dancing is derived from clog dancing.
Yodeling is very close to lilting. I would think that most cultures have some form of this “instrument-like” singlng.
My Irish father did this more-or-less constantly and everywhere.
Yes, the ‘mouth music’ or ‘diddlee diddlee dum’ stuff is definitely not common humming as some seemed confused at that. Another confusion is not to see that the Irish guys are doing the notes &/or the tune, & not just humming it in a bland monsyaballic way.
Humming may be used in it though. A unique version of oral music known in different forms thruout the world. The Lilting is imitating musical instruments and also sounding out the tune, using the refrains called by my Irish family ‘diddly diddlee dum’. The meaning of which has been lost to us in the distant Gaelic past. But many of the refrains in insular folk music that seem like nonsense are also old Irish, Brythonic, German, Gaelic phrases usually I believe, referring to the Deity(the sound ‘day’ or ‘dee’) in one form or another.
My parents were from Ireland, my mother born speaking Irish, learning English in school. I grew up with many Irish aunts and uncles and this ‘mouth music’ was as common as coughing among us.
My Irish twin brother (+18mos) and I took their palavering and lilting & gift of the gabbing & made up our own pig-pidgin-speak that was a combination of what we thought was Irish, English, Latin, French, Diddly, etc., & communicate to each as a goof in front of friends.
Most of our friends thought it was Irish Gaelic & we never said it wasn’t.
Funny but Joe & I knew exactly what we were saying to each other in our crazy patois that would contain paragraphs and repeated phrases, some of which always appeared when we did it. Like we were channeling our decd ancestors, lol. And we usta do impromptu duos of the diddly diddly variety not having a clue it was an ancient art form, lol.
I usta sing and play in bands, mostly hand drums, got good with the Irish Bodhran, and at certain times, when playing Celtic music, & the lyrics were temporarily misplaced I’d do a diddly diddly refrain & as long as I didn’t act like I forgot, nobody knew I did.
But, but, I just never put 2 + 2 together until your video Oscopo, that this what you call ‘lilting’ could be considered in itself as a musical form. Shite, those two brothers are almost as good as me and Joe, lol.
Thanks for the lightbulb, duh.
Yes, mine also. I grew up listening to him do this. Sometimes he would do it under his breath. He would also whistle. He was good at it...
@@michael7324 Haha my dad couldn't whistle well but he did like to bang out tunes on anything he was holding!
diddling?
My old man did the same , Always singing when happy and now I know Lilting. He was from Portumna born 1930, He was a hard man from a different time set in his ways. Did not like Elvis or rock n roll . It was all Baloney or I would'nt give you Tuppence for it . Always telling stories of back home and the state of Ireland these days.
In Scotland it’s called puirt a beul (a tune from the mouth). It is used to accompany dance too. When my dad played in a pipe band, they used tan-tup-ta-ra (or something - I’m not a drummer) for drum patterns. Each different syllable gives you a different specific drum strike with its duration or lack of it. This is also done in India to give drum patterns.
Whiskey Galore has a wonderful scene on the Isle of Barra.
Port a' bhéil means the same thing in Irish Gaelic, although the tunes usually have lyrics with lilting just replacing a chorus.
Puirt a beul actually has true words rather than vocables - brochan lom, and cailleach liath ratharsay would be examples
Yes!! Canntaireachd I learned by ear better than by sheet music.
Made this same connection while watching, thanks for these comments!
Bro made me learn about my heritage and made my heart feel warm. Instant success for me to binge watch your entire channel.
I wish I had more for you to watch
@@Oscopo that's okay. I luv u ❤
Ned Flanders makes a lot more sense now....
Sharpwit !
Well spotted bud and the weird thing is they say that it's the Sampsons that have Irish ancestry but all along it's been ole Ned diddly Flanders.......diddly
Stupid sexy Flanders..
Neddy 'o Flanders
I thought about Ned Flanders and how he is all about this lifestyle. This is the basis of who he is as a character.
A big part of gaelic music is that everyone takes part. When you listen to the music a big part is clapping, singing, banging glasses. Not only the performers but the whole room . Lilting plays a part of this as it let's people sing reels (they have no lyrics)
Probaly the same with folk music everywhere in this world.
