Why are Irish sessions so fraught?

[sgriob]

Amen.

But regular sessions can grow petrified and cliquish and disdainful of newbies who are not as brilliant as the regulars.

I'm always interested in ways to liven them up. One way is to try to persuade half of the crowd to play the A part while the other half plays the B part. Often ends in frustrated laughter, but sometimes the results are strange and beautiful. "Calum's Road" is a good example.


I've always found shared incompetence to be a great ice-breaker.

[straycat82]

I still don't understand where this sense of entitlement comes from. What exactly are your expectations based on (besides this idea of a session that you've dreamed up seemingly based on nothing related to traditional music)? What you are describing sounds nothing like an Irish traditional music session.

Who decides that it is petrified and cliquish? You? Do you walk up to groups of friends sitting in a bar celebrating a bachelor party and call them cliquish if they don't invite you along?

Obviously I can't speak for what all Irish sessions are or aren't (and neither can you) but everything I've witnessed is what you'd expect from any community. You will have regulars. You will have folks who show up outside of the regulars. In most cases it is respect and common courtesy that makes or breaks your acceptance into the group. Showing up and imposing your "ways to liven them up" is arrogant and disrespectful to what is already established. If the established format is not your cuppa, then why are you wanting to be there (or expecting them to want you there)? Everything you keep describing is a jam session... which Irish traditional music sessions are not. Traditional music is traditional music. You'll find stylistic differences and group dynamic differences between sessions but it is not a venue for experimentation. Just because a session is public or open doesn't mean it's a free-for-all.

[sgriob]

So there's the difference that the original poster was complaining about. By making a distinction between a jam session (bad) and a "real" session (good) you make her point for her.

It's diagnostic of cliques that they don't recognize themselves as such. If you've never found yourself in a hidebound clique there are only three explanations: you haven't done many different sessions, you weren't paying attention or you prefer them that way.

This grim holiness that some Irish players bring to their music, and whose attitude you seem to exemplify, is not my cup of tea. I love the loose, generous sessions in Scottish pubs, where in playing "traditional" music we err, if at all, on the side of playfulness and experimentation.

Ah, but I shouldn't give you a hard time. The fault is mine. I should have looked harder for a Scottish traditional music forum.

[MTGuru]

I should have looked harder for a Scottish traditional music forum.

Please do.

[sgriob]

Ba boom.

[BigDavy]

Hi sgriob

Footstompin

Is the Scottish trad forum de jour

David

[sgriob]

Thanks David. I'll go there and complain about Scottish sessions.

[BigDavy]

Thanks David. I'll go there and complain about Scottish sessions.

Please do - it would be a laugh to see what the reaction would be.

David

[sgriob]

I know already. "Taking the p*ss" is an ancient Scottish tradition.

[BigDavy]

I know already. "Taking the p*ss" is an ancient Scottish tradition.

[MTGuru]

We've tried everything here over the years to inject some life into the grim, soul-sapping, death-like West coast Irish sessions that we all, apparently, attend and promote out here.

First there was "Funny Hat Day". My electric propeller beanie was a big hit. If I set the speed just right, it created a beautiful whistle vibrato for haunting, Celtic aires. Then came the unfortunate incident when the fluter's conical wizard hat got caught in the overhead ceiling fan. It's really too gruesome to even think about.

We tried "Bring Your Pet Day". That was great until someone launched into "Mouse in the Mug", and the cats all went nuts. The dogs went after the cats, the cow with the crumpled horn went after the dogs, and soon it was total chaos, with the session maidens all forlorn.

Our "Nude Session Day" was a big hit with the pub punters. But their endless "My, you have a big whistle!" comments grew tiresome very quickly. And when Bubbles, our accordion player, had her painful accident after a particularly vigorous bellows push, well that brought things to a dismal end.

There's been lots more: "Play the Tunes Backwards Day", "Finger Your Neighbor's Instrument Day", "Charlie Parker Be-Bop Day", "Lilting and Keening Day". None of these really worked out.

It turns out that most people here had the bizarre idea that sessions are a just a chance for people to take a few hours from their busy lives and get together with good friends to share tunes and tales and fun, and play the best music we can for each other and for the appreciative patrons who come to enjoy it. Fancy that.

Gotta run ... My session suit, which doubles as funeral attire, is ready at the cleaner's, and I'm all out of black lipstick and nail gloss ...

[BigDavy]

Gotta run ... My session suit, which doubles as funeral attire, is ready at the cleaner's, and I'm all out of black lipstick and nail gloss ...

Going to the Goth Irish session MTGuru?

David

[Denny]

it is difficult to impress the southern California maidens....



the what? might be easier if ya picked somethin' a bit less mythical

[sgriob]

We've tried everything here over the years to inject some life into the grim, soul-sapping, death-like West coast Irish sessions that we all, apparently, attend and promote out here......

And so on.

Good effort, MTGuru. But a little... hmmm... lengthy to qualify as wit and too convoluted to work as irony. Keep trying, my lad. There's a real critic in there somewhere. At some point in the future you're bound to get down to the real business of contributing to this great musical enterprise some of us value so very much.

[sgriob]

And while I'm at it...

What? Oh, just chatting with some musical friends.... Why now? Sure. I know what time it is. Yes. All right. Get into a fight at this time of night? Moi? I wouldn't dream of it. Coming dear. Really. Just let me sign off.

(whispers: Maybe tomorrow, you Irish twit, we'll get into it for sure. Count on it, you Hibernian troglodyte.)