how difficult is it to start singing irish music without experience? i just started discovering the whole irish scene after i was dragged into a pub and heard the great performers there but afterwards the fiddle player stepped off stage and sat with us and he mentioned that they never have a singer. i have gone every chance i can get one time by myself just to listen to the music and have thought about asking them what is involved with being a singer. i don’t know how to play any instruments or anything, so is it hopeless? should i probably buy a guitear and take lessons for it first and learn music.
Hi Atkins,
To sum up singing, and music in general for that matter, it’s hard.
I come from a musical family and have been playing instruments in one form or another since I was 4 years old (going on 24 years now) and for the life of me I still can’t sing a note. But that’s just me, I also have friends who are beautiful traditional singers who wouldn’t know but a guitar was good to eat!
I do believe that everybody has musical talent hidden in them somewhere and it just takes the proper motivation and encouragement to bring it out. You may be an incredible singer naturally, you might have to work at it, or you may (like myself) be an awful singer who should find another career. In either case, if it brings you some pleasure give it a whirl. Just remember that singing in the shower is a lot different than when you hear yourself singing on stage… it can be pretty humbling.
Here’s something you could try:
If you have some songs that you think you sing reasonably well you might record yourself and play it back. The tape recorder doesn’t lie. If you suck, it will let you know; if you’re good, it will let you know too. It’s kind of like hearing yourself on stage minus the dozens of faces staring back at you in horror… just for the record, that’s experience speaking.
And of course, there are always tons of vocal instructors you could take lessons from. There may not be too many teaching traditional singing but I’m sure they could at least teach the basics! Don’t get discouraged with it, music is tough but it’s also a lot of fun and can be very rewarding.
Take care,
Wes
Hi Atkins,
I’d suggest you find a local singing class or group to join. I am lucky to have a great Irish centre which offers singing, dancing and music classes, and I attended the singing class for two years straight. I had some songbooks and tapes of singign before I went, but they weren’t strictly necessary.
The group classes are not really tutorials, you will get some advice on relaxing, breathing, voice projection etc, but they’re really just for people who want to learn a few Irish songs so they can join in the experience. You don’t necessarily need a great voice to sing Irish songs (though it helps), but you should know the verses by heart & be able to sing with feeling & understanding.
Also, chech with your fiddling friend what sort of singing they’d like, so you can work on those sorts of songs. Many Irish airs are actually the tunes of songs, so he might accompany you on the fiddle while you sing. It’s always easier to sing if someone else is backing you.
Good luck!
It seems to me that you’re actually better off if you don’t have a good voice. Many highly-regarded sean nós singers have a raw edge to their voices which adds to their appeal: I suppose it’s a sort of vocal chiff (cue further semantic drift). You get something similar with flamenco song.
Someone recently passed me some audio cassettes which include a woman singer who I think is Máire Ní Scolaí, and her voice sounds just too schooled for my taste. Not that I’m an expert or anything, but I’d be interested to hear what people feel about this.
I don’t care for the operatic style of singing used by classically trained newcomers to irish song. They may be technically “correct” in a classical context, but in an ITM context, they suck.
The worst is when a coloratura soprano or one of those John McCormack wanna-bes lashes into a stage irish favorite. 
There is a lovely sean nos singer from Connemara right here in Chicago named Aine Meenaghan. She’s about as far as you can get from that “stage irish” sound - she sings very quietly, very sweetly, with beautiful intonation and very graceful ornaments. Those of you who went to the St Louis tionol this past April may remember her, she taught there.
A classical approach to trad is like painting a parakeet: neither the bird nor the colorist are improved by it. The bird, which was at its best beforehand, is rendered lurid, and the painter is now laughable.
I tried recording myself singing, (this was a couple of weeks ago), when I played it back I thought “Better not try this in public just yet” So what I am recommending for myself is to sing along with recordings, as that seems a natural way of learning, and in a few weeks, set up the recording device and give it another whirl. As always, if you are having fun doing it, keep it up!
JeffC