@@iagobroxado: Probably the same in every pub and parlour where people get a wee bit too drunk, lol.
I think the Gypsy people in Southern Spain have something of this taking part tradition, They travelled across Europe from East to West, through many cultures that have a Celt/Gael root. They also clap, bang the table, etc as well..
Not to forget the link of intricate and fast footwork dancing.
@@flamencoprof Probably not coincidence given the fact that the modern Irish ethnic majority is originally from Spain
Same goes for Swedish folk music. The musicians may be playing, but the listeners are encouraged to clap, stomp, holler and sing along
We have our own version of that over to the other side of the sea in Québec, we call it “Turlutte” most commonly associated to La Bolduc who popularized it in the 30s
It also pops up around Christmas and new year’s in a myriad of folk songs
La fameuse turlutte
Moi ca me rappelle la cabane a sucre haha! Tpujours quelqun qui "chante" vomme ca avec des cuillères en acompagnement!!!
Some of the mountain people in Kentucky have a version of this. I really like what they do. It goes along with their bluegrass music.
Its to be expected as they're decendents of Irish immigrants
@@user-ly3li3ex8c Scots-Irish and Ulstier Scots.
@@barrettwissell9708 yep exactly
Irish traditional flute player here and its very werid to see this from an outside perspective! Everything in the video is pretty much bang on and lilting is exactly as it sounds, households that were poor and couldn't afford instrument would use things like tablespoons and lilt to play music. In sessions its pretty common for someone to stand up and lilt in between sets. Muscians and crowds are usually pretty respectful and keep noise down so a lilter can be heard. Theres no right or wrong way to do it, tunes are just sang like they would sound if they were played on an instrument. Really good video man, keep it up!
I'm an Irish drummer and feel the same way. Seeing a foreigner take an interest in what is the norm for us was interesting. Until I could afford my first drum, I pounded out rhythms on anything that came into my hands. Do you think Americans would be horrified if they knew how young we start playing as musicians in pubs? Should we even tell them? I'd like to see a video on that LOL.
I play keyboard/piano and lilting is also useful when you're thinking of a song but cant remember the name. 😆
This is very weird
@@THEED123 Youre weird.
@@RayPoo122 great comment bro
My favourite song that has Lilting is “Boil the Breakfast Early” by The Chieftains
My Irish father always joked that lilting happened at the point in the night when everyone was too drunk to remember the lyrics anymore haha
I grew up hearing this and thought they were singing in a very repetitive other language🤣 loved it tho
Yes! That's the first song I thought of!
Accurate
so about half an hour in then?
"Boil the Breakfast Early" was the first Chieftain's album I bought. I wasn't into the music but heard it on a trip to the record store and bought it blind. Best 'waste of money' ever! Since then 'what a long strange trip it's been'!
I would bet this is were "scatting" comes from!
Ireland is so facinating, you can see irish roots in the apalachians, in country music, which in turn gave way for rock music, the Irish are so incredibly influential and keeps traditions so well kept. *
In Sweden we lost all kinds of communal gatherings around song and dance to the industrialization, we lost family and traditions and dancing and so much.
Big respect to Ireland.
There is a strong Irish influence in American country music from the Irish immigrants in Appalachia
I remember my nana singing like this for me when I was little and I had no idea there was a word for it. Thanks for bringing back the nostalgia!
Can we appreciate the fact that this content was produced by someone with less than 1k subscribers whose previous video has less than 200 views?
Locally-sourced, scratch-made, artisinal, small-batch, craft content.
Praise the algorithm!
The fact that there are still Human beings on UA-cam comes as a great surprise to me as well, tbh
We will watch your career with great interest.
Can we appreciate the fact that this comment was produced by someone with less than 1k subscribers whose previous comment probably has less than 20 likes.
I'm Irish an I'm lilting every day over here..it's our way of singing an the purest way of expressing Irish music cos any aul soul can do it
Beautiful
Every day? Really
Yes, I guess superior qualities of music are "impurities" lol.
@@NellieKAdaba Beautiful?...try working all day with him...
American of Irish decent here. I lilt nearly every day myself. But, I think anyone who listens to Irish folk music can't help it. I mean, can you even listen to Makem and the Clancy Brothers and not sing along?
