Lilting

Lilting is a form of traditional singing common in the Goidelic speaking areas of Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man, though singing styles like it occur in many other countries. It goes under many names, and is sometimes referred to as diddling (generally in England and Scotland), mouth music, jigging, chin music or cheek music, puirt à beul or canntaireachd in Scottish Gaelic, or portaireacht bhéil (port a'bhéil, "mouth-singing") in Irish. The syllables sung do not require any one-to-one corresponding note, and in this way it resembles scat singing, and is distinguished from the singing of sol-fa or sargam.

For the soft drink, see Lilt. For the film, see Lilting (film).

Features

Lilting often accompanies dancing. Features such as rhythm and tone dominate in lilting and in the case of Irish lilting in particular, is intended to evoke the characteristic 'lilt' of traditional Irish music and specific instruments such as the Celtic harp.[1][2] The lyrics thus are often meaningless or nonsensical.[3]

History

The origins of lilting are unclear. It might have resulted in part from the unavailability of instruments, whether because they were seen as too expensive or were banned.[4][5] However, similar use of non-lexical syllables also feature in various traditional musical styles worldwide, including tralling or trallning in Sweden and Norway.[5][2] The history of lilting may be obscured in part because lilting is a largely oral tradition and has not been referred to by consistent names over time.[5][6]

According to modern folk musician Rowan Piggott, there is an unverified legend about lilting that claims it originates from the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland from 1649–1653 where bans on musical instruments required old songs to be passed down orally via singing or lilting.[2]

At the turn of the 20th century lilting found increased popularity in local dance events known as "house dances" and "crossroads dances". Beginning the mid-1900s, lilting was increasingly performed as a recital or stand alone performance instead of accompaniment for dancing. Recital lilting is currently one of the multiple events performed at the annual traditional Irish musical festival, Fleadh Cheoil, held by the non-profit organization Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (CCE).[2]

Notable lilters

See also

References
  1. "The Lilt of Irish Music". thecelticroom.org. Retrieved 2023-02-10.
  2. Piggot, Rowan (2017). "Diddling & Fiddling: The Importance Of Vocalising European Dance Music" (PDF). The Living Tradition (118). ISSN 1351-4105. OCLC 31509242.
  3. Covenant College; Mullins, Catherine (2014-11-04). "Blah, Blah, Blah: Making Sense of Nonsense in Irish Vocal Music". Musical Offerings. 5 (2): 87–117. doi:10.15385/jmo.2014.5.2.2.
  4. "Whistling And Lilting". RTÉ Archives. Hall's Pictorial Weekly. Retrieved 2023-02-10.
  5. The companion to Irish traditional music. Fintan Vallely. New York: New York University Press. 1999. pp. 50, 215. ISBN 0-8147-8802-5. OCLC 40869642.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  6. Williams, Sean (2010). Focus : Irish traditional music. New York: Routledge. pp. 210–211. ISBN 978-0-203-87089-1. OCLC 496099293.
Look up lilt or lilting in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.