Asgards Irish music performed for the ceremony, with Alison playing the romantic “All I Ask of You” from Phantom of the Opera followed by a lively traditional session in the castle bar. Alison led an impromptu Irish dance and Meg and her dad danced their first dance to Country Roads.

A stunning venue, an amazing planner, stunning photography and wonderful music. All on the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice. Just perfection!

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Making a wedding your own way is an art form and not for the feint-hearted. The typical timeline of ceremony followed by drinks reception, dinner and a big band is not for everyone. When you have a small group you can really play around with your timeline. An early wedding ceremony followed by a wedding breakfast could work for a small group sticking to a budget. A late wedding, short pre-dinner reception and a smaller band after dinner works well too. That is what Jake and Teegan decided to go for and Asgards played for the whole day.

Their ceremony was so beautiful with a friend as their celebrant. They had done all their official “I dos” at home a few weeks prior. So the ceremony was stress-free and full of romantic moments like their traditional Irish handfasting (more on this in another post).

Springfield Castle is a gem https://springfieldcastle.com. (See our Instagram post for photos). Originally built cerca 1480 and associated with the Fitzgeralds . It is now open for exclusive parties and events with enough rooms to accommodate your nearest and dearest.

The recently reformed tower house is gorgeous for an intimate wedding celebration.

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Let us know if you are interested in dancers to compliment your day.

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A session is not a musical performance and does not take place on a stage.

Sessions are usually weekly and anyone can sit in. Newer players will be asked to play their own “sets” of tunes, which, if known will be accompanied by the regular attendees (the regulars). Priority is given to the regulars to start tunes. Singers are welcome but instrumental music is more common. Singing sessions often take place separately.

Common session instruments include Fiddle, Banjo, Irish Flute, Bazooki, Concertina, Uilleann pipes, Accordion and Guitar.

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We play Irish Airs and pieces by O’Carolan. Some of these pieces which we find work really well are:

Si Beag Si Mór

Planxty Irwin

Lord Inchiquin

She moved through the fair

Hewlett

An Gaoth Aneas

Planxty Fanny Power

Down by the Salley Gardens

Some contemporary songs we play:

How long will I love you (Waterboys)

Gift of a Thistle (Braveheart)

Can’t Help Falling in Love with you (Elvis, The ting tings etc.)

Classical/ other

Pacabel Canon in D

Concerning Hobbits (from the Hobbit)

Religious

Ag Criost an tSiol

Mo Gra thu a thiarna

A Mhuire Mathair

Please reach out to us with your questions concerning music for your ceremony. We are happy to help!

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Once you’ve committed and figured out the practicalities of budget, dates, guest list etc. you will need to decide if you are going to hire a wedding planner or not. We play at a lot of weddings and the ones with a planner always run more smoothly. If you have really small group and are good at delegating then you might just get away without one. But once the guests start RSVP-ing kinda unexpectedly… you could need some help, a lot of help.

The venue is probably the first big decision. Dublin or the West Coast? City or Rural? Castle or chic boutique hotel? There are so many amazing venues in Ireland. Great food and great local suppliers. This will probably be your biggest spend on the wedding day also. Your venue is your platform to make your dream day (or days) reality. A planner can help you with this.

While we’re at it let’s just look at some really important differences. Most hotels will have a wedding co-ordinator who can help with a lot of the important stuff like rooming, limited liasing with suppliers and catering. But your own personal wedding planner takes this to another level. They can manage payments, recommend suppliers, Manage timelines with all your suppliers. They can arrange local transport, book welcome dinners and day 2 parties (Irish style). Is there anything they can’t do?

So you’ve booked the venue! Amazing! Next step, the suppliers. From Florists, Stylists, Cake makers, Photographers, Videographers, Musicians, Wedding nannies, Make up Artists, Hairstylists…..

Where do you start? How do you keep organised? OK…. now breathe….

There is a lot to organise, but Rome wasn’t built in a day. Most couples plan 1year to 2 years out from their wedding day. Some do it with just 4 months planning and it can be done!