This has enriched my understanding of the connotation of the term “lilting accent”.
I was super immersed in irish music as a child because I was obsessed with fairies and other fae, but I haven’t thought about that in years but I picked up on this in the music. I didn’t know it was considered “rare knowledge” I even have my own spelling (though im no phoneticist) “liddle” pronounced lie-dle.
So crazy that this video managed to bring that memory back
Wow youtube really decided to just bless you with the algorithm
Any sca boy?
🕶️
Clear !
Idk if blessed is the word I'd use
Diddly do, it's a thing. Who knew 🤔
The chorus "Aililiú" in An póc ar buille (the mad poc goat) is not lilting. Aililiú is a word. From one dictionary it is defined as "good gracious! Strange! Wonderful!". It could be considered an interjection. It also possibly has hallelujah as a root.
Thank you, too many people aren't understanding this
Came here to say this!
Yep, basically like when we yell "Holy Shit!" in English.
What about builelú/puilelú - the next one?
You have something similar in English music, e.g. the word folderol, which Google tells me means 'trivial or nonsensical fuss', but which is often used among non-lexical sounds like 'folderol diddle-aye ay'. I guess it's sort of a mid-point between diddling and... song-ing?
In Switzerland the concept of yodeling is similar. I use Switzerland specifically because I am Swiss, but also because there are 2 distinctly different types of yodeling. Or a lot more, but here we'll just break it down to the 2 basic categories. Fast and slow. The slow yodel since I am Bernese i would call it Jutze, but it's also Juiz, Naturjodel, and the Appenzell Zäuerli as well. This comes probably from cattle calls, the viehlochruf chüeliheili, or whatever you want to call it, and is the sort of thing a farmer might do it in the fields or out on the mountains herding his goats or cows.
The other is probably what you're familiar with, the faster sort of yodel with a lot of register changes and rapid syllables. This has a similar origin to the Irish lilting, and comes from imitating the sound of an accordion, or the same sort of music as it used to be played on the fiddle before the days of the accordion, or doing some sort of nonsense vocalizing that goes along with the music being played on instruments. The Swiss are apt to shout along with the music as it's played, and so naturally this shouting starts to become more musical over time. Hence yodeling.
I’ve been playing Celtic music my entire life, family was Irish. Performing on stage for the last 6 years, lilting comprises a good fourth of my repertoire at this point, we also have a different “lilt” that’s like yipping vocally that’s very cool entertwined with the Irish definition. ♥️ I’ve been rout-n-tout-n-diddlying-out-n-dithera-dohing longer than I can remember and learned indeed by listening to my gram- the first dancing video is a favourite! It’s featured in that same piece, little beggarman🥰
Isaac Asimov suggested that you lilt the “Irish Washer Woman” with the name of a molecule: paradimethylaminobenzaldehyde. I can no longer hear the tune and think of it any other way.
I just tried it. It's fun
@@TheNationalfilmbored me too. 🤣
Huh... would you look at that
ua-cam.com/video/tlPT1ybDzFQ/v-deo.html
It actually also fits some german carnival songs nicely. Improves them a lot, actually.
That's brilliant lol!
I’m Irish and I’ve grown up just hearing my family diddily-aye ing my whole life and I do it from time to time. But never thought much about it before. It was actually very fun to learn about this from the outside. Awesome stuff
I love these videos about niche topics that actually turn out to be extremely recognisable and we just didn't know it was a thing until now. Great video, keep it up!!!!
Its funny to see how similar Quebecois and Irish cultures are :) We might be related to France but I feel like we have very little in common. Fiddle, bones and lilting are super present in our tradition. Most of the music shown here reminded me of sugar shack season haha ❤
That part with Robbie McMahon. That's exactly how a lot of traditional American music sounds, especially in the country Appalachia region who have a lot of scot and Irish descendents.
Part of why I think lilting was so common was because it took a while before people wrote down music, usually musicians would learn local tunes by heart and then pass it on to future students and would travel the country playing for various occasions. For harping specifically, because the tradition was dying out it was only then that in 1792 the Belfast harp festival was made where people began to write down the tunes. The reason this is relevant is because even musicians who had an instrument they could play would still need to lilt in order to memorise/teach a tune.
