Matt Jensen Music

What is a jam? What is the difference between a jam and a performance, such as an open mic?

A jam/session is an informal gathering of people that want to play music together. Jammers don't really care if anyone else comes to listen, even if people sometimes do. A performance, such as an open mic, is about playing music for an audience, who are listening and not participating in making the music.

Some music genres call these gatherings jams, such as bluegrass, while other genres call these sessions, such as Irish traditional music, and others call them jam sessions.

Jams are either closed, meaning they are invitation only, or they are open, meaning you don't need an invitation to participate. If you are nice to folks at one jam you will likely get invited to plenty of others.

How to Start Jamming - find a jam, figure out how it works, and then join in.

Finding a jam that is a good fit for you can be challenging. A lot of them are found by word of mouth, and it's not always clear if they are open, and if so, what ability level and music genres they might be playing. Searching the internet and/or asking at your local musical instrument shops are usually your best bets for finding jams. The good news is that once you find one jam, the folks there can usually point you to others, and if you are looking for something specific, they often can point you in the right direction.

After finding a jam that seems to be open and at your ability level, walk in and introduce yourself. You could say something like "Hi, I'm Matt, and I'm a beginner at bluegrass mandolin, can I join your jam?” Something like that will usually give them all the info they need to let you know if it's likely to be a good fit for you. If you're not ready for that, another approach is to go scout it out first by listening for a while. Then, if it seems like a good fit, you could grab your instrument and ask about joining in.

Whether you sit in with your instrument at first or not, it's a great idea to listen and watch the jam for a while, which will usually give you the gist of how that jam runs before you start making noises that may or may not fit it very well. Jams tend to fall into one of two big categories: most folks playing the same melody at the same time, or people taking turns singing or playing instrumental melodies solo. Old time and Irish traditional music jams/sessions have most folks playing the melody at the same time. Bluegrass jams and most multi-genre acoustic jams have people taking turns singing or playing instrumental melodies solo.

Below is a description of joining a bluegrass jam, then a description of joining an old time jam, and then a description of joining an Irish traditional music session.

JOINING A BLUEGRASS JAM

FIRST TIMER WALK THROUGH

The bluegrass jam format is special because it allows total strangers who might not know any of the same songs to successfully play together. Every jam is different, but I'll try to explain how jams usually work in general in the format of a "walk through" from the perspective of someone coming to one for the first time. This guide will be a work-in-progress, and any suggestions for improvement would be welcome.

In most places there are few strictly traditional bluegrass jams, instead most jams involve multiple music genres and have a pretty loose structure. This is great fun for advanced players looking for a challenge, but tougher for beginners getting started. Most of the main features will still apply, though, so learning the bluegrass jam format can set you up to join many other kinds of jams. If you go to a jam and don’t understand why they are doing something, just ask - most people will be happy to explain the quirks of their jam.

FINDING A JAM AND WALKING IN

Bluegrass has five standard instruments that are always welcome at jams: mandolin, fiddle, banjo, guitar, and acoustic bass. At most bluegrass and multi-genre acoustic jams, any other acoustic string instrument would also be welcome, but you should ask first. Lots of jams also allow electric bass played quietly, and sometimes lots of other things. Percussion is usually not a part of bluegrass, but there is no harm in asking. Bring a tuner and tune your instrument before starting, and check it again at least once during the jam. If you are out of tune it can make it hard for other people near you to play.

Usually there is a circle of chairs and you can sit anywhere; if there is a seating arrangement they will tell you. Some advanced jams stand in a circle, and some even stand around a microphone and move in and out for singing and solos like a band. Between songs there may be time to chat, or they may go into the next song or tune right away.

SONGS, TUNES, KEYS, AND CHORDS

When it's time to start playing, someone, usually the organizer of the jam, will start a song or fiddle tune. Advanced jams often involve a mix of songs (with singing) and fiddle tunes (the term used in bluegrass and old time music for instrumental tunes without singing). However, there is a spectrum of this for different jams. Many jams do only songs, and there are rare jams that do only fiddle tunes. Songs tend to be more popular at jams because they are easier to play along with if you don't already know them (more on that later). Usually before starting, the person will say the name of the song or tune, and what key they want to play it in. Most bluegrass songs and tunes are 4/4 time, so that will go unsaid, but there are some in 3/4 time as well, and that will usually be stated.

