World of Celtic Fingerstyle Guitar Book/DVD Set

This collection of traditional music from Ireland and Scotland arranged for solo guitar is the result of a passionate study of the tradition by some of the finest musicians playing in this genre. Compiled by Stefan Grossman, this book includes arrangements by Pierre Bensusan, El McMeen, Martin Simpson, Pat Kirtley, Duck Baker, Tom Long & Steve Baughman. Looking back less than a century you would find this music performed on fiddle, pipes, button accordion, flutes and whistles, in solo and ensemble settings, but never guitar, even in its basic role of providing rhythm. The challenge for those who attempt to translate Celtic traditional music for fingerstyle guitar is to preserve the unique qualities which are the essence of the style. The popularity of alternate tunings in this music tends to come from two different directions. One is in the desire for production of tonalities of droning instruments, á la the bagpipes, and tunings such as DADGAD and EADEAE make this effect relatively easy. On the other hand, there are guitar tunings which lend themselves easily to the melodic steps and fullness found in the diatonic Celtic harp, such as DGDGBD (open G tuning) and the CGDGAD.