Tue 24 Mar 2009
Music and Ritual
Posted by Fiacharrey under Bardic Arts, Celtic Studies, Druidry, Magic, Paganism
[14] Comments
All deep things are song. It seems somehow the very central essence of us, song; as if all the rest were but wrap pages and hulls! ~Thomas Carlyle
There is something deeply spiritual about music. Our Celtic ancestors understood this, and they gave poets and musicians a place of honor they deserve. As their daily lives were infused with their spirituality, so it was with music. I imagine that rituals were very musical and that most of their prayers and words of praise were sung. The legends and stories of the Gods and heroes speak of the magical power of their music.
The deeper truth here is that music is magic. Music is prayer. “Music,” says Beethoven, “is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life.” It is no less than the universal language of the Gods. The study and practice of music, then, is a form of spiritual devotion and communion.
Music not only gives us a spiritual connection to the divine, but a connection to our heritage as well. Music is a universal language, but it is also cultural. So, I espouse integrating music into ritual, and to honor our ancestors by making our music culturally connected.
There are two instruments I recommend to those interested in a Celtic mode of worship: the Irish flute, also known as the penny-whistle or tin-whistle, and the bodhran, which is a traditional Irish drum. They are portable, inexpensive, and easy to learn. In my book, that makes them ideal ritual instruments. I intend to discuss them in more detail in upcoming installments, but for now, I’d like to point out that you don’t even need an instrument.
As an African proverb tells us, “If you can walk, you can dance; if you can talk, you can sing.” Wherever you go, you always have the musical power of your voice. So, how can you incorporate song into ritual? I have a couple of suggestions. First is to find relevant folk music, “borrow” the tune, and set your own lyrics to it. That takes a bit of poetic skill, but it’s not too difficult. Also, it is something of a time-honored tradition. Many old and well-known church hymns have the tunes of even older tavern drinking songs and other folk songs.
The other suggestion is to use a method such as Ossianic Chanting. Alexei Kondratiev, noted Celtic Studies scholar, gives us some great information about the Ossianic chant:
Equally ancient is the type of mythological recitation commonly known as ‘Ossianic chant’. This has survived in the southern Hebrides, but it was clearly widespread in Ireland several centuries ago, and at least one example was collected in Donegal in the 1940s.
Poems (duain) relating to the exploits of the Fianna are presented in one of two styles:
· A rapid, semi-improvisational chant on four or five notes, shaping itself according to the natural intonational patterns of the words; or
· A slow chant on a simple melody with wide intervals and a metrical pattern emphasising the structure of the verse line.
According to tradition, this chant was invented by Fionn Mac Cumhaill’s son Ossian (Oisean in Scots Gaelic, Oisín in Irish) to recount the deeds of the Fianna to St. Patrick. In fact, the custom of chanting these stories may well be pre-Christian, since it appears to have had ritual connotations and it was considered particularly appropriate to perform them on Hogmanay-New Year’s Eve-which in Scotland attracted to itself many of the customs of Samhain.
Clearly, Ossianic chanting is very appropriate for our rituals. And, you can set pretty much anything to an Ossianic-like chant, and give it a haunting beauty. I’ve listened to some samples, and there is a lot of variance in the style. I like to use poetry adopted from the Carmina Gadaelica, much of which was undoubtedly sung or chanted in earlier times. Here is what Condratiev gives us about the structure of the Ossianic chant:
“The most common intervallic structure is A-C-D-E, with the voice starting on A but rising rapidly to E, staying on E a few syllables, then gradually descending back to A in imitation of the natural lowering of pitch near the end of a sentence. In some poems, the “stanza” structure will be emphasized by having the voice rise to D again at the end of the passage before dropping again to A at the start of the next one.”
Using those four notes and my Irish flute, I sound out, in an improvisational manner similar in style to some of the chants I’ve heard, how I am going to sing each verse. Then I follow with the verse in song. It’s simple, but very effective. So, I hope that is enough to get you started, and I hope you find a way to work music, which truly is the language of the gods, into your spiritual practice.
The discovery of song and the creation of musical instruments both owed their origin to a human impulse which lies much deeper than conscious intention: the need for rhythm in life… the need is a deep one, transcending thought, and disregarded at our peril. ~Richard Baker
Here are links to me with my Bodhran and with Irish Flute, discussing their application in ritual.