Most fiddle tunes have a standard key that they are usually played in, but songs may get played in whichever key best fits the singer's voice. Eight of the twelve major keys tend to get used in bluegrass. The most popular keys are C, G, D, and A. Advanced jams may also play in E, B, F, and Bb. Minor keys may also be played, particularly A minor. Bluegrass also often uses keys called modal that involve other scales. There are lots of modes, but in bluegrass the actual keys of these (such as mixolydian) are rarely mentioned, and instead they are often referred to with the category term "modal."

So let's say somebody has started the first song or tune and everybody jumps in "backing them up," which mostly means playing chords in time with the person who is leading the tune (I'll call them the leader from now on). How does everyone know what chords to play? There are several ways. Some people will have played it before and have the chords committed to memory. Some people won't know it, but they have learned to recognize common chord shapes on the hands of guitar players. The reason folks look to the guitar players for this is because their chord shapes tend to be larger and more visible compared to other instruments, and because there are usually plenty of guitar players at most jams. This doesn’t always work, though, because guitar players often get bored playing common chord shapes and start playing more obscure shapes. Of course, if someone else is playing the same instrument as you, you can watch their hands.

Some people won't know the song or tune at all, but they have developed their ear to the point where they can hear the chord changes - this is the goal for all of us. For a beginner, learning to hear chord changes sounds impossible, but for most people it happens naturally over time the more you play in jams. The first step is to hear that one chord has changed to another (and you can watch other player's hand while working on this). Eventually you'll develop the pattern recognition to be able to anticipate chord changes in advance based on what is happening with the melody. The next step is figuring out what the new chord is, which is also easier than it sounds. While there are many possible chords, only a small number are likely to be played during a bluegrass song, most of which only have two, three, or four chords.

Chords are usually discussed in bluegrass using the Nashville number system, where the chords are numbered from 1 to 7 after the notes on the scale of the key. For example, in the key of G, you would use the G scale, so that the 1 chord is the G chord, the 2 chord is the A chord, the 3 chord is the B chord, etc. Most bluegrass songs only use the 1, 4, and 5 chords. For the key of G that would be the G, C, and D chords; for the key of D that would be the D, G, and A chords.

If you learn to play these four chords on your instrument, you will have a lifetime of songs that you could play. Most bluegrass songs start and end on the 1 chord. When you hear a chord change (or see it change on another player's hand), it is likely changing to a 4 or 5 chord, so pick one - if it sounds good, then it is correct; if it sounds bad, then try the other one. Another helpful pattern is that almost all bluegrass songs finish each verse and chorus going to the 5 chord and then back to the 1 chord.

PLAYING BACKUP

During songs (more on fiddle tunes later), at any point either the leader is singing the melody or someone is playing the melody as an instrumental solo. This is that person's time to do their thing, while everyone else backs them up, mostly by quietly playing chords in time as best they can, and not playing melody or "noodling". If you can't hear what the melody person is doing, you are playing too loud and you need to quiet down. This is really important for everyone staying in time together, too - if you aren't listening and "grooving" with everyone else, then there is nothing to stop the natural tendency to speed up, which can become very distracting to the melody person.

Fills are the one exception to the rules above that occur in more advanced jams. Fills are short little bits of melodic stuff played in the empty spaces of verses when the singer briefly pauses between phrases. Bands figure out in advance who is going to do fills at different parts of the song so they aren’t playing over each other, but this can happen randomly in a jam. If you experiment with fills, keep it pretty quiet and don’t play over the singer.

Harmony singing is part of bluegrass, and usually done just during a chorus, not with a verse. Traditionally, this is done by singing the next chord tone above the lead (called the tenor part), or the next chord tone below the lead (called the baritone part). Just watch your volume so that you're not drowning out the lead singer.

