How to Learn Irish Traditional Music: A Beginner’s Guide

Radio Siamsa

16/07/2026

How to Learn Irish Traditional Music

The most important thing you can do if you want to learn Irish traditional music is something that doesn’t involve picking up an instrument at all. It’s this: listen.

Irish traditional music is an oral tradition. For centuries, tunes were passed from player to player by ear, not from written notation. A fiddler in Clare didn’t learn her tunes from a book — she learned them by sitting beside an older player and absorbing the melody, the rhythm, the ornamentation, the feel. The notes on the page were secondary. The sound in the ear was everything.

That’s still true today. Notation exists (and it’s useful), but the heart of learning trad is listening. If you can hum a tune before you try to play it, you’re already halfway there. If you jump straight to the notes on a page without knowing how the tune should sound, you’ll play the right notes in the wrong way — and in trad, the way is everything.

This guide is for anyone who wants to start — whether you’re picking up your first instrument or you’re an experienced musician from another tradition looking to learn trad. It’s written from a listener’s perspective, because that’s what Radio Siamsa is: a listening station. We can’t teach you fingering or bowing. But we can tell you where to start, how the learning process works, and how to set yourself up to succeed.

Step 1: Listen

Before you touch an instrument, spend time listening to Irish traditional music. Not casually, as background noise, but actively — paying attention to the tunes, the rhythms, the instruments, the way they interact.

Radio Siamsa is an ideal resource for this. We play traditional Irish music 24 hours a day, and our apps show the tune title and artist for every track. Over days and weeks of listening, you’ll start to recognise tune types (jigs sound different from reels, hornpipes from polkas). You’ll develop favourites. You’ll notice when a tune you’ve heard before comes around again. You’ll start to absorb the sound of the tradition at a level that conscious study can’t replicate.

This isn’t a preliminary step that you finish and move on from. Listening is the foundation of everything in trad, and the best musicians in the world never stop doing it. As concertina champion Caitlín Nic Gabhann has advised: know the melody in your head before you try it on your instrument. If you can hum the tune, you’re off to a good start.

Download the Radio Siamsa app and start listening.

Step 2: Choose an Instrument

Irish trad is played on a specific set of instruments, each with its own character, difficulty curve and role in the session. Here’s a practical guide to choosing your first.

Easiest entry points

Tin whistle: The most accessible instrument in Irish music. It costs a few euros, fits in your pocket, and the basics can be learned in days. It’s the instrument most Irish schoolchildren start on, and it provides an excellent foundation for later moving to flute, pipes or another wind instrument. Start with a D whistle.
Bodhrán: If you have a strong sense of rhythm but aren’t naturally drawn to melody instruments, the bodhrán is worth considering. The basics are accessible, but playing well requires deep listening and musical sensitivity.

Moderate difficulty

Fiddle: No frets, no fixed pitch — you have to find every note with your fingers and ears. The learning curve is steep, but the fiddle is the most versatile and widely played instrument in the tradition. A background in classical violin helps with technique but isn’t necessary.
Concertina: The Anglo concertina is the standard choice for Irish music. Its bisonoric system (different notes on push and pull) takes getting used to, but once you grasp the layout it’s a very satisfying instrument.
Button accordion: Similar to the concertina in principle but larger and louder. B/C or C#/D two-row models are standard for Irish music.
Tenor banjo: Tuned in fifths (GDAE), played with a plectrum. If you have any guitar or mandolin experience, the transition is relatively smooth.

Longer journey

Wooden flute: The simple-system wooden flute has a warm, breathy tone but requires good breath control and embouchure (lip technique). Not as immediately rewarding as the whistle, but deeply satisfying once the sound comes.
Uilleann pipes: The most complex instrument in the tradition. Most pipers start with a practice set (chanter only) and spend a year or more on the basics. It’s a long road, but the destination is extraordinary.

Accompaniment instruments

Guitar: For accompaniment in DADGAD tuning. If you already play guitar, learning Irish accompaniment is a matter of learning the tuning, chord voicings and the etiquette of supporting melody players.
Bouzouki: Another accompaniment option. GDAD tuning is standard. Less common as a first instrument but a natural choice for existing string players.

Choose something that appeals to your ear and your temperament. There’s no wrong choice — the tradition needs all of these instruments. But if in doubt, start with the tin whistle. It’s the universal gateway.

Read our complete guide to Irish traditional music instruments

Step 3: Find a Teacher

You can learn a lot from online resources, but nothing replaces a good teacher. Irish trad has specific techniques, stylistic nuances and cultural context that are best learned from someone who embodies the tradition.

Where to find a teacher

Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (CCE): The largest organisation promoting Irish traditional music. CCE branches across Ireland and worldwide offer classes for all instruments and levels. This is the single best starting point for finding in-person tuition. Website: comhaltas.ie
Online Academy of Irish Music (OAIM): Based in Doolin, OAIM offers comprehensive online video courses for 14 instruments, taught by renowned musicians. Courses run from beginner to advanced. If you can’t find a local teacher, OAIM is an excellent alternative. Website: oaim.ie
TradIrishMusic.com: Another online learning resource with step-by-step video tutorials from respected musicians across multiple instruments.
Alison.com: Offers free certified courses in traditional Irish music across eight instruments, taught by All-Ireland champions and members of bands like Danú and Hermitage Green.
Local sessions: Many experienced musicians are happy to mentor beginners informally. If there’s a session near you, attend regularly as a listener, build relationships, and ask if anyone gives lessons or would be willing to show you a few tunes.
Summer schools: Events like the Willie Clancy Summer School, Joe Mooney Summer School and South Sligo Summer School offer concentrated tuition from top-class musicians in an immersive setting. Even a week at a summer school can accelerate your learning dramatically.

