30 Instruments: A Musical Journey Around the World

Four Shillings Short are a husband-and-wife musical duo consisting of Aodh Og O’Tuama from Cork, Ireland, and Christy Martin from California. They deliver an eclectic mix of Traditional and Original music from the Celtic lands, Medieval and Renaissance Europe, India, and the Americas. Their performances are distinctive for the multitude of instruments they incorporate, numbering over 30.

Their show, “Around the World in 30 Instruments,” is a multicultural educational concert. This unique performance showcases unusual and traditional instruments such as the Hammered & Mountain Dulcimer, Mandolin, Mandola, Bouzouki, Recorders, Tinwhistles, Medieval and Renaissance Woodwinds, North Indian Sitar, Charango, Bowed Psaltery, Banjo, Native American Flutes, Bodhran, Guitar, Ukulele, Doumbek, Darbuka, Spoons, and even a Krumhorn, alongside their vocals.

Performing in the U.S. and Ireland since 1997, Four Shillings Short are independent folk artists who stage approximately 100 concerts annually across both countries. They have to their credit 13 recorded albums and live as full-time troubadours. Their performance venues range from music festivals and theaters to folk societies, libraries, house concerts, churches, retirement communities, and schools. Additionally, they conduct Music, Archaeology, and Folklore tours in Ireland during the summer.

Aodh Og O’Tuama comes from a family rich in poetic, musical, and literary traditions. He earned his degree in Music from University College Cork, Ireland, and received a Fellowship from Stanford University in California specializing in Medieval and Renaissance performance. His musical repertoire includes Tinwhistles, Medieval & Renaissance woodwinds, Recorders, Moroccan Doumbek, Egyptian Darbuka, Medieval Bowed Psaltery, Native American Flute, and Wooden Spoons. He sings in English, Gaelic, and French.

Christy Martin, also from a family immersed in music and dance, began studying the North Indian Sitar at age 15. She trained under Tony Karasek, a student of the master Sitarist Ravi Shankar, and Rahul Sariputra, a student of Allaudin Khan, for ten years. In her twenties, she took up the Hammered Dulcimer, learning from Maggie Sansone, Dan Duggan, Cliff Moses, Robin Petrie, Tony Elman, and Glen Morgan. Her instrumental skills extend beyond the Dulcimer to include the Mandolin, Mandola, Bouzouki, Banjo, Guitar, Bodhran (Irish frame drum), Andean Charango, Medieval Psaltery, and Ukulele. She sings in English, Irish, and Sanskrit.