FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

When and where are sessions happening?

Here’s a quick list of the regular sessions I’m aware of happening in mainland Nova Scotia. If you run a session and would like me to list it up, just send on a note and I’d be happy to include it! If you’re travelling any distance, going specifically for the session only and don’t regularly attend, it’s never a bad idea to phone the pub ahead and check that it is still happening, particularly in bad winter weather.

-Tuesdays in Kentville, at Paddy’s Pub, from 7 to 9 pm

-Wednesdays in Halifax, at the Oxford Taproom, from 8 to 10:30 pm

-Every other Friday in Liverpool, at Lane’s Privateer Inn, from 7 pm onwards

-2nd Saturday of each month in Lawrencetown, at the Bee’s Knees, from 2 to 5 pm

-last Saturday of each month in New Glasgow, at the Dock, from 2 to 5 pm

-Sundays in Halifax, at Durty Nelly’s, from 4 to 6 pm

-Sundays in Antigonish, at Candid Brewery, from 7 to 9 pm

-Sundays in Kingston, at the Roof Hound, from 2 – 5 pm

…. and lastly, you’ll find me every week:

-Sundays in Wolfville, at Paddy’s Pub, from 7:30 to 10:30 pm

and

-Saturdays in Port Williams, at the Port Pubs Brig & Barq Taproom, 7:30-10 pm (also a set dancing friendly session)

There’s a few listening only gigs that happen, should you want to take it low key, support other artists, immerse yourself, hear some new tunes or if you aren’t a musician but just enjoy listening to it . . .

-Thursdays, from 4 – 7 pm, at Durty Nelly’s, Jeremy Finney and Shannon Quinn: two of Halifax’s top traditional musicians with fiddle and concertina

-Saturdays, 3 – 5 pm, at The Horton Ridge Malthouse, music from Space Paddy Bog People

-Saturdays, 6 – 7:30 pm, at the Port Williams Taproom, music from Delhaven, my own group, who perform a mix of tunes and songs in English and Gaeilge.


(If you’ve a listening gig you’d like shared here, please touch base, I’d be glad to list it up!)

What are some resources for learning this sort of music?

Quite possibly the most crucial point to not be missed is, whatever resource you’re learning from, make sure there is some kind of aural learning going on. It’s very much okay to supplement with sheet music if you feel its otherwise unapproachable, but for the sake of all that is good, please continue to familiarize yourself with how the rhythmic emphases are handled in this music. The notes of the classic pieces themselves can and do vary, a little bit like jazz, but the underlying element you want to prioritize is developing a fine sense of rhythm. If you’ve been diligently studying the music for a while and are a fairly advanced player but just can’t put your finger on why it’s not quite right, if you’ve not been learning by ear, my advice would be to try that as it will open up different ways of thinking about things. It sure won’t be as efficient as reading, which you may have done for decades, while you learn to learn this way – but it will provide missing pieces to the puzzles.

There’s no real substitute for in person, one on one lessons for learning this stuff (which is my main bread and butter), but that can be out of reach for various reasons for many. I do run a in person group class, specific to tunes that get played in my own sessions, on Sunday evenings prior to the Wolfville sessions, and Scott Henderson does the same thing in Lawrencetown.

There are loads more resources out there for learning by ear – and learning how to learn by ear. Here’s a few:

1. There are some wonderful tune learning resources on YouTube, like my mate, Duncan Cameron’s channel. YouTube has a great function in the settings button on each video, where you may adjust the speed to be slower – and that can prove most helpful for learning just about anything on there!

2. The Seosamh Mac Gabhann Summer School in Kilmovee, Co Mayo has dozens and dozens of video tutorials up on their page as well, from top notch teachers on fiddle, flute, whistle, banjo, bodhrán, button accordion, sean nos step dancing… you couldn’t find a more pure drop and broad resource than this.

3. For keen fiddle players, Martin Hayes has some tune tutorials up on his YouTube, and a lot more, and in more depth, on his patreon.

4. Liam Kelly has developed a couple of great courses on the flute and whistle and you can get in touch with him to download the lessons.

5. Shannon Heaton, a lovely Boston based flute player, has lots of learning material available.

6. Caitlín Níc Gabhann has two wonderful websites, one specifically for learning the concertina and another for the study of repertoire on any of the traditional instruments.

7. There’s a collective of top notch players who have put together a great website with very thorough lessons from a variety of teachers, the Online Academy of Irish Music.

8. In addition to being the worlds leading concertina luthier, John Dipper is a very fine fiddler and gives instruction as well as Saturday zoom workshops.

What is the etiquette at a session?

Etiquette for sessions…. now there’s a topic I’ve been asked to explain a few times since taking on the responsibility of hosting a session. At the very least, many people want to know what one can expect or would want to know before coming to a session. I’m reluctant to be pinned down about “rules” for it, especially in writing, so I’m tempted to be vague and say something like, please use common sense and kindness – but those concepts, it’s proven, are abstract and subjective!

