I am going to attempt to play in my first session soon and am feeling a bit nervous about it. Although I have done some research on the whole session etiquette thing, I could still use any advice and or tips on how to get through it without too much humiliation. I know the basics, like ask before recording, and only play when you know the tune, but are there other more arcane laws that must be followed (a mix of common sense and superstition I would guess - something like, never sit to the left of a right handed fiddler or always play rhythmically less you attract a Bodhran)? Does anyone have fond or horrific memories from their first time that could be shared?
Matt,
Don’t worry. Session etiquette is basic good manners, and I’m sure you will have no problem there! A couple of good things to remember though:
don’t sit on the right side of a flute player (or left side if they play “backwards”) or you will get dripped on!
try to give the fiddle player elbow room so you don’t get poked in the eye
-when you are playing a tune and the guitar play shouts “what key are you in” try to convey the key telepathically so you don’t have to stop playing in the middle of your tune.
-relax, have fun!
The biggest thing you can do is Listen. Always listen
Before you play,
While you play,
After you play,
With your ears,
Your eyes,
Your heart.
Always listen.
Hear all of what is said, played, shown.
Second relax, enjoy, and have a good time. Weather you play one tune or 100, solo or with 40 other players, before everyone else arrives or after they’ve all left, with and audience of 1 or 1000, everytune flawlessly or tunes with an extra squeak or two or twenty - Relax, Enjoy, Laugh, and have a Great Time.
You and everyone else at the session is there to have a good time and …
Enjoy Your Music,
Lee Marsh
[ This Message was edited by: LeeMarsh on 2002-02-12 17:33 ]
I remember my first session, and it wasn’t too long ago, either. After finding out about the session and worrying that I would never be good enough to join in, TygresH coaxed and bullied me into coming and bringing my whistle. She told me that if I knew which way to hold the whistle, I was good enough to play in central Connecticut and that if I didn’t bring my whistle, she’d force an old Soodlum on me. So I did come and I did bring my whistles. But Tyghress didn’t show. :roll: I fell back on Plan B and just listened. Just as well, I thought, because I was also visually inappropriate: Coming straight from work, I was in suit & tie (I was the only one in suit & tie in the whole place). I can recommend listening at least once to a session you are hoping to join. Gives you a good chance to get a feel for place and people and not sit in the session leader’s spot, or something. I also got a list of commonly played tunes, which is helpful if your repertoire is limited, as mine is.
So I am sitting at the bar in my suit, listening, and I start talking to a lady who was humming along. (“What was the name of that last reel?”—“Reel? That was a polka.”) She turned out to be very nice and the session leader’s wife. She thought I was an out-of-town business man (sigh). But she introduced me afterwards, and I was officially invited to join in. Which I did next week, having brought a change of clothes to work. Although the session is musically pretty tight and formal (the leader calls the tunes), everybody is very friendly and open. TygrHess did show that next week and has provided gentle guidance ever since. What a thrill it was to sit there for the first time and to hear my whistle blend with all the other instruments!
After I had been there a few times a concertina player asked me during a smoke break if I didn’t want to come join a session in another town on a different night. What a great feeling! I am at that session pretty regularly, too, now. The first time was really different there, however: When I came in, the guy who had invited me, and who sort of leads that session saw me and waved. The session is much less formal. After I got a beer and listened to a few tunes, he motioned me over to sit next to him, introduced me all around. Then he said, “Why don’t you give us one of those tune you play, eh?” Another right of passage I guess, and I wasn’t summarily ejected after doing the Swallowtail Jig into Ten-Penny Bit, my heart pounding a fast beat in my throat. But I have gotten much better since.
(Sorry for this long rambling post, it’s cheaper than therapy, I guess…)
BloHomfield is a great player! My first session was with a recorder (please, no throwing things at me. . .what did I know?) and I didn’t play much. But someone saw it and coerced me next time to try to play. “Try” being the operative word.
I took huge leaps ahead in my playing when I ditched the recorder entirely and forced myself to stick with the whistle.
Also, I know everyone says ‘don’t play unless you know it’. Well, I probably wouldn’t play at ALL if I followed that advice. I have learned more tunes from finding the keynote and just working around the melody, playing maybe one out of 3 or 4 notes. I think it gives me the shape of the tune, and over months and months, I fill in the rest of it. Maybe the advice should be ‘don’t play loudly’?
And lastly. . .within moderation. . .remember the saying ‘The more you drink, the better we sound!’ Have a pint. Relax. Don’t fret mistakes.
On 2002-02-12 16:39, amanderthad wrote:
something like, never sit to the left of a right handed fiddler or always play rhythmically less you attract a Bodhran)?
If these aren’t ‘laws’ already, they should be, they’re great ‘craic’. At the Bodhran class that I run at Shanna Quay on Wednesdays, the tutor asked the group, last week: 'how many Bodhran players is too many for a session? - One. ‘What’s the best thing to play a bodhran with? - a pen knife.’
He’s never offered any session tips though, apart from always make sure that the barman knows what you’re drinking!
has to chuckle I love you guys. I always smile when I come here.
That said, I think the best advice I’ve ever been given (I’ve been to one session since I’ve taken up the whistle, and still haven’t found an oppurtunity to go back yet: keyword YET. Spring Break is coming, and there’s a great folk/bluegrass session every Wednesday morning near here…)
If you can get to the session beforehand, buy the fiddler a pint or two.
