What makes a good session

[Randy Stein]

In the DMV area here in the US, there are many active sessions one can attend both in public or online.

The live sessions and many and varied: ITM, old time, scandi, contra, English Quebcois, hambo, waltz, Gypsy Jazz, and more.

So in a recent discussion we talked about the quality of the session and how it can be better, or not.

 

[RAc]

the big q is how the "quality of a session" is defined. For pro musicians, a good session possibly means that musical magic is created every time, but for aspiring and hobby musicians the definition may be a place where one can grow musically and become better in ensemble settings, which includes the permission to make mistakes.

 

Needless to say, those definitions are mutually exclusive.

 

Other possible definitions include the opportunity to meet like minds, or the opportunity to learn fresh tunes in a live environment. I am sure there are many more.

 

So what is your definition, or the consented definition among those who discussed it?

 

[hjcjones]

For me, a good session is one where the musicians listen and respond to one another and allow the music to develop in interesting ways, rather than just plodding through tunes together.

 

However that requires a fairly high standard of technical proficiency and musicality from the majority of players, which can be hard to find. Second best would be a good mix of interesting tunes, and enought musicians with the ability to pick up tunes on the fly, so there is no resistance to introducing something unfamiliar.

 

A poor session is where they are locked in their own little bubble and play with no regard to what is happening around them. Needing to play from the dots reinforces this, but this is not confined to them. A room full of people playing the same tune at the same time is not the same as playing together.

 

However let's not forget that a session should be a social event as well as a musical one. Good company and the opportunity for conversation (but not too much!) are also important.

[David Barnert]

10 hours ago, hjcjones said:

For me, a good session is one where the musicians listen and respond to one another and allow the music to develop in interesting ways, rather than just plodding through tunes together.

 

However that requires a fairly high standard of technical proficiency and musicality from the majority of players, which can be hard to find. Second best would be a good mix of interesting tunes, and enought musicians with the ability to pick up tunes on the fly, so there is no resistance to introducing something unfamiliar.

 

A poor session is where they are locked in their own little bubble and play with no regard to what is happening around them. Needing to play from the dots reinforces this, but this is not confined to them. A room full of people playing the same tune at the same time is not the same as playing together.

 

However let's not forget that a session should be a social event as well as a musical one. Good company and the opportunity for conversation (but not too much!) are also important.

 

I agree with all this. While I’m not demanding anything or demeaning sessions that don’t fit the following, sessions I enjoy most have these qualities in common: nobody reading from notation, abundant improvisation, lead being passed around, a good mix of familiar and unfamiliar tunes.

 

My only strict rule: We should limit ourselves to tunes that at least ONE of us knows. (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to remind people of that when they try to teach an unfamiliar tune and find they can’t get through it themself).

[Jim Besser]

21 minutes ago, David Barnert said:

I agree with all this. While I’m not demanding anything or demeaning sessions that don’t fit the following, sessions I enjoy most have these qualities in common: nobody reading from notation, abundant improvisation, lead being passed around, a good mix of familiar and unfamiliar tunes.

 

My only strict rule: We should limit ourselves to tunes that at least ONE of us knows. (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to remind people of that when they try to teach an unfamiliar tune and find they can’t get through it themself).

 

That pretty much reflects my views, especially David's 'strict' rule.

 

It's why playing in sessions with David is always great fun!

 

 

[hjcjones]

7 hours ago, David Barnert said:

We should limit ourselves to tunes that at least ONE of us knows. (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to remind people of that when they try to teach an unfamiliar tune and find they can’t get through it themself).

I must confess to sometimes breaching thst rule. I still find that, no matter how thoroughly I've practised a tune at home,  the first time I play it in public there's a good chance it will go wrong.  However I'd rather that happens at a session rather than a gig.

 

Sometimes a tune pops into my head and I'll start to play it, only to realise when I get to a tricky bit that I'm playing the wrong instrument in the wrong key. That can be interesting.

[xgx]

1 hour ago, hjcjones said:

I must confess to sometimes breaching thst rule. I still find that, no matter how thoroughly I've practised a tune at home,  the first time I play it in public there's a good chance it will go wrong.  However I'd rather that happens at a session rather than a gig.

 

Sometimes a tune pops into my head and I'll start to play it, only to realise when I get to a tricky bit that I'm playing the wrong instrument in the wrong key. That can be interesting.

Wouldn't happen if you had the notation as an aide memoire ...

