DADGAD Guitar Accompaniment Overview

  • 13 lessons teaching how to play 13 very popular Irish tunes.
  • Progress at your own pace, pause & repeat videos.
  • Access on all your devices.
  • PDF sheet music & mp3’s to download & keep for each tune.
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BONUS:
  • Access our Entire Course Catalogue for Every Instrument.
  • Library of over 150 popular Irish tunes to practice along with.
  • Virtual Reality Sessions for the unique Irish Pub Session experience – a real treat for the Irish music lover.
  • Community Forum of students and teachers, all friends with a love of Irish music.
The aim of this course is to learn how to accompany Irish music on the guitar using the alternative tuning system, DADGAD, as this is particularly suited to Irish and other Celtic music genres due to its modal nature. This course is an invaluable resource for the guitarist that wants to learn how to play using DADGAD tuning, or for the guitarist who is new to traditional music and would like to learn how to accompany Irish music.

By the end of the course you will have a repertoire of thirteen popular Irish session tunes plus some valuable techniques, e.g., strumming patterns and sliding chords, to spice up your guitar accompaniment skills, not to mention general guitar mastery. The course has 13 lessons, broken into 3 to 4 tutorials each, where tunes are taught phrase by phrase.

Course Structure

The first half of the course will examine the chords, chord structures and strumming patterns of some of the more typical tune types and keys in the Irish tradition; the Jig, Reel, Slip Jig and Hornpipe focusing on the keys of D, G, E major and A  major. It then progresses onto other techniques such as the use of sliding chords, inversions, bass runs, the hammer-on technique and more complex strumming patterns. A selection of well known tunes have been carefully selected to demonstrate the skills and techniques taught.

The tunes taught in this course are:

The Green Mountain
The Cuil Aodha
Fig For A Kiss
The Plains Of Boyle
Sean Reid’s Reel
The Congress Reel
Tom Barretts Polka
The Musical Priest
Seamus Connollys Jig
The Boys Of Ballisodare
Fly Fishing
The Pipers Despair
Out On The Ocean
Your Tutor
Learn DADGAD GuitarMJ McMahon was born and raised in East Co. Clare. From an early age he played percussion and bódhran and later in his teenage years, developed an interest for the guitar. In 2001 MJ moved to Limerick where he studied traditional Irish music at University Limerick and was under the tutelage of guitar masters Steve Cooney, Ian Carr and Chris Kelly, amongst others. Since completing his Masters, MJ has toured Europe extensively with the Irish dance shows ‘Celtic Legends’ and ‘Mystical Dance of Ireland’. He also regularly plays in the American production ‘Emerald Beat’ based in Bush Gardens, Florida. When MJ is at home in Maynooth, he teaches bódhran and guitar and dabbling with the banjo. Read more.

Detailed questions and discussion on the course can be found in the Community Forum, available to paying members only.

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DADGAD Guitar Accompaniment Lessons

Level

The Green Mountain

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 1

  • Accompaniment
  • D Major
  • Level 2
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How to Play a Simple Reel in D Major – Chordal Structures and Strumming Patterns

Reel

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The Cuil Aodha

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 2

  • Accompaniment
  • G Major
  • Level 2
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Chordal Structures, Variation in Strumming Patterns and Jig Rhythm

Jig

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Fig For A Kiss

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 3

  • Accompaniment
  • E Minor
  • Level 2
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The Slip Jig and some basic chordal structures

Slip Jig

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The Plains Of Boyle

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 4

  • Accompaniment
  • D Major
  • Level 2
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The Hornpipe and some alternative chordal structures

Hornpipe

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Sean Reid’s Reel

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 5

  • Accompaniment
  • G Major
  • Level 2
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Hammer-On Technique, Chordal Structures and Strumming Patterns

Reel

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The Congress Reel

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 6

  • A Minor
  • Accompaniment
  • Level 2
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Chordal Structures, Strumming Patterns and Moveable Chords

Reel

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Tom Barretts Polka

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 7

  • A Minor
  • Accompaniment
  • Level 2
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Polka Rhythm, Chord Structures and Variation of Strumming Patterns

Polka

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The Musical Priest

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 8

  • Accompaniment
  • B Minor
  • Level 2
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Variation in Chordal Structures, Strumming Patterns, The Capo

Reel

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Seamus Connollys Jig

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 9

  • Accompaniment
  • D Major
  • Level 3
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Introduction to Bass Runs and Inverted Chords

Jig

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The Boys of Ballisodare

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 10

  • Accompaniment
  • E Major
  • Level 3
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Rhythmic Accompaniment – Syncopation and Up-Strum Accents

Reel

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Fly Fishing

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 11

  • Accompaniment
  • D Major
  • Level 3
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Chordal Structures, Jazzy Chords / Alternative Chords

Reel

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The Pipers Despair

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 12

  • Accompaniment
  • E Minor
  • Level 3
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Chordal Structures/ Moveable Chords

Reel

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Out on the Ocean

DADGAD Guitar Foundations (Accompaniment) Lesson 13

  • A Major
  • Accompaniment
  • Level 3
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Advanced Strumming Patterns for Jigs

Jig

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