I’ve been meaning to learn Gàidhlig for quite some time, but that’s complicated by a distinct lack of people in my area with which to converse in said language. As such, I’d be content for now to learn some songs. Does anyone know any, preferably spelled out phoenetically? Or perhaps can reccomend a source of such? A book perhaps, or better yet, a book accompanied by a cd?
Tapadh leibh,
Cofaidh
Hi. If you google “phonetic gaelic songs”, you should find some relevant stuff.
I sing a few gaelic (Scottish and Irish) songs. Some I’ve learnt from cd’s, one, I found from a film score back in the '70’s.
Have fun!
Cass.
Mary Jane Lamond sings in (Cape Breton) Gaelic. She includes liner notes (though, not phonetically…)
There are two books that I have found with the words, both in Irish and in phoenician … er … phonetics, plus a CD. They are:
Stepping Stones to Irish Song, by Seosaimhín Nic Rabhartaigh, which I got on-line from Custy’s Music.
Singing in Irish Gaelic, by Mary McLaughlin, published by Mel Bay, so it can be ordered from just about any music shop.
A bit more advanced is the book and CD collection, The Songs of Elizabeth Cronin, which is aimed more at advanced song collectors, so there’s no phonetics or other coddling.
Some may cringe, but The Irish Songbook by The Clancy Brothers has some songs in Irish with phonetics, as well.
I have a DVD-ROM from CIC called simply Sean-Nós, with samples of both Irish and Scot songs with transcriptions, but again, this is for serious collectors and no phonetics.
There’s probably more around, but that should give you a bit if a start.
djm
Pssst, djm, Gàidhlig is Scottish. But thanks.
Well, I might be able to answer my own question here to an extent. After looking around on the site I linked on the “Scots Gaelic speakers” thread I found they have a section called “song box.” It’s not written phoenetically, but
No phonetics here either but this is a fair sized database of Gaelic song lyrics.
My favorite pronunciation mnemonic device is “EvIl STD”. The pronunciations of S, T and D change when flanked by E or I. S becomes like SH, T becomes like CH (as in the work ‘church’) and D like J or TH (as in the word “the”) depending on the locale.
I think I can remember that one…
As someone who’s spent three and a half years learning Gaeilge (that’s Irish, for the rest of y’all), I can tell you that self-teaching IS doable, even if there aren’t conversation partners in your area. I wouldn’t think it would be that different for Gàidhlig (Scottish Gaelic, for the uninitiated). I think there are some decent discussion forums out there for the language…would you like me to do some checking?
Redwolf
There’s the “Tog Fonn” book…Actually, I think there might be two of them. I’ve got one buried in a box somewhere…I think Comunn na Gàidhlig also publishes a songbook of Mòd-approved songs.
As for other learning materials and resources, there’s a very good online forum that’s definitely worth joining:
Fòram na Gàidhlig. Like C & F, only more Gaelic and (marginally) less whinging.
http://31.freebb.com/gaidhlig/gaidhlig.html
It seems you’ve already discovered the Beeb’s Gaelic service. Check back there often, as it’s a valuable resource.
I would also highly recommend that anyone interested in learning Scottish Gaelic try to track down the series “Speaking Our Language”, which was shown on Scottish Television in the mid-90s. There are 70+ episodes spread out over four seasons. I think the entire series is available on DVD in both PAL and NTSC formats now. There’s an old website, “Bruidhinn ar Cànan” that has a few sample lessons from the series.
http://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/gaidhlig/ionnsachadh/bac/
Lastly, no matter where you’re living, if you have an interest in Gaelic, then don’t give up on it. It’s a beautiful language, it deserves a future, and the more people that take a genuine interest in it, the better.
Well, I found a copy of a book, called “Speaking Our Language” on Amazon, but couldn’t find any dvd’s answering to that name.
Tapadh leibh for the inputs mates.
The “Teach Yourself” series is pretty good (I started with “Teach Yourself Irish” way back when). They’ve got “Teach Yourself Gaelic” as well:
They’re laid out like a text book, but the emphasis is on conversation.
If you go for something like that, I recommend getting the entire audio package, and not just the book.
Here’s something else you may find interesting:
http://www.learnirishgaelic.com/teachme/learn-scots-gaelic.php
Again, I have the Irish version, and have found it quite helpful in building my reading and speaking skills.
Redwolf
Naturally, when I’m not looking for it, I trip over something applicable. There’s a bunch of Scots Gaelic song books here. I’ve dealt with these folks before, and found them to be very good.
http://www.musicscotland.com/acatalog/Scottish_Dance_Music.html
djm
Tapadh leibh!!
For Cofaidh (or anyone else stuck in England who’s interested in learning Gaelic), you might be interested in joining this group on Facebook:
“Scots Gaelic/Gàidhlig learners stuck in England”
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2423662985
Thanks for the link. I will however not be in England more than another 6-7 months; my profession is one that tends to travel around quite a bit.
Gosh, won’t walking around, singing and speaking in Gàidhlig, make it easier for them to catch you? 
djm
Just signing in to say that Fòram na Gàidhlig has moved to http://www.noclockthing.de/foramnagaidhlig/
'S dòcha gum faic mi sibh an-siud 