Just before the end of the song, the leader will usually let everybody know by lifting one foot. A "tag" is a repeat of some or all of the last part of the chorus added at the end of a song; this is optional but happens more often than not. The length of the tag varies based on what sounds good with the chord progression, so you have to listen to what the leader does to follow along. Alternatively, if you want to do a tag, instead of lifting your foot you can do a circular motion with your instrument. Rarely, the leader may try something fancier like slowing the tempo before the finish, or singing the end without instruments.

BREAKS

"Breaks" are instrumental solos, and are a big part of bluegrass jams. During a song, the leader will pass out chances to take a break. Most jams do this democratically by going around the circle to give everyone a chance. At some jams the leader will be more unpredictable and hand out breaks in a random order. If you don't want to take a break, you can always pass by shaking your head "no".

The usual bluegrass song structure is break-verse-chorus, repeated until the end of the song. However, because there are many exceptions, you want to be ready for your break at any time by watching the leader. Just before your turn for a break, while the leader is still singing, they will make eye contact with you, which means, "Do you want to take this break?" Answer yes with a nod or no with a shake of the head. You want to do this immediately so that if you pass, there will still be time for the leader to ask the next person. In an advanced jam, if you accidentally make eye contact and the leader gives you the nod before you shake your head no, then you are on the hook for that break whether you wanted it or not.

It's possible that multiple people in a row might pass and a break might come your way sooner than you expect it, so be ready anytime a break is coming up. If you know you are going to pass, it's extra helpful to tell the next person in line, so they know to be ready early. If you fail to make eye contact with the leader or clearly nod "yes," they may pass you by and you don't get to take a break on that song. Do not start taking a break over someone else's break because you weren't paying attention, or you'll be thrown into bluegrass jail, where they'll call you by a number not a name.

A break in a bluegrass jam is usually the same length, and follows the same chord progression, as a verse. If there are multiple breaks in a row, then everyone should repeat the chord progression of the verse. Lots of bluegrass songs have the same chord progression and length for both the verse and chorus, but some have different things for the chorus. Occasionally, the leader will want something different for a break, such as a verse and a chorus, or alternating people doing a verse and then a chorus, or splitting breaks in half - they should state this before they start the song. A few songs like “Nine Pound Hammer" have very short verses and choruses, so at most jams people will do both a verse and chorus for breaks.

Advanced players will often play a break for the length of a verse, and then play some random extra melodic stuff (called "licks") for several more beats. This has been called "bluegrass time," and started because people needed extra time to move in and out from a single microphone, then it became part of the style. It's probably best to avoid this at beginner jams because it may confuse people. If it does happen, everyone should just hang out on the last chord until the leader starts singing, then resume the chord progression.

HOW TO TAKE A BREAK

Playing breaks is both the most fun and the most intimidating part of a bluegrass jam, particularly with songs you don't already know, which will be most of them when you are starting out. This is a lifelong learning process, and the only way to get good at playing breaks is to first play a whole bunch of bad ones in a low-stress setting, like a beginner bluegrass jam. The secret I've learned about open jams is most people do not care at all how many wrong notes you play. In fact, most people aren't even really listening, instead they are busy worrying about their own breaks.

When advanced players take breaks they usually play the melody souped up with embellishments and improvisation. However, a break doesn't have to involve the melody - it could be a free jazz-like collection of totally unrelated notes. Most of the time, though, you want to play notes that sound good with the chord being played at that moment. You can, and people do, play notes that are discordant or unstable with the chord, but in bluegrass folks usually don't like to linger on these.

The easiest way to get started improvising breaks on songs that you don't already know is to play notes from the pentatonic scale of the key of the song. The major pentatonic scale drops the fourth and seventh notes of the scale, which are the notes that can sometimes clash some chords of the key. Because of this, pentatonic scale notes usually sound fine over any of the chords of the key. For the key of G these would be the notes of G, A, B, D, and E. For the key of D these would be the notes of D, E, F#, A, or B.

