Traditionnels
18 Irish traditional melodies - Guitare

Préface All of the 18 selected melodies of this anthology comes from Petrie’s Complete Irish Music - 1582 Traditional Melodies Edited by George Petrie (1789-1866). In 1851 an enthusiastic group of Irishmen founded the Society for the Preservation and Publication of Irish melodies. Petrie, who was an «archaeologist, painter, musician, a man of letters, […] revered and loved» received the commission to transcribe all the melodies: The song having been given, O'Curry wrote the Irish words, when Petrie's work began. The singer recommenced, stopping at a signal from him at every two or three bars of the melody to permit the writing of the notes, and often repeating the passage until it was correctly taken down . . . However, the Society succeeded in publishing only the first of five planned volumes of Petrie’s collection. The complete work was published in three parts between 1902 and 1905, by the Irish Society of London and by the publishing house Boosey & Co ( London & New York ). In 2003 Dover Publications reprinted the whole collection in one volume. These 18 melodies, arranged and transcribed for guitar, are considered as an homage to Irish folk music, that part of the immense repertoire of European popular music which has gained a unique place in the contemporary world: its style and flavor, its richness and elegance, have forged the melodic vocabulary of pop music as well as film scores, and are present (often inadvertently) in a large number of different repertoires today. However, if one wishes to know and practice true traditional Irish music he must remember that : singing is normally unaccompanied. Unison singing, in duet especially, is heard. Instruments are played in unison in combinations of any number. Counterpoint is not employed, and harmonic accompaniment, when possible on an instrument, is generally of a simple kind. Here then, elaborating and arranging these folk melodies for guitar, I have certainly gone far beyond the original Irish world, to know which it is necessary to go straight to the original sources and interpreters. Nevertheless, I did it with the intent of respecting and comprehending this world, with love and admiration. Moreover, I wish to underline that for the last fifteen years I have been working intensely and constantly within the world of popular modal music. Among my various practical and theoretical experiences, I would like to point out my book on modality in the XX century, a music tale which I composed with the Irish singer Kay McCarthy and dedicated to the true story of Halloween and my long-term collaboration with the Italian group Calicanto. In the years during which I worked with this band I selected and developed a set of old folk tunes originating from Venice and Veneto region, a real collection of rare musical jewels, which were performed during a series of concerts (S-Confini Mediterranei 2010-2011 ) that saw the dialogue between Calicanto and a symphonic orchestra (The Philharmonia Veneta Orchestra). These pieces were then released on CD (Mosaico, 2011). I truly hope that my work may provide a further contribution (even though seemingly redundant) to spread of Irish music, especially among guitar players. Gian-Luca Baldi (Bologna, Italy, 1961), is a composer, a writer and a composition professor (since 1999, in Bari Conservatory of Music first, and, since 2012, in Castelfranco Veneto, Treviso). His works include more than fifty compositions: symphonic and chamber works commissioned by important Orchestras, Festivals and Dance Companies (Collegium Musicum, Solisti Dauni – Foggia, Res Extensa Dance Company, T.I.R Danza Modena, Orchestra della Provincia di Bari, Orchestra Filarmonia di Treviso, Cantiere d’Arte di Montepulciano, Micron Chamber Operas -Turin, Syracuse Film Festival, U.S.A.). He is also the author of two novels, a number of short stories and six chamber operas for children, including Oiche Shamhna – The night of Samhain – The true story of Hallowe’en(2008), written with Irish singer and composer Kay McCarthy and dedicated to Ireland and Irish music and culture. Claudia Benasciutti (Camposampiero, Padova, 1978) studied guitar with Stefano Grondona at the Conservatory "A. Pedrollo" in Vicenza. In 2004 she graduated cum laude; achieved cum laude the Postgraduate Diploma in musical disciplines in 2006 and in 2009 the Diploma in instrumental teaching. She attended masterclasses with Alirio Diaz, Laura Mondiello, Paul Galbraith, Oscar Ghiglia and the lutenist Massimo Lonardi. She has performed both as soloist and in chamber ensembles in Italy and abroad, taking part in some of the most important guitar festivals ("Ponte di Note" in Valtellina, Italy, 2002, 2005 ; "Festival de la Guitarra" in Cordoba, Spain, 2007; "Mario Castelnuovo Tedesco" in Treviso, Italy, 2008; "Les jeudis de la guitar" in Geneva, Switzerland, 2008).Today she is a guitar professor at the Istituto Comprensivo of Istrana (Treviso) and she studies composition with Gian-Luca Baldi at the Conservatory "A.Steffani" in Castelfranco Veneto.