Track 9 from Saydisc "Percussion Around the World" - notes from Maureen Hanke.
'The King of the Fairies/ The Lilting Banshee' is an example of Irish music. The familiar sound of traditional Irish music comes from violins, piano accordions, penny whistles, the Celtic harp and the Ullieann pipes but supporting the spirit of the Irish sound is the Irish drum or the bodhran. Bodhran means "skin tray". It is a type of wooden frame drum that appears in cultures across the world. The Irish bodhran is characterised by a crosspiece behind the skin head which is held in one hand whilst the other hand hits the drum skin with the hand or a stick. The wooden rim and crosspiece are made from the Ash tree and the skin stretched over is from goat, sheep or deer.
In The King of the Fairies/ The Lilting Banshee the bodhran part is based around the steady beat. It is struck on each beat but gradually decorates each beat it plays with increasingly elaborate rhythmic patterns.
(In a music session the class could listen to The King of the Fairies and tap along to its steady beat in groups of 4. The piece can be heard in units of 8 groups of 4. The class could also tap along to the rhythm pattern of the tune which is good and bouncy.)
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