The next level of bluegrass solo is to play from different scales during the different chords in the chord progression. Notes will usually sound fine if they are from the same scale as the chord that is being played at that time. For example, if the chord progression of the verse is G then C then D, then most notes will sound fine if they first come from the G scale then the C scale then the D scale, while those chords are playing. You could work up to noodling all over the scale by initially just playing the root note of the chord repeatedly (the G note during the G chord, etc), then you could build up to using any of the three notes of the chord (for the G chord that would be G, B, or D), then any of the five notes of the pentatonic scale (for the G chord that would be G, A, B, D, and E), and then the full seven note scale. The important thing, though, is to not stress and just let a bunch of notes fly - you'll get better and have more fun each time you do it.

LEADING A SONG

So you've done back up for other people leading songs, and maybe you've tried some breaks. Now the jam organizer offers you a chance to lead a song or tune. If you don't want to, you can always pass. In a beginner jam, the goal is to play slow, simple, and predictable so that everyone can join in to the best of their abilities. If you get going too fast folks may ask you to start over more slowly so you don’t leave people behind.

There are lots of ways to "kick off" (start) a bluegrass song. In advanced jams this usually involves the leader playing part or all of a verse worth of melody, and everyone else joins in with the chords. Then the leader will start singing and switch from playing melody to playing chords while they sing. If you're not ready for that, you could play the chords for one verse to set the speed and let folks gradually join in, then start singing the first verse, but do whatever you are comfortable with. Don't forget to hand out breaks between bits of singing, and raise your foot just before you finish.

Traditional bluegrass songs always work in a bluegrass jam, but the borders of bluegrass and other types of music have always been blurry, so lots of types of songs can work in a bluegrass jam. At beginner jams, written music is usually allowed, but try to wean yourself off it over time because it gets in the way of nonverbal communication needed during a jam. It will also hold you back from more advanced jams in the future, where sheet music isn't used. If there are songs you want to do but you don't want to sing, you can often arrange for someone else to do the singing,  just talk it over with folks in advance.

STARTER SONGS

If you are new to picking or learning songs like this, I'll list some good ones below. What makes these songs helpful is that they all have one of the most common chord progressions in bluegrass. I think of this as the “default” chord progression, and if you learn this pattern, you can more easily learn other patterns by noticing where they are different. This pattern is one line of 1-4-1-5, and a second line that is the same but then resolves back to the 1 chord. For example, in the key of G, the chords of the first line are G-C-G-D, and the second line is G-C-G-D-G. For the songs below those two lines make up one verse, and these all have the same chord progression for the chorus, too.

AIN'T NOBODY GONNA MISS ME
ALL THE GOOD TIMES
BURY ME BENEATH THE WILLOW
I’LL NEVER SHED ANOTHER TEAR
I’M ON MY WAY BACK TO THE OLD HOME
THE OLD HOME TOWN
ON AND ON
WILL THE ROSES BLOOM
YOUR LOVE IS LIKE A FLOWER

Once you get comfortable with this "default" pattern, the next step that opens up lots of other songs involves the same pattern for the verse, but the start of the chorus skips the 1 chord and goes straight to the 4 chord instead. This chorus pattern is one line of 4-1-5, and a second line that is 1-4-1-5-1. For the key of G, the first line is C-G-D, and the second line is G-C-G-D-G. Below are some songs with this pattern.

BEFORE I MET YOU
DON'T THIS ROAD LOOK ROUGH AND ROCKY
JESSE JAMES
LITTLE CABIN HOME ON THE HILL
MY CABIN IN CAROLINE

The following two or three chord songs don't have a shared pattern to their chord progression, but they do have a good amount of space between chord changes, so they can be nice while you are working on the speed of chord changes:

BLUE MOON OF KENTUCKY
BLUE RIDGE CABIN HOME
EAST VIRGINIA
FIREBALL MAIL
HOW MOUNTAIN GIRLS CAN LOVE
I SAW THE LIGHT
IT’S MIGHTY DARK TO TRAVEL
LONESOME ROAD BLUES
MAN OF CONSTANT SORROW
MOUNTAIN DEW
ROLL IN MY SWEET BABY'S ARMS
SUNNY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN
WABASH CANNONBALL
WILL THE CIRCLE BE UNBROKEN
WORRIED MAN BLUES

FIDDLE TUNES

Fiddle tunes usually start differently than songs with something called “potatoes.” Which is a bowing or picking pattern that involves playing the note of the key (such as the note G for a tune in the key of G) for two or four measures. This is usually played with the “shuffle bow” pattern, which (for a tune in 4/4 time) is one, two-and, three, four-and. This communicates three pieces of information: the key, the speed, and when the tune starts so that everyone can join in right on the first downbeat.

