Sean nós

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Sean Nós Singing (pronounced Shan Noh-s) is a highly-ornamented style of solo, unaccompanied singing in the Irish tradition.

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[edit] Description

Sean nós literally means old style. Sean nós is a style prevalent in traditional Irish singing and dancing (and can be found to some extent in other Gaelic cultures).

vocals ar sean-nós ("in the old style") are considered the ultimate expression of traditional singing. The performance is usually solo (very occasionally as a duet). The art may be practised in some ways and not in others... e.g. a performance may well mix sean-nós with lilting, ballads or other styles.

The importance of Sean nós singing in the Irish tradition is such that Tomás Ó Canainn writes, "It is the author's belief that no aspect of Irish music can be fully understood without a deep appreciation of sean-nós (old style) singing. It is the key which opens every lock".[1]

There are often references in English to "the sean nós style". However sean nós itself already means 'old style', so some see this as incorrect. Nevertheless people that do not speak Irish often need to qualify sean nós as a style.

Irish song tradition Sean nós songs can be relatively simple. However many are long, highly stylised and melodically complex. A good performance typically involves significant ornament and rhythmic variation from verse to verse.

Ó Canainn characterises most ornamentation into melismatic ornamentation. This is where a note is replaced or decorated by a group of adjacent notes. Contrast with intervallic ornamentation, in which additional notes are used to fill an interval between two notes of the tune.


Decorative elements common in sean nós singing include

  • highly ornamented and the voice is placed towards the top of the range.
  • nasalisation (especially in Ulster);
  • a second form of nasalisation (used in the south) which produces an "m", "n" or "ng" sound at the end of a phrase;
  • brief pauses introduced by glottal stops, "slides" or glissandi (particularly when sung by women);
  • very long extended phrases achieved through highly developed breath control;
  • a tendency to draw breath after a conjunction or other linking word rather than at the end of a line;
  • the ending of some songs by speaking the final line instead of singing it.
  • Varying of the melody of every verse (this is hard). However this will not be done to the point of interfering with the words. The latter are considered to have as much importance as the melody.

All these devices serve various purposes, such as

  • enhancing a sense of continuity (e.g. by filling the gap between phrases with a nasalised drone);
  • drawing attention to important words (often the function of a glottal stop);
  • expressing a transition from the experience of music to the hard facts of everyday life, by the speaking of the final line at the end of some songs.

A number of songs, especially older ones, are musical_mode|modal rather than diatonic in melody, which can present problems for singers who are unaccustomed to the 'layout' of modal scales. Some melodies properly incorporate slightly larger or smaller music intervals than the western standard, but it is rare to hear them performed authentically in the 21st century.

[edit] Distinguishing Social Features

The interaction between performer and audience is a key aspect of the sean nós tradition.

  • The singer may require cajoling, and this may itself be regarded as part of the recital
  • The singer may occasionally adopt a position facing the corner of the room and away from the audience - a position that has acoustic benefits and perhaps, it is suggested, some ancient significance.
  • The audience is not expected to be silent throughout, but may participate in the performance through words of encouragement and commentary. Sometimes a member of the audience will even come and hold the performer's hand in empathy with the song. Such interaction does not disturb the flow of music, and the performer will often respond to it musically.

Most songs are not gender specific, although the lyrics may suggest it is being sung from a woman's or man's point of view. However there are a few songs that men tend not to sing. Women however do not seem to have the same compunction.

Modern performance often places songs out of context. This is a new departure for sean nós singing


[edit] Content of lyrics

Most songs might be seen as some form of love poetry, or variation of the theme of relationships between men and women.

Other frequent types are laments, references to historical events such as famines and political rebellions, lullabies, nature poetry, devotional songs, or combinations of these.

Comedy is also an integral part of many songs, as are references to drinking.


[edit] Language and Regional Variation

To the first-time listener, accustomed to pop and classical singers, sean-nós often sounds more "Arabic" or "Indian" than "Western". There is no evidence however for any non-Western influences.

Sean nós styles vary around Ireland. With the influence of recording media and ease of travel, however, these distinctions are becoming less definite and singers sometimes adopt different styles for songs from the different parts of the country.

Differences in style generally corresponding geographically to the various dialects of Irish - from the relatively unadorned and nasal style of the north to the more decorated styles of the south and west.

The Waterford Gaeltacht of An Rinn has also a distinct style, despite its small size.

Sean nós can be applied to songs in English, Irish, or indeed some other language. A large number of sean nós songs are macaronic: that is to say they combine two or more languages - usually Irish and English but occasionally Irish and French and other European languages, including Latin.

Many would agree that it is more the method of singing that is distinctive, and not the lyrics or the language. However some purists insist that songs exclusively in the English language cannot be regarded as belonging to the tradition.

[edit] History or Sean Nos and Modern Developments

The tradition was exclusively oral, and remains mostly so.

However a few songs are known to have been committed to script as early as the 16th century. A song-book for Elizabeth I contained English interpretations of sean nós songs.

Songs started to be more extensively written down in the eighteenth century, and distributed in print from then on.

New composition is a controversial issue within sean nós singing.

- Some singers insist that the tradition needs new material. As society changes, the content of the lyrics should reflect that.

- However singers saying that only older, "purer" songs represent the essence of the tradition, or deserve a special place in the corpus of sean nós songs.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Ó Canainn, Tomás (1993). Traditional Music in Ireland. Cork, Ireland: Ossian Publications Ltd. ISBN 0-946005-73-7. 

[edit] Sources

Hast, Dorothea, E., Scott, and Stanley. "Music in Ireland: Experiencing Music, Expressing Culture". New York: Oxford University Press, 2004. 84-136.

[edit] External links