The Irish standard., 1893-12-02
THE GAELIC MUSIC.
Interesting Contribution on Irish
Minstrelsy by NJ. J. Murphy,
the Baritone Singer. *s==
THE. NATIONAL INSTRUMENT.


The NATIONAL INSTRUMENT
The First Performance Of Harmon
ICED Sound in Erin Was Played
on the Harp. .s@5 !.
The grand old bardio ordersof Ireland
has long since been swept away BY the
resistless hand OF time, yet the spirit Of
the minstre]sy, which her ollamhs bred
and fostered, still fingers in the hearts OF
the race for which they toiled and which
their genius glorifed. The influence Of
the white-robed minstrels is still as po-
tent in the isle they loved as though
their harps poured ont the tide Of
melody within the stately halls Of the.
grand old castles, or in the depths Of the
sacred forests they still into the youthful
Druid's ear instilled their mysteries, in
stead Of being mere memories, rising.
like dim shadows from the misty past.
| The Irish melody Of the present day is
| product of the inspiration drank by us
from the fountain Of their genius, for
not only does it possess the Characters
tic pathos OF their school, but it is sub
servient TO the rules OF form once laid
down by these ancient masters. To cast
| it in another mould would be to rob it Of
Its robe OF nationality. How far into the
early ages OF Ireland musical culture ex-
tended, we have no authentic means Of as.
certaining. For this information we
must take the tradition Of the bards who
tell us that with the first princes Of the
Milesians, Heber and Heremon, who led
colony to Ireland about 1000 B. c.,
there came third brother, Amergin by
name, who was we'll skilled in the arts OF
music and poetry. Upon landing, he as
sumed at once the office OF ard. fileath, or
chief bard, and is said to have presided
over the departments of law, poetry, phil
osophy and religion-as as in the customs
Of the ancient Greeks, by which Or.
pheus, Amphion, Linus and Mueaeus
united the characters of poet, legislator
and philosopher.
In the train OF Heber and Heremon
were also two bards: Cir Mac Cis poet
and historian, and Onna Ceanfnn, q
harper; both Of the latter being eminent
for their skill in their respective arts.
Tradition also points to the existence of
q third noted bard Lugadh, the son OF
Ith. The poems Of this minstrel are
spoken of rs contemporary with those OF
Amergin, although his coming with the
/ Milesian colony is not mentioned by the
bards.
OF the poetic compositions attributed
! to Amergin, there are no fewer than
three extant; and in the second volume
of Hardiman-s Minstre]sy is one said to
have been composed by him while coast
ing off the shores OF Ireland before land
/ ing. There is an outline of it's meaning
| given with it, for it was composed in the
Bearla Feini, or Fenian dialect; the Ian
guage Of the learned, and known only
to the latter-like the Mandarin langu-
age of the Chinese. 1t was to this Fe-
nian language that the science Of juris-
prudence was committed. Amergin'e e
poems are written with an lnterlined
gloss, without which they would be ut
terly unintelligible to modern Irish
scholars. The gloss itself requires much
| study to understand as the language is
obsolete and must, in many cases, be
read from bottom to top. Hardiman, in
his preface to the work, says: There
! still remain, after q lapse Of nearly three
thousand years, fragments Of these an
Gent bards lAmergin and Lugadh Mac
lIth), some Of which will be found IN the
following pages with proofs 81 their au--
4 thenticity. ]" 3. 81 ".
From the coming OF these bards we
may. date the commencement Of musical
|culture il Ireland with them came must
cal science, form and laws, 90 essential
Ito the development; sof the divine art,
(which they had already brought TO 9
4 high degree Of excellence Previous TO
their advent We may suppose that the
Ionly music 70 echo through the depths
lot the grand old forests was that 5of the
Il feathered song ngstters who poured forth
THAR hynanl g 81 l,raiiee S they were
II fanuhk IN lin, ~ Ia calved III match
/ loss roe md ssys. los III ~ its shrink
j ing tenderness.
What, oharaett 81 81 are uaed the an
eieut bards % denote the ditfsrent notes
4 81 the ncale csnnot sIut hentic be a.
Iserted ~ an larians, for,
Ialthoug riitiine 81 yellum was intro
Iiduoed into Ireland "a the ttth soentuly,
TIRE are 40 I e,inne of ancient Irish
n1lsicaI ottaatiion ext the bards
hid snch 4 ~ itiys IL
nf I.esI hayA