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from Edward Bunting, The Ancient Music of Ireland (Dublin 1840), Page 25: Shakes, etc.
Irish caslúth
spoken by Gráinne Yeats
Scottish Gaelic cas-luath
spoken by Tony Dilworth
Click the play button to hear it spoken. help
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“By third, first, and second fingers; the strings stopped instantaneously by each finger when played.” Simon Chadwick 2008 |
Casluth is one of those curious figures in which every note is immedieately stopped, with none left ringing. Leith leagadh is another example; it uses different fingers to stop each string, whereas casluth uses the ones which have just struck their strings to stop the same strings.
The video shows an instant quick stopping, and a slower version with delayed stopping. Also casluth is sown with a right hand bass figure.
Simon Chadwick 2008
Casluth - Returning actively
Another compound with lúth: as is the case with barrlúth, we cannot be sure of the exact implication of the first element. Bunting, however, clearly relates it to the verb cas, 'turn, twist'. The word actively is doubtless a misprint for activity, for the English on p.31 is 'Returning activity'. On that page also Bunting notes the form Castluith "from the information of Arthur O'Neill, &c.": possibly a link was felt to exist between this 'shake' and the adjective casta, 'twisted, complicated', which is the past participle of cas.
Colm Ó Baoill 2002