Workshops 2026
Irish Traditional Songs in English and Macaronic Songs (Deirdre Scanlan) Friday, Saturday, Sunday morning: In the morning classes I will be teaching Irish traditional songs in English, from both the unmetered and rythmic song type. I would also hope to incorporate a couple of macaronic songs, songs which mix the English and Irish languages in the one text – one traditional, and one that I have taken from the Irish tradition and made a poetic translation of myself.
Irish Traditional Songs in Irish (Deirdre Scanlan) Friday, Saturday afternoon: In the afternoon classes I will be teaching Irish traditional songs in the Irish language, from both the unmetered and rythmic song type. Depending on interest, we may investigate the artform of lilting or mouthmusic (portaireacht béil).
Uilleann Pipes (Ciarán O’Connell) Friday, Saturday, Sunday morning: This class is for intermediate and advanced players, covering repertoire, ornaments, variation and melody playing as well as regulator work. If you are a beginner, and would like to find tuition, please contact us.
Polkas and Slides from Sliabh Luachra (Ciarán O’Connell) Friday, Saturday afternoon: Repertoire class, open to all melody instruments typically used in Irish music. Accordeons especially welcome 🙂
If you would like to find out what Sliabh Luachra music is, here are some examples: https://www.youtube.com/c/SliabhLuachra
Irish Flute/Tin Whistle (John Kelly) Friday, Saturday, Sunday morning: The workshops will cover breath work, ornamentation (also applicable to tin whistle players), as well as flute tunes. This class ist aimed at intermediate to advanced flute/tin whistle players with a good basic command of their instrument. If you are a beginner, please contact us.
Flute Masterclass (John Kelly) Friday afternoon: Aimed at advanced flute and tin whistle players, who would like to improve their technique.
Tunes from Sligo/Roscommon (John Kelly) Saturday afternoon: Repertoire class, open to all melody instruments typically used in Irish music. If you are unsure if your instrument is suitable, please contact us.
Fiddle (Aisling Drost Byrne) Friday, Saturday, Sunday morning: I’ll be teaching some old Donegal tunes like highlands/strathspeys and barndances as well as looking at the unique Donegal bowing style. I’ll also put together some fun sets for the class to play in sessions!
This class is aimed at intermediate to advanced fiddle/violin players, who have a good basic command of their instrument.
Tunes from Donegal (Aisling Drost Byrne) Friday afternoon: Repertoire class, open to all instruments typically used in Irish music. If you are unsure if your instrument is suitable, please contact us.
Fiddle Masterclass (Aisling Drost Byrne) Saturday afternoon: Aimed at advanced fiddle players who would like to improve their technique
Irish Harp (Martina Leutschacher) Friday, Saturday, Sunday morning: In this class, we’ll explore traditional Irish music on the harp – learning various session tunes (reels, jigs, hornpipes, polkas, etc.), slow airs, typical
ornamentation techniques, and melody variations. We’re particularly interested in the question: „What do we do with our left hand while the right hand is playing the melody?“ I’ll show you several tried-and-tested standard accompaniment patterns and give ideas on how to quickly and easily create your own left-hand
arrangements. The course is structured so that players of varying skill levels can participate, although you shouldn’t be a complete beginner. If you’re unsure about your skill level but are interested in joining, please send an e-mail to martina@martina-music.com If you’d like to learn how to accompany other instruments (e.g., in a session), I recommend also participating in the Tune Accompaniment class.
Tune Accompaniment (Martina Leutschacher) Friday, Saturday afternoon: Do you play a harmony instrument and want to learn how to accompany Irish session tunes? Do you want to learn how harmony works in Irish music and learn typical chord progressions? Then this class is perfect for you – I’ll explain the harmonic structure of Irish music concisely, including which chords are needed, common chord progressions, variations and special cases. We’ll learn strategies for learning to accompany an unfamiliar tune by ear and discuss the different time signatures and rhythms of session tunes. Besides understanding the theory, it’s important to practice what we’ve learned, so we will play and accompany the tunes discussed in class. This course is for harmony instruments such as the harp, guitar, banjo, mandolin, bouzouki, keyboard, etc., or for anyone who wants to learn more about the harmony of Irish music or refresh their knowledge! Of course, you can also join if you simply want to practice accompanying at a slow/moderate pace, for example, if you play the bodhrán. Basic requirement: You must know where to find the chords on your instrument and how to play them. TIP: Before the class, it’s best to learn all the chord fingerings (major/minor) in keys with 1-3 sharps (G major/D major/A major) as well as in C major. You can also bring a chord fingering chart book to be sure (available for guitar, mandolin etc.). If you’re unsure whether your instrument or playing level is suitable, feel free to contact: martina@martina-music.com
Bodhrán (Ryan Sommerhuber) Friday, Saturday, Sunday morning: To all the rhythm keepers, groove makers, and mood uplifters out there – this course is for the ones who are passionate about diving into the world of Irish bodhrán mixed with influences from traditional drumming. We’ll start with a general rhythmic understanding of jigs and reels and then garnish that with learning when and where to place the different embellishments in a tune – and we’ll put that straight into practice by playing to recordings. Also, we’ll talk about what it might mean to be a good session player and how to accompany and support a session. My aim is for you to leave the course with new grooves and practice ideas under your belt, and a feeling like you conquered a new level of musicality in your bodhrán playing.
(The tutor plays single-ended tipper style)
Ensemble (Albin Paulus) Friday, Saturday, Sunday morning: We will cover repertoire mainly from central Europe that is easy to memorise and to get into your fingers. There will be cool riffs and grooves for improvisation, call-response dance songs and tunes for singing, playing and dancing. All instruments are welcome. Drone instruments preferably in G,C and D.
Overtone Music (Albin Paulus) Friday afternoon: The field of overtone music is giving a lot of opportunity for exploration. If you can’t bring your overtone flute or jews harp, you can always use your vocal chords! 🙂
Instrument Making (Albin Paulus) Saturday afternoon: Making and playing of simple overtone instruments that can be used straight away for making music. We will look at tips and tricks (ornamentation, variety, micro-rhythm, micro-intonation) on how to turn simple, seemingly unspectacular melodies into little gems. These are only a few of the ideas on how to have a lot of fun in this class!
List of Tutors 2026
Aisling Drost Byrne Donegal et al. Fiddle
Albin Paulus Most amazing ensemble ever
Ciarán O’Connell Uilleann Pipes and Button Accordeon
Deirdre Scanlan Irish/English/Macaronic Song
John Kelly Irish Flute/Tin Whistle
Martina Leutschacher Irish Harp melody and accompaniment
Ryan Sommerhuber Bodhrán