SS122 Negotiating Identity: Irish Traditional Music and Dance Irish Studies Program Summer 2018 July 4-Week 1 Course - Galway

This course will examine key practices in Irish traditional music and dance since 1800. Core elements include an examination of music in the post-famine period in Ireland; music among the Diaspora; revivals of dance and music; sean-nós song and the uilleann piping tradition. Utilizing anthropological and cultural history frameworks, students will explore the place of traditional performance arts in Irish culture, and the central roles these traditions play in formation of local, national and transnational identities. Conceptual issues of authenticity and tradition will underscore much of the discussions. Students will explore these issues and will also have the opportunity to take sean-nós singing and dance workshops as vocational support to the academic programme. This course will offer the opportunity to explore such issues through readings, discussions and seminars.