Step 4: Learn Tunes

Once you have the basics on your instrument, you need repertoire. In Irish trad, this means learning tunes — not songs (though songs come later) but the jigs, reels, hornpipes and polkas that form the core session repertoire.

How to learn a tune

Listen to the tune repeatedly until you can hum or sing it from memory. This is the critical first step. Don’t skip it.
Work out the basic melody on your instrument, slowly. Don’t worry about speed or ornamentation yet. Get the notes right.
Practise the tune slowly and evenly until it flows. Resist the temptation to speed up before you’re ready. Good flow at a slow tempo is far better than choppy playing at full speed.
Add ornamentation gradually. Start with simple cuts and taps, then rolls and slides as your technique develops. Less is more, especially in the beginning.
Play along with recordings at a comfortable speed. Some apps allow you to slow down recordings without changing the pitch — this is hugely useful.
Bring the tune to a session or to your teacher and play it with others. This is where you’ll discover whether you really know it.

Where to find tunes

TheSession.org: The most comprehensive online database of Irish traditional tunes. Over 40,000 tunes with notation, recordings and discussion. Invaluable.
Radio Siamsa: Listen to the stream and note down tunes that catch your ear. Our apps show the tune title and artist, so you can identify what you’re hearing and look it up on TheSession.org.
O’Neill’s collections: The Dance Music of Ireland (1907) contains 1,001 tunes and is still the most-used reference book in the tradition. Available in reprints.
Other tune books: There are hundreds of tune books available for specific instruments and regions. Your teacher or local session will guide you to the most relevant ones.

What tunes to learn first

Start with common session tunes that everyone knows. This gives you the best chance of being able to join in when you attend your first session. Some universally known beginner-friendly tunes include:

The Kesh Jig
The Bucks of Oranmore (reel)
The Maid Behind the Bar (reel)
Drowsy Maggie (reel)
The Connachtman’s Rambles (jig)
John Ryan’s Polka
The Butterfly (slip jig)

Read our guide to types of Irish tunes.

Step 5: Join a Session

This is the moment everything comes together. A session is where you test your tunes against other players, absorb new repertoire by ear, develop your listening and social skills, and become part of the community that sustains the tradition.

When you’re ready

You’re ready for your first session when you can play a handful of common tunes at session speed, without reading from notation, and you understand the basic etiquette (don’t play if you don’t know the tune, match the volume, don’t start two sets in a row). You don’t need to know dozens of tunes. You need to know a few tunes well.

Finding the right session

Look for a slow or beginner-friendly session to start with. Many areas have dedicated slow sessions where tunes are played at a comfortable pace and newcomers are actively encouraged. Ask at your local CCE branch, check TheSession.org, or ask your teacher.

If you’re joining a regular session, attend as a listener first. Get a feel for the level, the tempo, the repertoire. Then bring your instrument and sit on the edge. Play along quietly on the tunes you know. Sit out the ones you don’t. Over time, you’ll learn more tunes, gain confidence, and become a regular.

Read our complete guide to the trad session.

Step 6: Keep Listening, Keep Learning

There is no point at which you’ve “learned” Irish traditional music. The tradition is too vast, too deep and too alive for that. Players who have been at it for fifty years are still learning tunes, refining their style, discovering new aspects of the music.

The key habits of lifelong learning in trad are:

Listen constantly. Radio Siamsa, recordings, live sessions, festivals, summer schools. The more you listen, the deeper your understanding.
Play with others. Sessions are the lifeblood of the tradition. Regular session attendance keeps your repertoire sharp, your ears open, and your playing honest.
Learn from the masters. Seek out recordings by the great players of each instrument. Listen to how they phrase, ornament and breathe with the music. Imitation is how the tradition has always been transmitted.
Attend festivals and summer schools. Concentrated immersion accelerates learning like nothing else.
Be patient. Trad rewards patience. Speed comes with time. Ornamentation comes with time. The feeling of the music — the lilt, the lift, the swing — comes with time and cannot be rushed.

And through it all, keep Radio Siamsa playing. The stream is your daily connection to the breadth and depth of the tradition — from the 1930s recordings that started it all to the albums released this week. It’s the soundtrack to your learning journey.

Listen now — see our guide to how to listen to Radio Siamsa

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the easiest Irish instrument to learn?

The tin whistle. It’s inexpensive, portable, and the basics can be learned quickly. It’s the instrument most people in the tradition started on, and it provides an excellent foundation for other instruments.

Can I learn Irish traditional music as an adult?

Absolutely. Many people take up trad instruments in their 30s, 40s, 50s and beyond. The tradition is welcoming to adult learners, and online resources like OAIM make it easier than ever to start. The key is patience and listening.

Do I need to read music to play Irish trad?

No. Irish traditional music is fundamentally an oral tradition — it’s learned by ear. Notation can be a useful aid for learning tunes, but most trad musicians learn primarily by listening, not by reading. The ability to pick up a tune by ear is more important than reading fluency.

How long does it take to learn?

It depends on the instrument and your goals. On tin whistle, you can play simple tunes within weeks. On fiddle or flute, it might take months to produce a good sound. To be comfortable joining a session, most people need six months to a year of regular practice. To play at an advanced level, years. But the journey is the point — there’s no finish line.

Where can I learn Irish music online?

The Online Academy of Irish Music (oaim.ie) offers comprehensive video courses for 14 instruments. TradIrishMusic.com and Alison.com also offer structured courses. For tunes and notation, TheSession.org is the essential resource.

Is Radio Siamsa useful for learning?

Very much so. Listening is the foundation of learning trad, and Radio Siamsa provides a continuous stream of the tradition — from historic recordings to contemporary albums. The apps show tune titles and artists, helping you identify tunes to learn. Several listeners have told us they use the station as a daily learning tool.