Fiddle tunes usually have a different structure than songs: AABB, where there is an A part and B part, each of which gets played twice. Usually the leader would play the tune once as a solo, then it goes around the circle giving each person the chance to play it once as a solo if they want to, and then the leader plays it one more time to finish. Alternatively, when it comes back to the leader they could call out "everybody" and then everyone that wants to can play the melody together. At a beginner jam, if someone wants to try playing the tune but it is going too fast when it comes to them, it's often OK for them to raise their hand to stop and restart the tune at a speed that works for them. While one person at a time is soloing the melody, everyone else is quietly backing them up with chords.

TROUBLESHOOTING

If the person taking a break during a song loses track and stops part way through, then it's usually best for everyone to keep going through the chord progression of the verse, and look to the leader for what happens next. Sometimes the group will get out of sync with each other and the rhythm becomes unclear - when this happens usually everyone should just try to follow the leader of the song as best they can to get back in sync. Sometimes the leader themselves will get off track with the rhythm - usually the best thing for that is for everyone to stop playing until the leader gets themselves sorted out, and then everyone can gradually join back in. Sometimes the leader doesn't start singing the next verse on time (often because they are trying to remember the words) - when this happens everyone should just keep playing whatever chord they ended up on until the leader starts singing, then resume the chord progression. If you are the leader and forget the words, instead of coming back in late it's better to just hum the melody, repeat the last verse you can remember, or just sing some gibberish.

MOST IMPORTANT

Be nice, relax, and have fun. Be open to learning new things, and ask questions between songs so that everyone can learn from each other.

JOINING AN OLD TIME JAM

FIRST TIMER WALK THROUGH

If you enjoy listening to and playing old time music, then playing in an old time jam can be a ton of fun. However, getting started can be confusing, because it's often not clear how these jams work from the outside looking in. Every jam can be a little different, but I'll try to explain how things usually work with a "walk through" from the perspective of someone coming to one for the first time. This guide will be a work-in-progress, and any suggestions for improvement would be welcome. If you have experience with bluegrass or multi-genre jams where folks mostly sing songs and take instrumental solos, then an old time jam will seem very different. At these jams, singing is rare, and instead of instrumental solos, most everyone will be playing melodies together.

FINDING A JAM

Finding an old time jam may be the hardest part of getting started. If you live in a big city, you may have a few to choose from, and maybe even the rare beginner or "slow" jam. Otherwise, you may only have one anywhere near you, or you may have to travel to find one. Try searching online for your area. Instrument shops selling fiddles or banjos might know something, and they might be able to point you to music teachers that play old time music, who would be most likely to know. Worst case scenario, you might need to start your own, and you likely will be pleasantly surprised at how many other people would be interested.

INSTRUMENTS

Fiddles and banjos are always welcome at an old time jam. At most jams, any other acoustic melody instrument would also be welcome, such as mandolins or dulcimers, but you should ask first, and you should definitely ask about anything else. Guitars playing chords were not much a part of old time music originally but are common now. Percussion is usually not a part of old time music. Bring a tuner and tune your instrument before starting, and check it again at least once during the jam. If you are out of tune it can make it hard for other people near you to play.

WALKING IN

Old time musicians are usually a pretty relaxed and welcoming bunch. The first step is to walk up, introduce yourself, and ask if you can join in. Some jams are closed, meaning they are invitation only, but most are open. Usually everyone is sitting in a big circle and you should be able to sit in any open seat. Some jams get big enough that an outer circle forms around an inner circle, in which case you want to sit on the outside.

