I would like to be able to play guitar (also piano) accompaniment for fiddle, whistle, etc., for home recording (i.e. to accompany myself) as well as for playing with a friend. Is there a good book that addresses this? I’m not as interested in using the guitar or piano as a solo instrument as just backing up the fiddle and/or whistle(s).
Thanks,
Chris Smith has a book on accompaniment for all instruments that I find very useful. Paul de Grae has a well regarded book for guitar. Many books out there are worse than useless as tutors. I’d stick with those two.
I have seen this book recommended:
CLICK
The author has a lot of instructional essays at his website. If you scroll way down this page, you might find some other helpful things. There are a lot of essays talking about the banjo, but there are some about guitar and accompaniment:
http://coyotebanjo.com/music.html
That’s the one I’m recommending Cynth. That and Paul’s book would be all you need for guitar. (I’d rather not be too blunt about the books that are a waste of money.)
I’ve just had a browse through Chris Smiths pages..looks the business allright 
Slan,
D.
It takes me so long to write my posts that I hadn’t seen yours when I did mine, or I wouldn’t have repeated it. 
Oh come on Cynth. You gave links and all that scholarly stuff. All the stuff I tell myself I’m too busy to provide. (I’m careful never to ask what I’m doing on C&F instead of working or practising.)
I’ll check out the Chris Smith site and the book. Looks like exactly what I was looking for.
What about piano accompaniment? Any books for that?
Geraldine Cotter:
Chris’s book just gives general principles which can be applied to any instrument. There is more or less (often less) tasteful piano accompaniment on a lot of the early Irish recordings and if you have a good ear and can play piano you will have no trouble picking up the patterns. As a general rule, less is more. Something that you hardly notice but drives and lifts the tune is what works best. I don’t know of any specific books for piano.
Although not a tutor, Charlie Lennon’s book Musical Memories gives his own accompaniments for the tunes. The tunes are all his own too. However, his method is pretty simple. Just octaves on the root-right hand chord-octaves on the fifth-right hand chord, etc.
http://www.cranfordpub.com/books/musical_memories.htm
de Grae’s book uses an odd tuning which I don’t think many people use (DADEAE) but using the chords he supplies for the tunes doesn’t depend on using his tuning.
Well worth having.