The Blagger's guide to "The Session" Part 1

Come to any decent pub in Ireland especially in the west and rural Ireland and you will eventually get involved in a session. This can be one of the most uplifting and inspiring things you will ever hear and see. Even if the music isn't your cup of tea, the atmosphere, generally known as the Craic will have you in on the fun in one way or another.
The session is, by and large, an impromptu gathering of musicians who play lots of tunes, sing songs and get the onlookers tapping their feet and maybe even dancing. The pub is almost always the favorite place for these events but someone's front room or the street and even a wake are good enough places to break out your instruments and lash into a few sets of reels or jigs. Of course if you break out the wrong instrument you could be in trouble. You would be set upon by a hundred pairs of unimpressed eyes that seem to say "get that trumpet out of here:. Most sessions do prefer the more traditional instruments and what's okay in one session may not be so accepted in another.

The Guitar is a good example. Today there are thousands of good guitar players on the traditional Irish music scene. Some play the actual tunes but mostly the guitar is used to accompany the tune players. There are even web sites, books and tapes devoted to the art of playing along with traditional music but lots of traditional players frown when they see a guitar player walk into the gathering. Even when the guitar is accepted, things can get a little awkward if a second or, God forbid, a third guitarist turns up.

Another great fear in the minds of good tune players is the Bodhran . The bodhran is the Irish drum, held in one hand and beaten with a tipper in the other. It is fairly well accepted as being a traditional instrument but the problem is that every man, woman and small child think they can play the thing. Played well it is a wonderful instrument. The range of tones and sounds that can be got from it is astounding and with a good rhythm a player can make it talk. It can add a whole new life to a session when in the right hands. Unfortunately the right hands are hard to come by and far too many sessions have been spoiled by people who want to play but don't want to learn, thinking the bodhran is an easy instrument to play.

So the main instruments that are always accepted at a session are the Fiddle, the Accordion or variations like the Concertina, the Uilleann pipes, the Whistle, the Flute and sometimes the Tenor Banjo. (The whistle can however have similar traits to the bodhran when a bad player gets involved) In older times Pianos were very popular as backing instruments and still are used widely at Ceilis but not so much in the pubs anymore. So these days the backing instruments tend to be Bouzoukis made popular in Irish music by Johnny Moynihan and Donal Lunny and the Guitar. The Harp is another good traditional instrument but is rarely seen at sessions these days.
Now lets move on to Part 2 to find out what happens when the session gets going.

The Blagger's Guide to the Session-Part Two