The order to book your suppliers is so personal. Sometimes one supplier can recommend another or they work together regularly. Keep good records. Try to speak to your prospective suppliers and ask questions. We do this all the time and are happy to share our knowledge.

In the end it is your day and you will have to trust your instincts and get some help.

Asgards (that’s us!) play for ceremonies and drinks receptions/ parties nationwide. Traditional Irish music for a real Irish party or truly romantic ceremony on Irish instruments. Drop us a line and let’s talk destination weddings!

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Their parents generation had enjoyed the folk revival, focused in the pubs near Merrion square. Donoghues, the Baggot Inn on Baggot street still had music, but up and coming musicians had tired of their parents music; The Dubliners and The Dublin City Ramblers, Luke Kelly and were looking for something new. Sessions were open and without the formality of microphones. Travelling musicians would drop in during the day for a tune and stay til the wee hours. Tourism had not hit the heights of recent times and artists and students mingled in the pizza joints and slightly more upscale restaurants dotting the area.

Ceoiltoir (Irish musicians performance course) was based in The Button Factory studios. Arguably, we owned Temple Bar… at least it felt like we owned it. There was a place for music and art in the city. The names and faces that passed the studio desk downstairs were numerous and often shrouded in large sunglasses. Through the soundproof doors we could hear nothing, but now and then we gained a snatch of a drum kit, saxophone and guitar, teasing our senses. Was that really Van Morrison’s band in there? Where was Van the Man?

Small groups and larger bands practiced day in, day out on sets to be played at out of town festivals and events around the country and the world. Auditions for shows in the Viking centre started careers for dancers and musicians alike.  Riverdance needed talent for it’s new tour, in America. Ambitions were high.

Now let’s not allow our rose-tinted glasses to get too fogged up. Even in the early 90’s one or 2 musicians were regularly paid to turn up and play for a few hours, often bringing friends and usually including a pint (or 2) for musicians. But the music was world class and more than a few musicians managed to make a living out of Gogo’s , the Aul Dub and the Norseman.

Then the word got out. The tourists flocked. The pubs filled. Microphones and PA systems were need for volume (and musicians sanity). Nights got longer. Tip jars got fuller.

How long was the hey-day? It’s not quite over yet. But joining sessions is not what it used to be. The pressure is on to keep the music churning, and people like a song they can sing along with. Ed Sheerin perhaps, or the odd song for the Swifties in town from Manchester on a hen for the weekend. He who pays the piper calls the tune and all.

Many of the best musicians formed bands and toured for decades (are ye back yet?). Ceoiltoir moved to Ballyfermot. Some moved away from Dublin or sought steadier jobs. Quieter tunes in bars further afield became more appealing. It is nice to be able hear each other after all.

There are still a few “nice, quiet” sessions to be had in Temple bar to this day. But sometimes the pleasure is in the seeking more than the finding.

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Uilleann, pronounced ill-in, is the Irish word for elbow. The piper uses one elbow to pump the bellows, which inflates the bag, and the other elbow to control the air pressure in the bag.

It is a distinctively Irish type of bagpipe that evolved from the earlier Pastoral pipes about the beginning of the 18th century and was initially referred to as Union pipes.

Uilleann pipes are made in various pitches. In the older sets the pitch is usually a tone, sometimes more, below concert pitch. Among players such pipes are known as ‘flat sets’.   

The instrument’s distinguishing features are:

• the bag is filled by a bellows, not from a blow pipe;
• the chanter or melody pipe has a range of two octaves (16 notes) as compared with a range of nine notes on the older pipes;
• the addition of regulators or closed chanters which permit an accompaniment to the melody;
• drones that can be controlled by a switch.

A lot of the development of the union pipes is attributed to William Kennedy (1768 – 1834) of Banbridge, County Down who lost his sight at the age of four but went on to become a repairer and maker of furniture, instruments and clocks. He is commemorated annually at the William Kennedy Piping Festival in Armagh.