One thing that gets misunderstood in the modern world is culture and spirit. Music and singing at one point was as much a part of a person's character as political voting is today. People would have been defined by it.
Today very little music has real culture and is nothing more than a series of preprogrammed computer sounds.
Music of those era's would have had the same significance as a person name would have today and it was closely connected with a person's family and heritage.
One of the most beautiful things about the likes of Irish lilting is the fact it is being creative in the spur of the moment rather than something that is more structured.
Today people outsource everything from their personality to their understanding of the world.
@@bighands69 I don`t know about the rest of the world but here in Ireland music and singing is Still as much a part of a persons character and heritage just as it always was
@@DocRockBabyAbsolutely..It is an integral part of who we are. It defines us as a people and as a culture
@@ItsmeeSaoirse Thanks for your reply 😊 good to know I'm not the only one who thinks this 😊 peace and love to you Sister ✌️❤️
@@bighands69 what?
Thank you for this great video and the wonderfully positive message.
Interesting! My Dad used to do this and drum on the table with his fingers, tapping his foot! My earliest memory is of him lilting the song "The March Hare", trying to get me to sleep as a toddler in my cot. Hence "Bridget the Fidget" - named after my Grandmother from Co. Meath. 💖
As an Irish dancer I didn’t even realize that wilting is how we name moves. The beats are so fast and come in different combinations that using syllables through lilting is how you often name or describe certain groups of beats
Rural Newfoundlander here. Same thing happens a lot in small towns there. My grandfather does it constantly when he's not actually playing the accordion, very specifically, he does The Irish Washerwoman. I found out the name of the song when I was in my teens and learned how to whistle it not remembering why I knew the song, and when my mother heard me whistle it, she brought it up that pop (her dad) "sings" it all the time.
Thank you for enlightening us on this elusive to name music
You too the words out of my mouth.. Thank You.
My Irish Grandfather did that all the time, I'm told I do it when I'm trying to focus on something.
I recommend listening to the late Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries sing “Dreams”, at the end of the song her Lilting is very beautiful and shows her range
Aw RIP this is precious
@@playingforghosts what's wrong with the original comment?
Brilliant song
Her live performance of Dreams at Woodstock is unreal, really shows the band at their peak
@@standarduck5860 what u mean? I said aww this is precious, RIP, to Dolores, my queen
I really appreciate you just analysing this without making any jokes about it, I have a feeling a lot of others would.
love this video! funny and i like the message that music is already inside you and it's not a hill to climb.
Glad you enjoyed it
It’s common for classically trained musicians , especially percussionists. When learning music as kids we often practice note division and subdivision with our mouths first when sight reading (for example the term “trip-a-let” when referring to musical triplets). This concept was so ingrained for me this I didn’t even realize others may not be as familiar with it haha.
Yup I’ve taught many a newbie flautist the articulation pattern by singing through a piece “bum ba-da-dum, bum ba-da-dum, bum, bum, bum, ba-da-da-da-dum,” Or better yet all us flautists when we started practicing double tounging, muttering “tho-khoo tho-khoo tho-khoo” as fast and as long as we can under our breath to build that muscle memory.
"Fiddley dye dee-dye" is literally a meme in my large Irish family.
See “Gone With the Wind” Miss Scarlett.
Same lmao we just go “dee dydelly dydelly dydelly dydelly dydelly dydelly dum” whenever someone does a jig or dances it’s so funny
Nice
It's awesome to hear this I've done this since I was a kid because I liked the sounds.
It's kind of amazing how music is an intrinsic part of the human experience. Infants will bounce and babble to music they hear even if they've never seen their parents dance or hum.
It's both weird and wonderful that so many people had no idea that lilting exists....I've Irish danced for a long time and we all learned it at some point because it's how we'd practice while other people were using music or right before we go on stage. It's especially useful for ceiles or group dances that are pretty central to Irish culture.
I was going to say the same about Irish dance. I always liked it when my teachers would lilt the steps.
idk, too me it really doesnt seem all that different from humming or any other non word mouth sounds to a tune. seems pretty universal.