Always helps when you've reached the Teflon stage of life 😂

[hjcjones]

3 hours ago, xgx said:

Wouldn't happen if you had the notation as an aide memoire ...

 

Now that would really confuse me

[David Barnert]

4 hours ago, hjcjones said:

I must confess to sometimes breaching thst rule. I still find that, no matter how thoroughly I've practised a tune at home,  the first time I play it in public there's a good chance it will go wrong.  However I'd rather that happens at a session rather than a gig.

 

Sometimes a tune pops into my head and I'll start to play it, only to realise when I get to a tricky bit that I'm playing the wrong instrument in the wrong key. That can be interesting.

 

Not just you. If it didn’t happen all the time the rule would never have occurred to me.

[caj]

On 10/31/2024 at 8:15 PM, David Barnert said:

My only strict rule: We should limit ourselves to tunes that at least ONE of us knows. (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to remind people of that when they try to teach an unfamiliar tune and find they can’t get through it themself).

 

There's a variation on this, where someone starts playing a tricky tune that others only kinda know, then everyone else tries to play along, and then the tune starter decides to go do something else while the rest of us stumble through it.  We got a guy that will sometimes do that, like starting an obscure tune and then deciding to pick up a guitar to strum along with everyone else.  And he's a dulcimer player so he tends to start everything at breakneck speed.

     

The best sessions I've been to are those led by a local band.  That has the effect of a decent repertoire of tunes, played by people who are bored enough by their repertoire that they want to play new stuff, and who bring enough sound and cohesion that it you have a greater chance of good craic.  Plus, that sound and cohesion helps to maintain control of the session, if it's open.  

 

But let's not forget the house session, either.  You can have a decent session just by buying beer and inviting people over to go over tunes, learn whatever you want, and there's a zero percent chance someone shows up with a pair of spoons.

[Tiposx]

6 hours ago, caj said:

But let's not forget the house session, either.  You can have a decent session just by buying beer and inviting people over to go over tunes, learn whatever you want, and there's a zero percent chance someone shows up with a pair of spoons.

Absolutely.

[wunks]

6 hours ago, Tiposx said:

12 hours ago, caj said:

 

 

 

But let's not forget the house session, either.  You can have a decent session just by buying beer and inviting people over to go over tunes, learn whatever you want, and there's a zero percent chance someone shows up with a pair of spoons.

 

Threats have been made, but in my neck of the woods spoons and/or bones are traditional and would be welcome if wielded in an appropriate manner....😊

[Jim Besser]

Another requirement for a good session: a solid rhythm player who can drive the group and hold things together.

 

I have recordings of a wonderful session about 20 years ago.  There were a bunch of very good musicians, and a superb pianist who tended to join tunes only after a couple of cycles. You can clearly hear how things snapped into place when he started playing.

[Tiposx]

My enthusiasm was really for the House Session posting. I don't really mind one percussion instrument.

I don't attend pub sessions any more, they just go too fast, and faster, whilst I am slowing down these days...

[d.elliott]

I was told that a good session only had one bodhran player, the fiddles were not allowed to set the speed, Anglos did not set the key. Dot players were welcome as long as they did not mind beer on their scores, nor that most people would start before they found their page. 

 

another quote, was that a session should be like group sex where everyone starts together, finishes more or less together and has fun on the way through, innovation encouraged. Not that I, as a good Chapel lad would understand this latter quote.

[caj]

We're lenient on sheet music, and we maintain a pdf of tunes commonly played that we give to newcomers --- in part because we don't want them digging up some other version of the tunes we play.  We do what we can to roll out the welcome mat for new players just because we're old farts and we need new people.

 

That being said, using dots in the actual session can be a problem.  One problem is that a lot of nuance isn't recorded in the sheet music, and dot players can start sawing right through a tune that is supposed to be lyrical or gentle or swung a bit or what have you.  

[David Barnert]

10 hours ago, wunks said:

Threats have been made, but in my neck of the woods spoons and/or bones are traditional and would be welcome if wielded in an appropriate manner....😊

 

The key word here is “appropriate.” The mere ownership of spoons or bones or a bodhran does not make one a session musician.

 

8 hours ago, d.elliott said:

Anglos did not set the key.

 

Perhaps not, but they determine the pitch (“We tune to the concertina”).

[Tiposx]

caj said

“We're lenient on sheet music, and we maintain a pdf of tunes commonly played that we give to newcomers ---“

I think that is a really good way to encourage new people, it would certainly help me.