What is a session?
The term is now usually used for a pub-based gathering of musicians. One of the biggest developments in Traditional Music in Scotland (also in Ireland) in the past 20 years has been the opening up of pubs and other informal settings as a venue for our music. In some respects this has been a double-edged sword in terms of the quality of performance.
Let's be blunt, some sessions are crap. At their worst they can be a vehicle for egoists to showcase their minimal talents to an inebriated and unknowledgable audience. At their best, they can provide an opportunity for people to be exposed to a variety of styles and genres of our music. They can give performers the confidence to play more. They encourage the formation of more organised musical combinations. Many a good band has sprung out of an informal session.
There exists today in Scotland a wide variety of sessions. Every one is different; every one is constantly evolving. New ones start, old established ones stop meeting for any number of reasons.
Sessions are what you make them. Every session finds it's own level and a comfortable way of working. Some feature singers, others feature instrumental players, some are happy to accommodate both. Some sessions encourage newcomers, some (a very few) are unwelcoming to strangers. What is certain is that every session evolves over time a way of working which suits the regular attenders. There arises a set of shared values about what is acceptable. Newcomers to a session would do well to get a taste for the particular values held in a session. In this respect, have a look at our good session etiquette guide.