TUNES AND SONGS

Most old time jams only play fiddle tunes (instrumental music without singing) and not songs (music with singing). Some old time jams also include the occasional song. A lot of fiddle tunes can also have bits that can be sung, and usually one person will sing some verses at random intervals, when they feel so moved. When this happens, you should keep playing the tune as you have been but quieter to hear the singer.

What tunes are going to get played? Well, that is always the big question. At a beginner/slow jam, there may be a list of tunes so that you have some idea what is coming. At an advanced jam, any of the thousands of old time fiddle tunes may get played, and there will often be a mix of common and less common tunes. If you keep going to the same jam, over time you'll start to get a feel for the repertoire of each of the regulars, and folks will tend to have favorites that they call often. The site oldtimejam.com has a good list of tunes that are widely popular at jams, including a list of their "top 20," which is a great place to start.

LEARNING TUNES

All advanced players agree that the best way to learn old time fiddle tunes is by ear, and all beginners agree that it sounds too hard, so they start learning from written music. At least, that is what I did, and it added many years of pain and frustration to my journey, which was time wasted that I could have spent having fun playing in jams! Instead of thinking of it as a binary choice, think of it as a spectrum. Consider starting with spending 1% of your practice time learning by ear, and gradually increasing that over the years until one day you won't need written music anymore. There are lots of YouTube videos with people teaching particular tunes, often slowed down and taught phrase by phrase, sometimes with matching written music. Of course, it is hard to beat a good teacher, and there are lots of those both in person or online.

PLAYING

So, you've found an old time jam, and you've asked and been invited to sit in, what happens next? First, they will choose a key because banjo players, and sometimes fiddlers, usually tune differently for each key, and they will often stay in that key for an hour or so. Then, someone will start playing a tune. If you are new, even if you know the tunes they play, it would be smart to not play at first, at least for a while, and instead just watch and listen. Every jam can be a little different, and you can figure out lots about a particular jam's quirks by observing how it operates for a little bit.

Some jams will have a strict hierarchy with either one established leader or a handful of folks that have been playing together a long time, and usually one of these folks will most often be starting the tunes. Some jams will democratically go around the circle giving each person a chance to lead a tune, if they want to. Each tune will be repeated some number of times before switching to the next tune in the set. There will usually be at least three repetitions, and sometimes many more, until the person that started the tune has had their fill. At that point they will lift one foot, which is the signal that the tune will stop at the end of that repetition.

If a tune comes up that you know, and at a speed you can play, go for it, but it's a good idea to play quietly. If you play loudly as a newcomer, and drown out the other players, you could wear out your welcome pretty quickly. Also, you would be missing the point of an old time jam, which is that everyone is listening to each other and trying to blend together and get a good groove going. Old time music involves lots of subtle rhythmic elements that you won't know how to play as a beginner, which is another reason to listen a lot and play a little when you're getting started.

If the tunes are going too fast, or if you just don't know many tunes yet, there is nothing wrong with just sitting and listening to the whole jam. The tunes and rhythms will start working their way into your brain, and the more you listen to tunes at jams or from recordings, the closer you will be to joining in. Even better is to make an audio recording of the jam - always ask first, but most folks will be happy for you to do that, because many of them will have done that, too. At home you could use software to slow down the recordings and use them to start learning the tunes by ear. Since each jam has its own favorite tunes, learning directly from recordings of the jam would be the fastest way to learn that specific repertoire. One commonly used program to slow down recordings for learning by ear is the Amazing Slow Downer (ronimusic.com).

MOST IMPORTANT

Be nice, relax, and have fun. Thank everyone for letting you sit in and/or record the session. It can also be a great idea to ask for advice from the experienced players on things you can do as a beginner, because they've all been there, and sometimes folks will take you under their wing to help you along.