The show of riverdance had it during one of their reels. It doesn't seem to be in the show as it is now, but when they originally had it on tv/video, it's there. Can't quite remember the particular song, but... yeah.
It's the one where the young lads come out with the bodhran drums and sing while the girls dance. Looked it up, and it's Oscail an Doras (hopefully I spelled it correctly...).
Well that was actually delightful, which is a rarity in terms of non-Irish videos on Irish culture
Maith thú!
This is great. My old irish ma does this,bless her. She is 92.Thankyou.👍😃
As a morden Irish man... I will always have a little lilting man singing in my head who is telling me to get up to mischief.
Regrading "puss music": the word "puss" used to be a slang term, related to one's mouth - and, more broadly, one's face. It got eclipsed by the shortening of "pussy" (which is a whole other etymological discussion), and is no longer used; but one can occasionally hear some mobster in an old black & white movie, talking about "sockin' 'em in the puss." We also still have it in the term "sourpuss," for someone with an irritated look about them (as if they had just tasted something sour/spoiled).
So yup, "puss music" is literally "mouth music."
PS: For my personal favourite bit of diddling, check out Omnia's song Fee Ra Huri ( ua-cam.com/video/J56VVtlZCGE/v-deo.html ). There's about a minute and a half of penny whistle to sit through before the diddling starts - but both "instruments" put on a good showing. :)
PPS: The last beats in Washer Woman will now forever end with "Becky, oh look at her butt!" Thanks for that... XD
any time i was caught with resting b*tch face my mother would say “look at the puss on you”
In Celtic nations the mouth is still sometimes referred to as a puss. Getting rejected by a woman can sometimes be called getting a "slap in the puss".
@@AutisticWombot my dad, yrs ago, called one our neighbours a pus dóite, ( burnt mouth) due to the lad having a 🚬 , plus he didn't like him at all
The idea that anyone would immediately think "puss" in this context would have anything to do with "pussy" is sadly hilarious. The pornification of the world is complete. Hahaha.
I know some old timers who still use the word puss for basically everything lol
"Hi diddly-ho, Neighbor!"
~Ned Flanders
"Buenos diddley dias!"
~Ned's Spanish Cousin
Goede diddley-dag from the Netherlands!
I'm getting obtuse here, but there actually a strong Celtic prescence in spain.
@@craigtrautmanjr9393 And vice versa in the Black Irish. Those that helped the marooned Spanish Armada. Which, coincidentally, is one of the MANY theories for the name Gallagher (O'Gallabher, sounds like Gulliver) "the foreign helpers" or "foreigner friend."
I didn't know that it's name, but I've been using this as a Bodhran player to teach tunes to other musicians - and 'lilted' with the musicians while playing on occasion. Thank you for teaching me that this had a word!
Thank you for this video. 🙏🏻🇮🇪
What you said about not having an instrument in the house, is spot on. The lilting is replicating the music that a violin, concertina, or flute basically, any instrument that plays the melody. Super stuff.
AHHHH WAIT the end! That old man grinding that fiddle was incredible and hilarious and very talented XD no one talking about the best part!!
In NE England (where many Irish had settled in the 1920's), there was a friendly greeting;
"How y' diddling?". It remains one of my favourite ways to ask 'How are you?' 🍀😃💚
I read once that young Indian tabla students learning the highly complex rhythms played on the drum start by simulating them with their mouths. There's a wonderful example of this by Sheila Chandra on her album 'Weaving My Ancestors' Voices.'
They copied this for the recent soccer world cup anthem.
Something similar that might interest you is canntaireachd, which is an old Scottish form of singing. Way back before the Scottish were introduced to sheet music, bagpipers would teach each other tunes to play by singing them. Canntaireachd is a bit more detailed than lilting, however, as it actually had unique words/sounds to represent each note or embellishment. Even to this day, the leader of a pipe band will sing a portion of the tune the band will play to the band before they begin playing, and this singing is much more akin to lilting, with the singer simply making up sounds to best replicate the melody.
Many thanks! That was great.
Informative, upbeat, and encouraging video. No doubt lilting can be found across the world in various forms. I appreciate your point that it makes music accessible to everyone. Happy lilting. 😊
In Québec it’s part of our traditional singing too, we call this “turlutte” or “reel à bouche”. One of the greatest to ever do it was La Bolduc, he father was irish and her maiden name was Mary Travers.
