Celtic music.
1. Indicates 'Irish' or 'Scottish' musics, but is increasingly used in Britain and the
US to denote 'Irish',this suggesting discomfort with 'Irishness'. In Europe it may denote
Breton or Galician music in addition to Irish, Scottish and Welsh. The music of
Brittany is different to Irish music, but is within the playing and listening experience
of many Irish traditional musicians. Isle of Man, England and Wales are connected
cultures, but Scotland has particularly strong linguistic and music links with Ireland, as has
the Scots-Irish diaspora in Canada (Cape Breton, Newfoundland, etc.)
2. More superficially the term 'Celtic' has come to apply to an easy-listening, 'mood' music
with dreamy, non-specific but Irish/Scots flavour, marketed as 'relaxing', 'evocative', etc.
Celtic Folk is a blend of British folk and Celtic music. It has the structure of traditional
British and Celtic music, but the attitude and aesthetics of modern-day folk and
contemporary singer/songwriters.
Irish Folk refers to folk songs and folk singers from Ireland, who often incorporate
traditional Irish and Celtic music into their own style. The style encompasses both
traditional Irish folk and contemporary Irish folk, which blends the traditional with
contemporary rock and folk influences.r
Traditional Celtic applies not to the Celtic music that was popularized in the '90s.
Rather, it is both the earliest recordings of this folk style, plus recordings that keep
the music pure, without any of the new age or pop influences that distinguish
contemporary Celtic music.
