Irish Guitar Podcast

This week we have a lovely jig.Tony talks about the use of overtones to enhance your playing, and which can be used to good effect in this tune.File size is 4.01MB.Duration is 11 minutes 41 seconds.

This week we have another piece by the famous blind harper, Turlough O'Carolan.(Note that we've migrated the web content for the podcast to www.irishguitarpod.com; there you'll find more extensive content.)File size is 2.89 MB.Duration is 8 minutes 25 seconds.

Caisleán an Óir is a hornpipe.This arrangement is in D Dorian, a type of D Minor, but without a Bb in the key signature.The D Dorian has the same notes as the C Major Scale.File size is 2.27MB.Duration is 8 minutes 8 seconds.

Technically not too demanding, this is a lovely tune, quite typical of the beautiful music that emanates from the hills and valleys of North Leitrim.The recording on this podcast episode is from Tony's CD "The Maid At The Well". (You can purchase this CD, or individual tracks from it, on iTunes, Amazon, eMusic, Rhapsody, and other online music outlets. But don't purchase "Bernie Cunnion's", because it's free on the podcast!)A couple of announcements:1. Tony's CD "An Sliabh Glas", is also now available online. Visit www.irishguitarpod.com for track listing and sleeve notes, and links to purchase.2. Tony's also put together a Guitar Chord Dictionary - a comprehensive book with over 2,100 chord shapes. It's available to download from www.irishguitarpod.com for a very reasonable US $20.File size of this episode is 4.45MB.Duration is 12 minutes 59 seconds.

This is a short reel, with 16 bars. It's in the key of E Minor, with two sharps in the key signature, which means it's in the E Dorian mode.Tony sometimes refers to this as the "Irish Minor", and many Irish minor tunes use a Dorian mode.Sunday, 1 March 2009File size is 4.79MB.Duration is 13 minutes 57 seconds.

Not to be confused with "Andy McGann's Jig" (which we had in Lesson 19), this is a completely different tune.It's one of the many compositions of the late New York fiddler Andy McGann. It is in the key of D, but on guitar Tony plays it in C, with the capo on the second fret.This is the first tune in Book 3.File size is 2.91MB.Duration is 8 minutes 29 seconds.

This tune is a composition of the late Paddy O'Brien from Nenagh in Co. Tipperary.Paddy O'Brien's tunes are often very challenging, but are also very musical. You will need to move your left hand into the third position when you reach the 11th bar. You can use the gap provided by the open E at the beginning of the bar to move into the third position, and then move back to open position for the last two bars.This, incidentally, is the last tune in Book 2.File size is 2.93MB.Duration is 12 minutes 50 seconds.

This reel is in D, so there are no notes that are played on the first fret. Also the highest note in the tune is the F# on the 1st string, 2nd fret, so you won't have to move your left hand.The tune does require picking on all six strings. Keeping your left hand 'square' to the fretboard will help. In the accompaniment, there area a few B Minor chords placed at strategic points in the second part of the tune, which add a touch of melancholia.File size is 1.74MB.Duration is 7 minutes 37 seconds.

A 16-bar reel consisting of two four-bar sections, each repeated once.File size is 1.3MB.Duration is 5 minutes 41 seconds.

Originally in A minor, this tune is sometimes played in G minor - for example by both Martin Hayes and Kathleen Collins have recorded in G minor.Martin pointed out to Tony that many A minor tunes are played in G minor in his native East Clare.Tony's version here however is in the original A minor.File size is 1.8MB.Duration is 7 minutes 52 seconds.