"Ça va venir pis ça va venir mais décourageons-nous pas! Moé j'ai toujours le cœur gai pis j'continue à turlutter ba dum da diddly di da dum da di du dum da da diddly di da diddly di da dum da di da diddly dé du dum!"
I’m Canadian (from Toronto) and had no idea this was a thing. One more reason to go east and visit the beautiful province!!
My father's mother was a Travers from County Wexford. We used to go down every year for the "Pattern", the blessing of the graves. We'd gather in a cousin's house and have a music session. Fiddle, accordion, spoons, etc.
Thank you for making this video, explaining the Irish art of mouth instrumentals. I would like to expand upon that and explain one of the main reasons that this form of mouth music was introduced.
When England invaded, occupied and ruled over Ireland, they introduced draconian and brutal laws against Irish catholics, these were known as the ' The Penal Laws '. These were laws that were specifically designed to prevent any status, progression or prosperity gained by the Irish catholics by banning them from doing many things. The 'Penal Laws' were a deliberate attempt to subjugate them, demoralise them, make them and keep them destitute and break their spirit. The English knew of how connected Irish people were to their native culture. One of the things they banned were musical instruments. To ultimately defeat Irish people, the English tried to destroy Irish culture and one of the many ways they thought they could succeed, was by not allowing them play musical instruments and enjoy their cultural music. Frequently, breaking such draconian and brutal laws could result in a summary execution of that person, with the local community being forced to watch. The Irish resisted, determined to keep their culture alive and created musical sounds and rhythms with their mouths, substituting for musical instruments., for people to sing along to and dance to. These men in the video are honouring a very important and immensely proud part of our cultural history.
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I'm speechless. Thankyou so much for sharing this info.
Blessings to the ancestors who kept the music alive.
@@tothelighthouse9843 in Ulster interestingly many tunes were kept alive by Protestant fiddlers, which I was touched to learn.
Theres no evidence that Irish music was stopped by the penal laws, if anything it was hindered more by the Church in the public dance halls act in the 1930s. Just look at the work of Canon Goodman/George Petrie in the 19th Century, or the landed gentry who took up the instruments and promoted the music during this time
@@sionrouse The argument was not to establish the relative causal agency of different contributing factors which may have hindered the expression of the music. The point made above highlighted one systematic legislative attempt to subjugate a form of artistic expression.
And, yes it is self-evident that the music 'was[n’t]stopped' - it continues today in its current incarnation. However, the penal laws as a definite legal attempt to outlaw and end that music is well documented - see N. Canny: Kingdom and Colony … or Brady & Gillespie: Natives and Newcomers - essays on the making of Irish colonial society.
The efforts of the Goodman, Petrie or Bunting etc and the landed gentry etc, though laudable, were the efforts of men who were a miniscule minority among their own religious/politico/cultural stripe (that does not mean that we should overlook or discount the significant contribution of these few men - their religious/politico/cultural stripe afforded them power among a largely dispossessed and oppressed population - and they used it in their commendable service of the music).However, the main historical thrust of the landed gentry and COI at the time was to prioritise, promote and secure its own privileges at the expense of other cultural groups/denominations etc. It would be a gross misconstruing of history to overemphasise either COI and ‘landed gentry’ input or for that matter, the effects of the 1935 Public Dance Hall Act.
McCullagh’s De Valera Vol. 2 details how the act was to counter the supposed threat of ‘foreign’ music and dance (read jazz and specifically swing) - this was primarily a function of De Valera’s naive preoccupation with preserving the supposedly innate ‘homely goodness’ of young Irish ‘comely maidens’ who might be wrong footed on a dancefloor.
This law was an act of state (the Oireachtas, not the church, as you indicate), designed to undergird sexual mores - of course their was no real separation of church and state for Dev - quite the opposite & in fairness the act did hinder trad music - but it was collateral damage, something qualitatively different to the up-front attack on the music that characterised the penal laws.
Grew up listening to The Clancy Brothers and fell in love with lilting through their version of the song Beggar Man from their Live in Ireland (1964) album. In fact, I think I'll listen to that now!
