Irish traditional music is a genre of folk music that developed in Ireland.
Irish musicians during a music session, among them Christy Barry (left) and James Devitt (center). Traditional music sessions are commonplace in public houses throughout Ireland.
Statues of traditional musicians, Lisdoonvarna
The Haymakers jig
A fiddle and bow
A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, the style of the music played may determine specific construction differences between fiddles and classical violins. For example, fiddles may optionally be set up with a bridge with a flatter arch to reduce the range of bow-arm motion needed for techniques such as the double shuffle, a form of bariolage involving rapid alternation between pairs of adjacent strings. To produce a "brighter" tone than the deep tones of gut or synthetic core strings, fiddlers often use steel strings. The fiddle is part of many traditional (folk) styles, which are typically aural traditions—taught "by ear" rather than via written music.
A morris dance fiddler playing a fiddle.
Fiddlers participating in a session at a pub in Ireland
The folk music band JPP at the 2015 Kaustinen Folk Music Festival in Kaustinen, Finland
Peter Stampfel from The Holy Modal Rounders