JOINING AN IRISH TRADITIONAL MUSIC SESSION

FIRST TIMER WALK THROUGH

If you enjoy listening to and playing Irish traditional music, then playing in a session can be a ton of fun. However, getting started can be confusing, because it's often not clear how sessions work from the outside looking in. Every session can be a little different, but I'll try to explain how things usually work with a "walk through" from the perspective of someone coming to one for the first time. This guide will be a work-in-progress, and any suggestions for improvement would be welcome. Irish traditional music is often referred to as "trad," and I'll use that, too. If you have experience with bluegrass or multi-genre jams where folks mostly sing songs and take instrumental solos, then a trad session will seem very different. At a session singing is rare, and instead of instrumental solos most everyone will be playing melodies together.

FINDING A SESSION

Finding a trad session may be the hardest part of getting started. If you live in a big city, you may have many to choose from, and maybe even the rare beginner or "slow" session. Otherwise, you may only have one anywhere near you, or you may have to travel to find one. Try searching online for your area and "irish music" or irish session". The website The Session (thesession.org/sessions) has a list of sessions, but the information is often out of date. You can try checking websites and/or visiting Irish pubs in your area and asking around if anyone knows of any sessions. Instrument shops selling violins might know something, and they might be able to point you to music teachers that play Irish music, who would be most likely to know. Worst case scenario, you might need to start your own, but you will likely be pleasantly surprised at how many other people would be interested.

INSTRUMENTS

There are certain instruments that are pretty much always welcome at trad sessions: fiddle, tenor banjo, accordion, concertina, whistle (also called the tin or penny whistle), wooden flute, and the uilleann pipes (also called the Irish bagpipes). At most sessions, any other acoustic melody instrument would also be welcome, but you should ask first.

Rhythm instruments (playing chords) and percussion are variably welcome. My understanding is that they were initially rare at sessions, but are now common, and folks have different opinions about how much of this is too much. Guitar is the most common rhythm instrument, followed by the bouzouki. The Irish drum called the bodhran is usually the only percussion at sessions, and having multiple people playing this simultaneously is often frowned on, but it never hurts to ask.

Bring a tuner and tune your instrument before starting, and check it again at least once during the session. If you are out of tune, it can make it hard for other people near you to play.

WALKING IN

Trad musicians are on a spectrum from relaxed and easy-going to unforgiving sticklers for etiquette; assume the latter and you'll usually be pleasantly surprised. The first step is to walk up, introduce yourself, and ask if you can join in the session. Some sessions are closed, meaning they are invitation only, but most sessions are open, in which case they will say yes, after they look at your instrument first to make sure they agree with what you brought. Some sessions get big enough that an outer circle forms around an inner circle, in which case you want to sit on the outside. If you are lucky enough to live where there is a slow beginner session you can skip all that, because everyone there will be in the same boat as you, and all will be welcome.

TUNES AND SONGS

Most trad sessions only play tunes (the term used for instrumental music without singing) and not songs (the term used for music with singing). Some trad sessions include the occasional song, which is usually sung as a solo by one person. What tunes are going to get played? Well, that is always the big question. At a beginner/slow session, there may be a list of tunes so that you have some idea what is coming. At an advanced session, any of the thousands of trad tunes may get played, and there will often be a mix of common and less common tunes. If you keep going to the same session, over time you'll start to get a feel for the repertoire of each of the regulars, and folks will tend to have favorites that they call often.

There are a couple resources that can point you in the direction of tunes that are widely popular at sessions:

thesession.org/tunes/popular

irishtune.info/session/tunes.php

Tunes are rarely played one at a time, instead they are combined into groups called sets, which are played without a pause between them. Advanced players may decide to group tunes into sets because they like how they sound together, or they may play sets from particular recordings. A great resource for learning individual tunes and good sets is Foinn Seisiún (FWEEN SESH-oon), which are books of written music with matching recordings produced by Comhaltas (COAL-tas), a group involved in the preservation and promotion of Irish traditional music:

comhaltas.ie/shop/archive/C57/

Trad has lots of types of tunes, defined by different rhythms. Reels and jigs are the most common tune types played at sessions, but any type may get played. How many types of tunes there is open for debate, as discussed here: irishtune.info/rhythm/

LEARNING TUNES

All advanced players agree that the best way to learn Irish tunes is by ear, and all beginners agree that it sounds too hard, so they start learning from written music. At least, that is what I did, and it added many years of pain and frustration to my journey, which was time wasted that I could have spent having fun playing in sessions! Instead of thinking of it as a binary choice, think of it as a spectrum. Consider starting with spending 1% of your practice time learning by ear, and gradually increasing that over the years until one day you won't need written music anymore.