Oh dear, Clancey’s and Tommy were my dad’s all time favorite band.
I tried to steer him into the Chieftains a bit, but the Clancey’s were the best for him.
@@ChrisConnolly-Mr.C-Dives-In My amazing mom took me and my older sister to see the Clancy Brothers once. She managed to get us back stage (no idea how, but that's why she's amazing) and I remember looking up into this big, weathered, Irish face with a big warm hand on my chin and warm, smiling eyes gazing down at me...Not sure which broth, but...still a great memory.
@@MeredithMacArthur Hey, still the same me, from my other account. I can not thank you enough, for your comments, again I say because any piece of connection to what was important to my dad means so much to me.
On this account I started tracing Irish Family History, feel free to check it out. Thanks.
I’m from Wicklow and my whole family plays trad (Irish music) so I’ve always been pretty exposed to lilting. It’s really interesting to hear about this from the perspective of a non Irish person, although I’d say a lot of Irish people don’t know much about it either, in the same way most haven’t really a clue about trad. The way I see it it’s just always been there as an accessible way for people to “join in” during sessions etc, but I’ve never really thought about it as a music form in itself. Great video!
I’ve been learning about this style of music in college recently! I’m in the music performance program, and I’m part of a Celtic ensemble! My college is located in PEI, Canada, which is well known for its Celtic music scene, along with Nova Scotia and Newfoundland (and to a lesser degree, my home province, New Brunswick). The Acadian word for mouth music is Turlutte. Thanks for making this video, shedding light on this topic for so many people!
The Appalachian music version of this is called Eephing. Look up Jimmy Riddle.
Lots of Ulster descendents in the Appalachians. Over here a Jimmy Riddle is slang for a hey-diddle-diddle (a piddle).
In Northwestern New Jersey, we call it . . . nothing. Because it is nothing. Sometimes, people just sing out a tune without the words. Go figure.
In New Orleans we call it the scat man
Beep bop bit biddemp bump. Beep bop bop bit biddemp bump. Biddy biddy bop bop bidump bup. Bop biddep bup. I'm a scat man!
@@ooee8088 skibby dibby dee bap badam bop, bap badam bop.
@3:44 great point which is why I can never understand how some people say they don't like music? it's a part of human expression, there's just no doubt of its omnipresence
Not remembering any lyrics anymore, this has always been the way i sing along with others :)
Christy Moore does this a lot and very well, i suggest “The Night Visit“, “Welcome to the Caberet“ and “Casey“ for some of his more lilting filled songs
I love Welcome to the Caberet, I think Live at the Point is one of the greatest live albums of all time.
This was great. Lovely to see more cool music-centric UA-camrs pop up.
The research in this is so impressive!
Brilliant, funny, and inspiring. Really enjoyed this, thank you!
I’m glad you enjoyed it
In Québec, we had La Bolduc, who was very good at lilting. She used to sing in french.
This sort of 'singing' comes to me naturally when I want to sing a tune whose lyrics I don't know.
I wasn't aware it's so uniquely Irish - although I am Irish, so it's not necessarily surprising.
Blackthorn's version of "As I Roved Out" has some of this sort of lilting. It's a fun song.
Thank you for introducing me to Michael and Paddy Rafferty. Sometimes the simplest music is the most beautiful.
this was excellent and thank you
It exists everywhere. In Bulgaria, we call it "tananikane", that is, singing with no lyrics. I believe it happens in many national styles.
Yeah it’s really weird that this guy is acting like that doesn’t happen everywhere.
With a happy yodel in Germany.
@@StarlasAiko exactly, or an Appalachian yodel. Or for that matter people beat boxing. Probably every human who ever lived has hummed
Reminds me of ‘scatting’, which is what you usually do if you’re a musician that adds vocals after the instrumentals.
In taiko it is called “kuchi showa” or “kuchishoka” or “kuchishoga”
When I was 13 I got in trouble for making prank calls (this was the early 90s) and I had to do community service so I helped out at a nursing home. I remember singing songs with the very old people, probably born in the early 1900s and one verse in particular I still remember nearly 30 years later is, "When Irish eyes are smilin', sure it's like a morn in spring! In the lilt of Irish laughter you can hear the angels sing." The adjective lilt is only loosely related to the verb of lilting I guess, but that's what your video reminded me of 😄
You're a funny F'er!!! 🤣🤣🤣 Loved the entire 5 minutes! Thanks!