Perhaps it’d be better to provide is a list of what a person might expect to experience. The following considerations are for what would be known as an “open session” where anyone is welcome to come and play. Some readers, experienced with sessions, may find some of the following statements to be a bit obvious, but there are always new people coming into the fold – and of course we want to make that a comfortable experience for all, so I’ve included what I felt were basic understandings surrounding sessions on the page here. These really just boil down to kind awareness. I hope this provides anyone curious, timid, yet eager to join with some comfort and encouragement to feel welcomed:

1. Is it, in fact, an open session? Or a closed gig, or session just between a couple of friends who happened to get together in a public place?
2. Listen twice as much as playing, and always try to listen to others while playing. Don’t jump in on a tune after recognizing the first two or three notes, give the person 4-8 bars at least to get settled into the lift that they’ll play their best at.
3. Ask about taking audio recordings for your own learning purposes, and be mindful that many people might not like to be video taped, though they mightn’t feel comfortable stating so.
4. Find out both what to play, and when it’s appropriate to start a tune or ask for one by observing for a little while. Be mindful of how many tunes you’re leading and give breathing room in between sets for others to have a chance to start something. Remember, a session is not a performance. You’ll sometimes observe the host starting the majority of the tunes, particularly at the beginning of a session, and this is usually done to set people at ease/help them feel warmed up.
5. Try your very, very best to follow and maintain the pace and rhythm that someone else has started a set at. This requires some degree of skill, but is a kindness that can be observed with mere awareness. Speeding up a set of tunes that someone else has started simply because you prefer them faster displays a lack of empathy and a lack of musicality – an inability to find something of interest in the tune at a speed you don’t often play it. See point #2!
6. If you are playing the role of accompanist, there’s a few additional things to be mindful of. Try to take turns if there are multiple guitars present. It gets pretty muddy, pretty quickly if people are loudly playing chords that disagree, and this is only (questionably) enjoyable for the ones with the guitar in hand. Try to tend towards playing on the quieter end of what might be suitable. Guitars, pianos, bouzoukis are all capable of easily playing louder than fiddles, flutes, mandolins etc – but it’s not helpful to do so. Often it means that you’ll end up dictating the rhythm and speed, and thats extremely unhelpful to someone playing melodies of running eighth notes/quavers at upwards of 120 bpm.
7. Don’t touch or try to play instruments that aren’t your own without an expressed invitation to do so by their owner.
8. Sexual harrassment, misogyny, racism, ableism and other forms of bullying all have no place at a session. Make every effort to foster an environment where others feel comfortable and can both enjoy themselves fully as well as play music uninhibited by the discomfort brought on by other people overstepping. With privilege comes the responsibility of reflecting on ones words and actions, and frequently making changes for the better.
9. What is the role of the host? Most sessions have a host – sometimes called an anchor – but not all do. Generally speaking, this person is paid some sum by the establishment to make sure that things happen consistently, and with a standard of quality that behooves local musicians to feel motivated to come along regularly (both musically and socially).
   
   The also handles communications between the venue and the musicians, and commits to being there regularly (or finding a sub if they’re unable to come, so that the session may still run for everyone else to enjoy). This means knowing about holidays, hurling matches, deaths within the community, local festivals which may pull all the players away on a given week…
   
   Some hosts will provide learning/listening resources, though this is above and beyond what they’re typically asked to do by the venue paying them – and is done as a courtesy and to help better the overall experience. These are typically aural resources, ranging from album recommendations to offering workshops to directing people to online resources or sharing files and recordings. Many won’t raise this to you, as a newcomer, as they don’t want you to feel un-welcomed or looked down on. But – just about any of them will point you in a helpful direction if you ask, and are happy to do so. They wouldn’t be committed to being somewhere every single week indefinitely if fostering tradtional music wasn’t a large part of their identity, if not their job.
   
   Typically, hosts are reasonably handy players, relative to musicians in the locale, on a melody instrument (like accordion, fiddle, concertina, banjo…)
   At the very least, they can hold their own with jigs, reels etc for 2 or 3 hours. This is a necessity because, no matter how popular any session is, there are always a couple weeks (or more!) each year where, by chance, only accompanists or people in the tender, beginning stages of a melody instrument come. Regulars go on vacations, get ill, have familial obligations or simply need a week off…. The host needs to single handedly be capable of providing traditional music for the agreed upon time frame to maintain good rapport with the venue.
   
   Additionally, session hosts need to have a general understanding of the logistical and technical challenges faced by other instrumentalists. There’s many keys that don’t suit fiddles well, but even more limited by key choice are tin whistles, keyless and keyed flutes, pipes, concertinas, accordions (which varies depending on what type of accordion they play!)… Some instruments, like the harp, are relatively quiet and cannot be heard well if all other players are really blaring their volume. Lastly, some people have less facility in the hands, be it due to being near the beginning of their journey, or further along with physical impairments like arthritis.
   
   This list of understanding the challenges other instrumentalists face could go on and on and on. The host needs to be aware enough of the limitations of the players and their instruments that they can run a session where everyone present can have an enjoyable time, and this is why the host is often deferred to for starting tunes.