Irish Bouzouki - Adoption For Celtic Music

Adoption For Celtic Music

The Greek bouzouki, in the newer tetrachordo (four course/eight string, or τετράχορδο) version developed in the twentieth century, was introduced into Irish Traditional Music in the late 1960s by Johnny Moynihan of the popular folk group Sweeney’s Men, and popularized by Andy Irvine and Dónal Lunny in the group Planxty. In a separate but parallel development Alec Finn, later with the Galway-based traditional group De Dannan, obtained a trichordo (three course/six string, or τρίχορδο) Greek bouzouki on his own. With a few exceptions, bouzouki players playing Irish music tend to use the instrument less for virtuoso melodic work and more for chordal and contrapuntal accompaniment for melodies played on other instruments such as the flute or fiddle. Because of this it is common to use matched strings on the two bass courses, tuning to unison pairs in order to enhance the bass response of the instrument.

Almost immediately after the Greek bouzouki's initial introduction new designs built specifically for Irish traditional music were developed. The body was widened and a flat back with straight sides replaced the round, stave-built back of the Greek bouzouki. English builder Peter Abnett, who was the first instrument-maker to build a uniquely "Irish" bouzouki - for Dónal Lunny in 1970 - developed a hybrid design with a 3-piece dished back and straight sides. All of the initial Irish bouzoukis had flat tops, but within a few years luthiers such as Stefan Sobell began experimenting with carved, arched tops, taking their cue from American archtop guitars and mandolins. Even so, today the overwhelming majority of builders opt for flat (or slightly radiused) tops and backs.

The Irish bouzouki has also become integrated into some other western European musical traditions over the past forty years. Popularly used in the music of Asturias, Galicia, Brittany, Spain, and even the Scandinavian countries (in fact, there is even now a new Nordic branch of the instrument, having been modified further to suit the unique requirements of those musics). The instrument's role is usually a combination of interwoven accompaniment (usually a mix of open-string drones, two note intervals, bass lines and countermelody) and melodic play. Instrumental arrangements by musicians such as Ale Möller from Sweden, Jamie McMenemy of the Breton group Kornog, Elias Garcia of the Asturian groups La Tuenda and Llan de Cubel, and Ruben Bada of the Asturian group DRD, typify the complex admixture of melody and chordal accompaniment to be found amongst skilled continental players. It has also become fashionable for some of these musicians to mix instrumental pieces from the Balkans into their material, creating the novelty of western European instruments playing music typically played by Bulgarian/Macedonian tamburas or Greek bouzoukis in their native setting.