Lilting is great way to remeber your favorite jigs and reels as i forgot music ntoes and i love to play them :D
Nice video! Puss is actually the Irish word for mouth in certain dialects- so puss music translates directly to mouth music!
My father used to call an ill-humoured person a sour-puss.
my parents still use is, and I always find it slightly uncomfortable haha
A slap in the puss.
My Dad (Italian-American, WW-II vet, from NJ) would say "shut yer puss" to mean shut up.
I learn Beal was mouth in Gaeilge as in "Binn Beal Ina thost." which means sweet sounds the mouth in silence. My teacher spoken Dongal dialect.
The Lilting is within us all
I grew up in rural North Carolina in the mountains. When watching this video, my mind automatically formed a connection between the bluegrass I heard as a child and lilting.
Thank you for this
I love lilting!!!!
Who doesn’t?
There's also competitions in Ireland were we have to tell a story in a rhythmic manner and the end has a twist or funny ending couldn't think of the name but another great tradition
yooo some1 find this
Yee
Oh my goodness, Freckles!
I remember those days too!
By the way, I'm covered in freckles lol.
Reminds me of a Puerto Rican form called Bomba where you tell a story in rhyme and by the end have to roast the person next to you.
Limericks?
I grew up with this- Amazing, totally correct
I came here after trying to search for a tune that has been sung in my family for generations. I believe It was picked up from the time that my family was in Appalachia. It's not quite deedily didedlily but instead a dupa-do dupa- dupa-deedle-dum.
Great video. I'm Irish and my grandmother used to do this a lot. She also used to play the mouth harp and harmonica. She always had a tune for us as she sat by the fire. Sadly she is long gone but the tunes have been passed on and that is the thing with Irish music. A lot of it is just about passing it on to the next generation, often by the easiest means necessary. Thanks for putting this video together and sharing it. 👍🇮🇪
Thank you for sharing the sweet story of your Grandmother. May you feel her presence in every note of every tune.
@@GeorgiaGeorgette Thanks for your kind words. Those tunes, many of which I have learned to play still bring me great joy. All the best to you.
@@bustabloodvessel5327
I'm truly glad that she lives on through you in the music she loved. If you have any videos on your channel of you playing those tunes I would very much like to hear them, but either way, keep playing and enjoying them. Very best wishes to you.
Nuair a bhí mé óg (níos óige ar an nós), bhí seisiún againn i dteach mó mamó. Bhí mó dado an mhaith ag...liltáil? 😂😂 Tá brón orm, níl fhois agam céard atá an Gaeilge ar "lilting".
I had some bad mushrooms in the '90s, and never knew I was free-styling ancient Celtic music and not just rambling at a rock... Thanks for clearing that up :)
We did this in the Appalachian mountains in Virginia when I was coming up and I still do it today around my home
Great video. Thank you.
My grandmother used to hold up a baby till they were standing on her lap and do what you call lilting so the baby can do a jig. It is something that is so normal to me since I grew up seeing it done and often do myself when I am bored, that it is weird to realize that someone has never seen or heard it done before.
Maybe that explains why some people (like me) just can't dance .... if you don't start to learn at 6 months of age, that's it, you're done!!!!
My Hungarian grandma did it with a raw chicken on the counter while lilting Franz Liszt's Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2. It was hilarious.
@@andrewg.carvill4596 same with fluent gibberish
Its what you do when you find yourself without a whistle in your pocket or a fiddle slung over your shoulder, so glad I actually grew up in a folk tradition without having to google this stuff.
Or if you can't afford to buy and upkeep an instrument.
I love the keyboard and mouse you use for your research. Brings back memories of highschool. LOL
Well presented topic
Lilting still plays a huge role in Irish dancing today! you'd be hard-pressed to find a dance teacher today who doesn't lilt in some form. You hear it all the time, both to replicate the actual music and to eventuate rhythms and help dancers to hear them