Mark Evans Posted March 29, 2006 Share Posted March 29, 2006 (edited) Why do we go to session? Many reasons I bet. Last night I found myself on the road to John Stones and I didn't know why. Plenty needed doin' 'round the house, but my innards said "go, if only for a couple of hours." The Inn was moderately full and my chums just finishing their meals. I began to feel worries release from 'round my shoulders. Ole Tom O'Hare was there with his ancient Wheatstone, I hadn't seen him in ever so long. We fell into conversation about what else, horses and concertinas. The fiddler started tuning, we got chairs, sat down, introduced ourselves to new and old and straight way into a long set of reels. Some I knew some not and I would just sit, close my eyes and become a part of the music surrounding me. The fellow on guitar, Rob was a wonder with his small body Martin in open tuning. He became the music and provided a running, modulating foundation I couldn't help but loose myself in. Magic. I sang when asked, played when I knew a tune and the two hours I had to spend melted away. I realized getting up and thanking each musician for a wonderful evening that I had come there for one of musics most ancient functions...healing, and healing I got. Ah music. It is a wonderful thing. I'm going to sound like a wingnut here but that circle of chairs is a holy thing and time spent there is never wasted, never. Edited March 29, 2006 by Mark Evans Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bill_mchale Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Why do we go to session? Because tunes are better when they are shared with friends . Also because I have learned more than a few good tunes from the session. -- Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenferry Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Last night I found myself on the road to John Stones Did you see any ghosts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Coles Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 You're not making this easy for those of us who live in the middle of nowhere! (Right now, that group includes me.) Massachusetts had more opportunities of this sort than anyplace I have lived, I do miss that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMeyers Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Why do I go to session? Because I can. I often approach my session at the Celtic Arts Center with trepidation because I'm not that strong a player. Still, they haven't thrown me out yet and I've never regretted going. It is sometimes humbling, but nothing like it to make me practice and learn new tunes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Timson Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Because playing in a good session gives me very deep pleasure. It's as much fun as anything I know. Even in the early days, when I was just fumbling for most tunes, the music swept me along. Because there wasn't a session near where we live we started one, with some trepidation because we had no idea if there were enough people in the area interested in playing English music to sustain it. Well, it turns out there was, and a number of others have started coming regularly to what is their first ever session. I get a lot of fun, and a certain amount of pride, out of that session. It certainly has succeeded in its aim of making me a better player. Just a thought, Ken, but it might be worth trying to start a session over your way. You never know ... Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterT Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 I'm sure that we all go to, or host sessions for a variety of reasons. I have hosted my local one, on and off for about 7 years, as I needed to be playing occasionally in public just to keep the "performance" factor in my playing. It's served my in good stead, as a few weeks of actual practice has got my playing almost back to where it was 10+ years ago. I am now motivated to try new tunes, in new keys, on the concertina. Monday of this week saw me heading down to Brighton, in search of Mandy Murray. "It's all Alan Day's Fault", as it says in the notes for Anglo International, and a few weeks ago I met up with Alan Day and Jim Besser at the George. Seeing Mandy's name on Anglo International stirred something within the deep recesses of my memory. I finally remembered that the late Paul Davies had told me (circa 1988) about Mandy, and how highly he had rated her playing. I remembered that, at the time, Mandy's name was completely new to me. However, having listened to Mandy's playing on Anglo International, I thought that I should seek out a live performance. So, the trip to Brighton was well worth the effort. For me, a session is not just about the music, it is also about the musicians; I think that the link between the two is very important. Regards, Peter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spectacled Warbler Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Why do we go to session? Because tunes are better when they are shared with friends . -- Bill Because playing in a good session gives me very deep pleasure. It's as much fun as anything I know. Absolutely and completely. Five of us sitting in a corner of a pub last night singing in something approximating harmony - everybody else in the pub chatting, playing pool or doing whatever it was that they enjoy and totally ignoring us because it's completely normal to see people singing in their local on a Wednesday. Heaven. When you've just all finished playing a good tune or song, and everybody bursts into laughter at the end because it was such fun. Unbeatable. Sessions always re-remind me that amidst the violence and cheating, there are still people who want to meet with others in order to create something good, and have fun which isn't at somebody else's expense. They provide a positive counter-balance to what could easily become a jaundiced view of life. And I took my six week old concertina out for the first time last night, and was able to join in (quietly) with much more than I'd hoped for - not sure why everybody was taking bits of foam out of their ears at the end of the night, mind. So the aching fingers are paying off. I'll probably go again next week and find they've moved the session and not told me! Ken - pack your case and move to Yorkshire. One or two sessions almost every night within 20 miles, English, Irish, Oldtime American, singing, all sorts of stuff. Loadsa music. Joy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken_Coles Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Just a thought, Ken, but it might be worth trying to start a session over your way. You never know ... Chris We've gone around this several times in the year I've been here. One of the students is gamely trying to sustain an Irish session here, she can play flute well, and there's me, and everyone else (all are students) is learning. There are half a dozen experienced folk musicians in this area but they have stayed away though we always invite them. I support the group as much as my current work overload allows, but I don't have enough time between work and 1/2 to 1 hour a day on admin stuff here to be the one in charge. Two of the students are now in my class, which has made things a bit more awkward as I have to be careful about a conflict of interest in the eyes of other students. Unfortunately