The Irish and especially the Republic have a huge reputation as traditionalists when it comes to music. As the only country to have an instrument –a harp- as its national emblem it is likely to have a strong influence in the country.
Irish harpists are known to have been around Europe from as early as the twelfth century. The most popular being a blind harpist by the name of Torlogh O’Carolan.
You are never far away from music in Ireland, many pubs have live music of an evening and are usually free to enter. A particular favourite is the powerful Irish folk ballad "The Fields of Athenry" which is set in the Great Irish Famine (1845-1850). The song is about a man named Michael from near Athenry in County Galway who has been sentenced to transportation to Botany Bay in Australia for stealing corn in order to feed his starving family. The song can often be heard giving encouragement to the Irish national football and rugby teams at Lansdowne Road or Croke Park. For more information on the music scene see The Irish Recorded music association.

Traditionally,music in Ireland is played with instruments such as the melodeon (much like a accordion), the harp, the banjo. The flute, tin whistle, violin or, the most popular of all, the fiddle. It is however the uilleann pipes which are considered to be the staple instrument for traditional music in Ireland. They resemble bagpipes and have a less intrusive sound than other pipes.
Dancing has made a resurgence in the country with acts such as Riverdance. This type of dance is known as stepdance, and is characterised by rapid leg movement. The céilí is a very common occurrence in Ireland, with many communities using it as much as a social event as a dance. The World Irish Dance Association takes dance tours worldwide as popularity grows.

Any music in Ireland article would not be complete without some mention of those top Irish performers. The most popular being U2, selling over 170 million records, followed by Enya (over 75 million) and Van Morrison (over 55 million). More recently Ireland has given rise to the top boybands Boyzone and Westlife managed by Louis Walsh whose vision it was to create an Irish version of Take That.