Celtic Spirit

By Susan Braunstein, Programming Library Associate| Monday, November 30, 2009

“Dance as if no one’s watching, sing as if no one’s listening, and live every day as if it were your last, “an Irish saying.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could live the life described in this saying? This theme is often reflected in Irish culture including the music and this month at the library those attending the Lunch & Learn event are in for a treat when Celtic music is played by the acoustic group, String Thaw. This group consists of Holly and Mike Lemay and sometimes their son, Ben, when he is in town. They will be the guest presenters on December 16 from noon to 1 p.m.

The Lunch & Learn event occurs on the third Wednesday of every month and it is sponsored by the Friends of the Library. The Friends pay for the lunches provided to those attending and a sign-up by December 14 at noon is required if you would like a lunch.

If the Celtic music lifts your spirits and you would like to hear more of it, the library has a pretty diverse collection of music CD’s.  A couple favorites that are an offshoot of the PBS television performances include “Celtic Woman: A New Journey’” and “Celtic Woman: a Christmas celebration.”  Stay in the Christmas spirit with, “Celtic Carols,” played by Eric Rigler on pipes and Scarlet Rivera on the violin.

For the instrumental lover, Celtic Magic features eleven Irish instrumentals played by a variety of Irish performers. Some of the more familiar music presented can be found in, “ Michael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance,” and two of the tracks include Flatley’s solo tap dancing with the Lord of the Dance troupe.

If you want to play Celtic music, the Celtic Fake Book has over 400 songs with the music and words of traditional music from Ireland, Scotland and Wales plus popular Irish songs. Many of the songs are presented in their native Gaelic tongue, the language of the Celts, Irish, Picts, Scots and Welsh.

The Celts were the dominant civilization in Europe from 600 B.C. to 50 B.C. They started in small mining villages in what is now Austria and expanded across central Europe and into the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe, according to the children’s book, “Life of the Ancient Celts,” a part of the People of the Ancient world series.  

In addition to a plethora of books, their history can be found in the non-fiction DVD collection. Explore the culture by viewing such titles as, “Ireland, Great Britain & Brittany: Journeys of the Celtic Legends”; “Irish Legends”; and “Celtic Saints”.

Locally, there is an active Black Hills Scottish & Irish Society, www.blackhillscelticevents.org. They formed in 1998 and welcome all people who have an interest in Celtic history and traditions. Their next big event will be the celebration of Hogmanay, the Scottish New Year celebrated on December 31. For more details you can e-mail, info@blackhillscelticevents.org. I thought it was interesting that there is a Black Hills bag piper’s directory as a link on their site and there are six in this area listed. You can contact them if you would like a piper for a special event.

Many people are intrigued by Celtic handiwork and you can find books such as, “How to Draw Celtic Knotwork: a Practical Handbook,” by Andy Sloss; or “Celtic Designs – an Arts and Crafts Source Book,” by David James in the library.

In a spiritual vein, the book, “ Discovering Celtic Christianity – its Roots, Relationships and Relevance,” by Bruce Reed Pullen,  takes readers to the British Isles and makes the history of the location and the saints relevant to someone’s personal spiritual journey today.

Author Heather McNeil takes readers on a journey through Celtic folklore and beliefs in her book, “The Celtic Breeze: Stories of the Otherworld from Scotland, Ireland and Wales.”  She tells sixteen ancient stories of the Celtic faery world. She describes the concept of the Otherworld as central to the belief system of the ancient Celts, adding that “it is mysterious, magical, eternal and more than a bit frightening.”

Just learning some of the basic facts of Celtic culture reveal a complex, layered people who were much more than the crazed warriors often portrayed in history. I think the following words of Irish writer, George Bernard Shaw, could also describe a Celt. He said, “I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no “brief candle” for me. It is sort of a splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.”