we've discovered that college kids and a forty-somthing egghead have different schedule preferences. They have abandoned Tuesday for the first Saturday. Sorry, but that's my Cajun dance in the big city, and for a single guy that's all the excitement I get; I'm not giving that up! Ken - pack your case and move to Yorkshire. One or two sessions almost every night within 20 miles, English, Irish, Oldtime American, singing, all sorts of stuff. Loadsa music. The way work is going right now, I'd love to take you up on that, Joy! Music is definitely one factor in choosing where to live, always in the back of my mind. Cheers, Ken Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Evans Posted March 30, 2006 Author Share Posted March 30, 2006 (edited) Did you see any ghosts? Barbara is refering to John Stones reputation. Supposedly the spirit of a little girl who died there, a drunkard who after passing seems to prefer the tap room to the pearly gates and of course John Stone. There has never been wink or nod from any of them when I was there. Some folks who show up for a pint in hopes of an encounter and past employees have been uncomfortable cleaning up after closing time. Once after session my son suggested we take a stroll upstairs. Got half-way up the stairs and realized son Claude was at the bottom of the stairs. Well, I'm not going alone so back down I went . Edited March 30, 2006 by Mark Evans Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greenferry Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 (edited) ... John Stones reputation... Mark, thanks for the info! ... Tuesdays at 7:30 ... will definitely have to get there sometime! Sounds like a really great place to spend an evening in music! Stone's Public House Ghost stories, excerpt: "It's creepy here late at night, when the only light sneaks through the windows from the streetlights outside and the upper floors creak and settle in for the long night. The faces in the paintings on the second floor seem to follow you wherever you walk, and John Stone's scowl can be felt even when you turn your back to his portrait above the tavern fireplace. Doors seem to open and close at times for no reason. Glasses have been known to fly off the shelf or shatter to bits without provocation. Both employees and guests have felt hands on their necks or sensed an unseen presence behind them." Also ... Captain John Stone's Haunted Inn Main Street, Ashland, Massachusetts (near 495 / Route 9) Built in 1834. Hidden room was discovered in the basement several years ago; was once a rest stop for African-Americans along the Underground Railroad. Edited March 30, 2006 by greenferry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Besser Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Every Weds, I load up the concertinas and hit Washington's hideously congested Beltway to travel 25 miles to a session (well, a jam; the host, whose musical tastes roam the world, never uses the word "session"). I do this at the effective end of my work week, and I'm tired, cranky, and want to do violence to the SUVs and trucks on that horrible road, or sit in a comfortable chair nursing a beer. But the trip is always worth it. The new tunes, the times the bunch gets into a groove and really nails a tune, the people who put aside all the divisiveness of the world and focus just on the music, the friendships forged; I wouldn't give it up for anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bill_mchale Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Every Weds, I load up the concertinas and hit Washington's hideously congested Beltway to travel 25 miles to a session (well, a jam; the host, whose musical tastes roam the world, never uses the word "session"). I do this at the effective end of my work week, and I'm tired, cranky, and want to do violence to the SUVs and trucks on that horrible road, or sit in a comfortable chair nursing a beer. But the trip is always worth it. The new tunes, the times the bunch gets into a groove and really nails a tune, the people who put aside all the divisiveness of the world and focus just on the music, the friendships forged; I wouldn't give it up for anything. Jim, What session do go to? I generally go up to Baltimore for sessions on Mondays and Thursday nights, but I live close to DC. I have heard of a couple of DC sessions, but never really gone to any. -- Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Madge Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Why do I go to sessons? Because they're there! Robin Madge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Brook Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 You also get the chance to play some wonderful concertinas. Last night I played a 40 key Wheatstone (C/G)and a 38 key Jeffries (G/D) only for a few seconds but it was enough to start the accumulative disorder off again........ what's the number of my bank manager? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Timson Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Ken - pack your case and move to Yorkshire. One or two sessions almost every night within 20 miles, English, Irish, Oldtime American, singing, all sorts of stuff. Loadsa music. The way work is going right now, I'd love to take you up on that, Joy! Music is definitely one factor in choosing where to live, always in the back of my mind. You have my real sympathy. Go to Yorkshire, Ken. Yorkshire's great, nearly as good as Wiltshire! Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Dickey Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 Ken - pack your case and move to Yorkshire. One or two sessions almost every night within 20 miles, English, Irish, Oldtime American, singing, all sorts of stuff. Loadsa music. The way work is going right now, I'd love to take you up on that, Joy! Music is definitely one factor in choosing where to live, always in the back of my mind. You have my real sympathy. Go to Yorkshire, Ken. Yorkshire's great, nearly as good as Wiltshire! Chris Well just a thought Ken, Chris et al. Why don't you get up here for 11th to 13th August and join in the Bradfield Traditional Music Weekend and you will meet and play along with many excellent local players and experience the pleasure of the Royal Hotel, home of the famous Royal Concertinas. The last two BTMW's have been great and I for one will definitely not be missing this one if I can help it. (As a bonus, anyone who comes is welcome to have a play on my Jeffries or Linota GD's if they want - just ask) Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susanne Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 I love going to sessions even though I never (or almost never) can join in because they play too fast. I love listening to them playing, I try to hear little things that will help me sound better when I play Irish music, and I get inspiration from the musicians. I hope that I'll also someday will be able to join in. Actually, they've started an Irish session in Trollhättan, really close to us. I haven't been able to go yet, it's only once a month and it's almost impossible to find one of those Fridays when I don't work, but in the future when I plan my working schedule I will try to be off work those Fridays. Daniel is going tomorrow, then he will tell me everything about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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