The Foinn Seisiún books and matching recordings are a great place to start with this. There are lots of YouTube videos with people teaching particular tunes, often slowed down and taught phrase by phrase, sometimes with matching written music. A great paid option is The Online Academy of Irish Music (oaim.ie) which has a huge range of video lessons and other resources. Of course, it is hard to beat a good teacher, and there are lots of those both in person or online. If you can find a teacher that also plays in local sessions, they can teach you tunes and help you start playing them in sessions.

PLAYING

So, you've found an open session, and you've asked and been invited to sit in, what happens next? After the obligatory chatting and catching up, someone will start playing a tune. If you are new, even if you know the tunes they play, it would be smart to not play at first, at least for a while, and instead just watch and listen. Every session is a little different, and you can figure out a lot about a particular session's quirks by observing how it operates for the first few sets.

Some sessions will have a strict hierarchy with either one established leader or a handful of players that have been around since the snakes were driven out of Ireland, and usually one of these folks will most often be starting the sets. At a lot of sessions, after a few sets go by, one of these folks may invite you to start a set. If you're up for it go for it! If not you can either pass, or you could tell them you're not ready to start one but ask if they'd be willing to start one that you know (although they may play it much faster than you would like).

Each tune will be repeated some number of times before switching to the next tune in the set. Three repetitions is probably the most common, and some sessions will do this consistently the whole time. Some sessions will play more repetitions for shorter tune types (like single reels) and/or less repetitions for longer tune types (such as hornpipes). At some sessions this will be at the discretion of the person that started the set, and it may vary every time based on how the set is feeling. In this case, it can be a bit mystifying how they communicate the tune change to everybody else, but it's often with a glance, or with a sound such as "hup!"

The number of tunes in a set can also vary, again with three probably being the most common. Sets usually have the same types of tunes, such as all reels or all jigs, but the key can change with each tune.

If a tune comes up that you know, and at a speed you can play, go for it, but it's a good idea to play quietly. If you play loudly as a newcomer, and drown out the other players, you could wear out your welcome pretty quickly. Also, you would be missing the point of a session, which is that everyone is listening to each other and trying to blend together and get a good groove going. Trad involves lots of subtle rhythmic elements that you won't know how to play as a beginner, which is another reason to listen a lot and play a little when you're getting started.

If the tunes are going too fast, or if you just don't know many tunes yet, there is nothing wrong with just sitting and listening the whole session. The tunes and rhythms will start working their way into your brain, and the more you listen to tunes at sessions or from recordings the closer you will be to joining in. Even better is to make an audio recording of the session - always ask first, but most folks will be happy for you to do that, because many of them will have done that, too. At home you could use software to slow down the recordings and use them to start learning the tunes by ear. Since each session has its own favorite sets, learning directly from recordings of the session would be the fastest way to learn that specific repertoire. One commonly used program to slow down recordings for learning by ear is the Amazing Slow Downer (ronimusic.com).

Sitting out tunes you're not ready for, and playing quietly, goes double for rhythm instruments and bodhrans. A lot of sessions have had bad experiences in the past of these instruments being played loudly and/or poorly, thereby wrecking the fun for everyone else. Playing chords in trad can be more difficult than jams involving other music genres because there are lots of keys (including modes) and often rapid chord changes. Fairly or not, players of these instruments may be considered guilty until proven innocent, so it's a great idea to err even more on the side of caution to make sure that you will be welcomed back.

MOST IMPORTANT

Be nice, relax, and have fun. Thank everyone for letting you sit in and/or record the session. It can also be a great idea to ask for advice from the experienced players on things you can do as a beginner, because they've all been there, and sometimes folks will take you under their wing to help you along.