First of all, a corny joke - "How do you tell one Irish reel from another?" Answer "By the title".

Here's my thoughts on the subject. When I visited Ireland for the first time in early 70s, some West coast musicians were critical of the way tunes were played in say, Dublin, which was all fast and furious reels, whereas the Galway musicians played in a slower, lighter, more delicate and lilting style. When I went back to Ireland several decades later, my perception was that this regional difference had been lost and that even in Galway everyone was playing fast and furious reels. I am not making a judgement here, only an observation, but I did enjoy the old Galway music more.

Of course, it is exciting to hear tunes played fast but after a while I start to get 'fast tune overload'. To hear a slow jig played well excites different emotions. I must emphasise that I am not an expert on Irish music and these are just my observations and perceptions. I would welcome more postings on the East/West debate, though.

Tradsinger