There were probably two lines of thinking behind this piece of advice:
A) Get to know the fiddler because he tends to (not always, by ANY stretch) be the leader of the session.
B) Get the poor fella tipsy so he won’t be playin’ quite so fast ^_~
It’s hard for me to say this because I know it’ll come back to haunt me when I do finally play my first session, but as was said, relax and have fun
And if worse comes to worse, an aluminum Low whistle makes a lovely tool for self defense
Matt,
another little story for encouragement. This time from the other side. At another session at which I play almost every week (yes, I’ve gotten the bug alright), a new fiddler showed up last week. She had played in sessions before in Indiana, but had been looking here in Western Massachusetts. She had been there to listen once, and then just came in and sat down with us. She was open and uncomplicated and we were all really happy to have her join in. At one point she got asked to start a tune and wanted to the Earl’s Chair, but no one knew it. She is good and it will be great to have her. After she heard me sing a song, she did one herself a little later. By the end of the night she confidently went from the A part of Harvest Home into the B part of Boys of Bluehill. We all laughed, played the B part three times, laughed some more, and played it a fourth time for good measure. So don’t worry about goofing occasionally. It’s great craic.
craic means a good time, fun, atmosphere, excitement, the mysterious jelling of drunken squaks into exciting music plus bodhran sounds. You have to feel it to know it.
Thanks everyone for your fine suggestions and stories. I was going to scope out this session for the second time last night, but after reading some of your replies, I decided to join in. O what a night. When I finally got home at 2 AM I was still wired from the experience. So here is how it went.. I was so nervous when I walked in, I thought I was going to die. I remembered numerous suggestions to relax so I tried, and tried and tried some more. It was not working… gee I wonder why… I mean I was really trying hard to relax! Then I remembered the words of Yoda from the Empire Strikes Back: “there is no try, there is only do”. That and about two pints of stout settled me down right quick. So the session starts, I grab a seat. Everyone starts tunes at this session, going around in a circle. It’s my turn in no time and I still have not played a note because I have not heard a tune I know yet. I ask meekly if anyone knows Rose in the Heather. I get a few nods so I jump into it. Amazing, it was so great to realize that a tune you have been playing on your own and has been rambling around in your head, has also been been rambling around inside the heads of others. “What brave new world that has such people in it” came to mind. My playing was bad on that first tune, but it hardly mattered. I enjoyed it and felt great. As the night went on I found a few tunes to jump in on, and I started tunes whenever it was my turn. I got complimented on my choice of tunes which I was very happy about. I so look forward to learning more and being able to play more. I still have to learn how to relax. Unfortunatly Dutch courage tends to turn my humor German (no offense intended here to any Dutch, German or Bodhran players - the two at this session were actually quite good…the Dutchman and German that is) but I am sure the more times I attend the more comfortable I will be.
Congrats! Well done. And I see you are rapidly adapting proper session etiquette, including the bodhran-player jokes. Isn’t so amazing to play along in a session?
Just out of curiosity, where is your session is it in Manhattan? What place?
Let us know how it goes in the future. And if you need gentle guidance, send Tyghress a private message…
Yes the session I went to was in Manhattan. It is the Dempsy’s Tuesday night session. Of the ones here in New York that I have been to, it seems the one most suited for new players. It really is a nice bunch of people who are very laid back and accomidating. They are also good players and I am sure I will learn alot from them.
I thought it might have been Dempsey’s. I used to live down in that area, but for some reason never made it to Dempseys. I did often go to the Sunday night session on 11th Street (between Ave A and Ave B). Cillian Vallely used to play there, but he is touring with Lunasa now.
It sounds like a great session, and I like it that everyone gets to/has to start tunes. Let it rip!
On 2002-02-13 20:08, amanderthad wrote:
Yes the session I went to was in Manhattan. It is the Dempsy’s Tuesday night session. Of the ones here in New York that I have been to, it seems the one most suited for new players. It really is a nice bunch of people who are very laid back and accomidating. They are also good players and I am sure I will learn alot from them.
…
I was in NYC for a week in November, and asked this board for help finding sessions. Dempsey’s was one (among many) that Bloomfield recommended (thank you!), but sadly, I never made it there. Now that I hear how much fun you had, I’m even more sorry! Next time, I will be there… oh yes, I will be there.
I tried playing in session 2 months ago. I stayed “in the back” and found a few more people who where there for their first night. Every one was friendly and encouraging. I only knew a few of the tunes but the music was great! From that session I found another where they teach and play slowly for the first hour. (they even give you sheet music for those who read!) I would encourage you to join - friendly people plus new music to learn. - doesn’t matter if you know many toons you will still have fun.
You are correct on both counts. The first hour is done at a slow pace. I plan on being in Glastonbury tomorrow. The Wednesday sessions are hard for me to attend in that I work in Newport during the day. Will you be there tomorrow? Tygress has been there as well.
In the event that Bloomfield shall be delayed or hindered in or prevented from the performance of any act required hereunder by reason of strikes, lockouts, labor troubles, inability to procure materials, failure of power, restrictive governmental laws or regulations, riots, insurrection, war, or other reason of a like nature not the fault of the party delayed, including, but not limited, to other plans or sudden whims, in performing work or doing acts required under the terms of this commitment, then no recourse, damages or equitable remedies, shall be available to the party thereby injured and no reproach shall be appropriate.