In early December 2017 the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) inscribed uilleann piping in their Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It joins an extensive list of expressions of human culture from around the world, which UNESCO has agreed constitute precious parts of human heritage.

Compiled and edited by Martin Nolan. www.martinnolan.com

Sources:

History of the Uilleann pipes at www.pipers.ie

“A short history of the Uilleann pipes” by Terry Moylan published by History Ireland www.historyireland.com

Information about William Kennedy from www.armaghpipers.com

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Yes! We do a cracking version of Whiskey in the Jar along with many more songs made famous by The Dubliners, Luke Kelly, Christy Moore and The Fureys.

Do you play in pub sessions?

Yes, just drop us a line and we’ll get in touch to let you know where we’re going to be.

Where can I find a good Trad Band for my wedding?

Look no further! Asgards can play for your wedding drinks reception or after party.

Do you play Irish Music for Wedding Ceremonies? What Irish songs are good for a wedding ceremony?

We play mostly instrumental pieces for wedding ceremonies. O’Carolan is a favourite and Irish airs like “She moved through the fair” and “Down by the Salley Gardens”.

Why should I have an Irish session for my drinks reception?

There is nothing more Irish than a night in the pub and the atmosphere created by an authentic traditional session is incomparable. If you have overseas visitors they will be so happy to experience some real Irish culture.

Why do people like to sing The Wild Rover?

It’s a great song to sing along to. The chorus is simple and the story is easy to follow. It’s about drinking in the pub and finding money in your back pocket to pay for it. That’s pretty Irish!

Do you only sing Irish pub songs and ballads?

No, we also do contemporary songs. Have a look at the list below:

What’s the difference between The Violin and The Fiddle?

A Violin is the name of the instrument when you play Classical Music. The Fiddle is the name given when you play folk or Traditional Music. Luckily, Alison plays both!

What’s the difference between The Uilleann Pipes and The Bagpipes?

This could be the start of a joke… have a look on our post about the Uilleann pipes. One of the main differences is that the Uilleann pipes are inflated using a bellows and the Bagpipes are inflated using the breath. The Uilleann pipes are Irish, The Bagpipes are Scottish. The Uilleann pipes are for parlour music, the Bagpipes for war.

Here’s a list of SOME of the ballads we sing:

The Leaving of Liverpool

The Ferryman (strawberry beds)

The Wild Rover

Whiskey in the Jar

Black is the Colour (of my true love’s hair)

Go lassie go (wild mountain Thyme)

Clare to here

The Fields of Athenry

Dirty old town

Molly Malone

I’ll Tell Me Ma (when I get home)

Contemporary Songs 

Country roads (John Denver), Folsom Prison Blues (Johnny Cash), I used to love her (The Saw Doctors), Fishermans blues (The Waterboys), I would walk 500 miles (The Proclaimers), Freefalling (Tom Petty), Galway Girl (Mundy), I Will Wait for you (Mumford and Sons), How long will I love you (Waterboys)

Let us know if you have any requests!

The post Ballads, Folk Songs and your Irish Music questions answered appeared first on Asgards.

While the guests were seating we played some Irish songs. Red is the Rose, Black is the colour, Will you go Lassie go (Wild mountain Thyme) and Inisheer. As the Bride arrived we played Plenty Irwin, a piece by O’ Carolan. It was a really simple ceremony during which we played Tabhair dom do Lamh (Give me your hand in Gaelic) and Si Beag Si Mor. As the couple walked down the Aisle as a newly married couple we played a few lively jigs.

The entire wedding party then boarded a vintage bus and made their way to The Anglers Rest. While the guest sipped prosecco we were joined by a Banjo player and we sang some upbeat Irish folk songs. The Wild Rover, Whiskey in the jar and Molly Malone, to mention just a few.

This Irish destination wedding reception was really fun. We received so many compliments. It was a great success thanks to some of the best Irish wedding suppliers around. The cake by Cupcakes and counting https://cupcakesandcounting.com was to die for .  And the entertainment was fantastic! 😉

Asgards can’t wait for the next destination wedding in Ireland.

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