Siobhán Armstrong — Music from Early Ireland and Europe

WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO COACH YOU?

With over twenty-five years experience at tutoring in schools, music conservatories, universities and at events around Europe, the USA and Japan, I really enjoy helping others to discover early repertory and playing techniques – from absolute beginners to professionals.

• I use the earliest available historical manuscript source material for the Gaelic music I play and teach, most frequently the late eighteenth-century field-notebooks of Edward Bunting, who transcribed music directly from the last old Irish harpers. I also also early printed sources (16th – 19th century) from Ireland, England, Scotland and the USA.

• I can also help you with developing or repairing your technique (historical or modern) so that you are more likely to reach your potential and not injure yourself while playing.

• I work with both historical and modern harpists and, indeed, other musicians, singers and historical music researchers.

• A session with me can be mainly playing, mainly talking or anywhere in between.

• Any amount of musical literacy you have will be helpful but it is not essential for studying less advanced material.

• You can suggest material you want to work on or you can choose from the subjects outlined below. Please contact me if anything isn’t clear or if you have any questions.

MY AREAS OF INTEREST

Fifteenth century

• Latin plainchant from late-medieval Irish manuscripts: reading the neumes, singing, playing. (All levels)

Sixteenth century

• The oldest surviving Irish song airs, harp elegies, tuning preludes and variation sets. (All levels)

• Irish music surviving in Irish and English lute and keyboard sources. (All levels)

• English and European Renaissance music including

  • surviving compositions of Cormac MacDermott, the Irish composer who went on to play Irish harp at the royal court in London in the early seventeenth century and

  • music that could have been played by Darby Scott and Charles O’Reilly at the royal court in Copenhagen after 1600. (Advanced)

Seventeenth century

• The port harp repertory in seventeenth-century Scottish lute manuscripts, inc. learning to read the tablature. (All levels)

• Clan marches. (All levels)

• The evocative song airs of the Connellon-brother harpers from Co. Sligo. (All levels)

• Original harp versions of the great seventeenth-century laments: Limerick’s Lamentation, Wild Geese etc. (All levels)

• ‘Figured bass’: the European way of improvising music and accompanying melodies. (All levels)

• Music from the English courtly entertainments known as masques. (All levels)

• Gaelic dances and song airs surviving in English sources such as Playford’s Dancing Master (All levels)

Eighteenth century

• Songs and instrumental music composed by

• Turlough Carolan (inc. his bass hand)

• Cornelius Lyons

• Dennis O’Hampsey (inc. his bass hand)

• Hugh Higgins

• Arthur Ó Néill

• Echlin O’Kane and other old Irish harpers. (All levels)

• Harp variations sets (Advanced)

• Handel and Corelli compositions as played by Dominic Mungan and other Irish harpers (Advanced)

Technique

• I can help you sort out your problems and learn healthy ways to make sounds you like.

Musical phrasing / historical articulation

• A particular interest of mine: how to bring the music to life, to let it breathe and much more…

Methodology

• How to get from A to Z in reconstructing fresh music from dusty, fragmentary written sources.

WHERE CAN YOU STUDY WITH ME?

In Ireland

You can have lessons with me in person in KILKENNY.

In England

I am the Historical Harp professor at the Royal College of Music in LONDON, where I also teach privately in a central location.

International Coaching

I coach virtually on the internet using Zoom and other similar systems. You just need to have a good broadband connection and a camera on your computer. Once we get our time zones sorted out and make an appointment, then we can connect and get down to work!

For virtual coaching sessions, I share source material, my editions and relevant sound files with you by setting up a shared Dropbox folder for the two of us, into which I copy materials before the sessions. You can also send me material the same way: pieces on which you would like to work, completed assignments etc.

N.B. Virtual coaching works well from post-beginner level onwards; it is not ideal for complete beginners.

Intensive coaching

You can have intensive coaching sessions with me in KILKENNY city in the south-east of Ireland, in a tailor-made programme to suit you: for a number of days or over the course of a number of weeks.

There are many options for accommodation in Kilkenny; it’s a beautiful medieval city, less than two hours from Dublin airport, with a river and a castle. It is small enough for most destinations in Kilkenny to be walkable.

On tour

I sometimes have time to coach when I'm in a particular area for performances. Contact me to see if I'm likely to be in your area soon. 

RENTAL INSTRUMENTS

If you would like to have early Irish harp coaching with me, and you live in Ireland, then the HHSI can rent you an instrument from the HHSI Student Harp Rental Bank, if an instrument is available. Check with me for availability.