My niece is getting married soon. Both she and her fiance love Scotland, Scottish music, etc. They’ve decided not to have bagpipes at the wedding but want me to play some “Celtic-y”/Irish music on my flute.
Does anyone have any suggestions for appropriate tunes? The Irish hymn “Be Thou My Vision,” comes to mind. It will be a Christian ceremony, so they would prefer sacred to secular music. But I’m sure I could convince them if anyone has some great secular slower tunes.
Any ideas for other hymns based on Irish melodies, etc?
I have played the bagpipes at many weddings, and the usual procedure would be to pipe in the bride with a dignified sounding (but not funereal!!!)march at a slow tempo. I would suggest “The Garb Of Old Gaul” at about 60 beats per minute. Or you could play a Scottish folk tune standard at comfortable walkingspeed … perhaps “The Bonnie Lass of Fyvie” or (a bit livlier but very appropriate) “Mairi’s Wedding”.
For an exit, you want something lively. You could play “Scotland The Brave” of course, but that doesn’t show much imagination. Any good rollicking reel, hornpipe, jig or 6/8 march played up-tempo would be great. I would suggest playing a set of two or three tunes which you can then repeat (as a set) as long as seems appropriate since most consist of only two parts so it vcan be rather monotonous playing a two part tine over and over again, back to back. A few that come to mind are “Orange & Blue”, “Royal Scots Polka”, “Atholl Highlanders”( 4 parted 6/8 march), “Kenmure’s Up and Awa”, “The Australian Ladies(” and “10th H.L.I. Crossing the Rhine” (both 4-parted 2/4 marches).
I don’t know of any hymns that are recognizably Scottish ( certainly NOT “Amazing Grace”!!!), which would hardly be appropriate anyway.
Anyway, I never heard hymns played at a wedding and, in, In fact I don’t know of any traditional Scottish or Irish Wedding tunes (Mairi’s Wedding aside). Celtic weddings are not somber affairs. Au contraire! (excuse my Gaelic).
Now Laments are a different story. There are lots of great laments, … That has to tell you something about the culture, I think, so better better eschew those for the time being.
There is a beautiful Scottish tune (the original name of which escapes me…) but which is known by some church congregations as “Holy is Your Name”. I am not a big fan of most church music but this is lovely. I have several marked-up copies languishing in my files. If you would like one. send me a PM.
Star of the County Down (slowly; almost waltzlike)
Margaret’s Waltz
Si Beag Si Mor
Go, Lassie Go (inst.)
Tom Bhety’s (aka Tom Bigby’s?)
Give Me Your Hand
Cherish the Ladies (nice entrance jig; about 105 bpm)
Tell Her I Am
Rights of Man (meditatively)
Drummond Castle
Mist-Covered Mountain
Frost is All Over
De’il among the Tailors (aka Devil’s Dream)
Over the Moor to Maggie (good recessional)
Cape Clear (nice air)
Ashokan Farewell
Maid Behind the Bar
Wind That Shakes The Barley
Campbell’s Farewell to Red Gap
The Red-Haired Boy
Drops of Brandy/Fig For A Kiss
anything O’Carolan
And Atholl Highlanders does indeed rock as a recessional.
Don’t forget the jig Haste to the Wedding! (Play it at the rehearsal dinner the night before.)
As far as hymns, a Presbyterian hymnal might help you find something of Scottish origin, although it probably won’t sound ‘trad.’ There are a couple of hymns set to Irish and Welsh folk tunes that are lovely, but seeing as I can’t remember the names, that’s probably a useless suggestion. (Although I think ‘Be Thou My Vision’ is in that category.)
Micah
The last tune on “Water from the Well” is the recording my wife walked into during our wedding, ‘An Gaoth Aneas’ I believe is the spelling and means (the wind from the South-which we both are Southern! and she was a fresh wind being brought into my life…)
The part where the drum (bodhran) does a mysterious slow roll is when the doors opened and then she began her entrance. It was mighty grand!
We then left the sanctuary to Lunasa’s “The Wedding Reel”.
but want me to play some “Celtic-y”/Irish music on my flute.