Northern Ireland is a relatively new name for an ancient place with a wealth of music and song to celebrate both its youth and age. Luckily, the songs and tunes are light-footed travelers; they cross borders with ease. Indeed, were they not so light of foot, the whole island of Ireland might have been submerged years ago--weighed down by the sheer weight of glorious dance tunes and songs in praise of counties, towns, villages, parishes, and townlands. And that would be before we started counting the sad songs! Then, there is the story behind each song, which reminds us that the source of the music, even for those who write it, is always ...