Banjos, Bodhrans and Session Protocol
By the time you read this, I will be on the west coast of Connemara for a week of sunshine and the craic  - well that's the theory at least.
July in Ireland can be dismal, though, in the West they say 'if you don't like the weather just wait half an hour.'
July in Ireland can be dismal, though, in the West they say 'if you don't like the weather just wait half an hour.'
Whatever the weather, I'm hoping to get in a few sessions and give the banjo a bit of an airing.
I've been working flat out on a couple of books recently so I haven't been able to get down to any of the sessions in Manchester.Ìý Â Clifden, Connemara has a great trad session in Lowry's on a Tuesday night. John G Walsh, one of the West's finest melodeon players is in the chair and any number of people turn up for the music. One night last month there were five banjo players (which probably contravenes the Geneva Convention).
I was one of them I'm afraid. Luckily, we didn't all play at once. The only thing worse would have been a rake of bodhran players.
There's an unwritten protocol to the session which sort of accepts that one bodhran player might be all right; two is iffy and any more is certainly a violation of every tenet of musical taste. I once found myself in a session in a pub in Yorkshire -Ìý which shall be nameless -Ìý where there were four not very good guitarists, five bodhran players and one fiddler who did her best to keep the tune going in the midst of a barrage of thrashed chords and goatskin being battered.
As somebody once said of a bodhran player 'you're a disgrace to the goat that died to give you his skin.'
There are great bodhran players, but they are far outnumbered by people who think all you do with the thing is give it a good hammering. Listen to or and you will hear true masters at work  then go to one or two of the festival sessions that abound and lament for the goats that died in vain.
I think it was , the great Irish piper and music collector, who said that the best way to play a bodhran is with a penknife. Not strictly true, but there are times when I feel that there ought to be a cull ofÌý bodhran players  as well as politicians, lawyers and hedge fund managers.
A hedge fund manager who plays the bodhran - now there's a terrible thought.
I've been working flat out on a couple of books recently so I haven't been able to get down to any of the sessions in Manchester.Ìý Â Clifden, Connemara has a great trad session in Lowry's on a Tuesday night. John G Walsh, one of the West's finest melodeon players is in the chair and any number of people turn up for the music. One night last month there were five banjo players (which probably contravenes the Geneva Convention).
I was one of them I'm afraid. Luckily, we didn't all play at once. The only thing worse would have been a rake of bodhran players.
There's an unwritten protocol to the session which sort of accepts that one bodhran player might be all right; two is iffy and any more is certainly a violation of every tenet of musical taste. I once found myself in a session in a pub in Yorkshire -Ìý which shall be nameless -Ìý where there were four not very good guitarists, five bodhran players and one fiddler who did her best to keep the tune going in the midst of a barrage of thrashed chords and goatskin being battered.
As somebody once said of a bodhran player 'you're a disgrace to the goat that died to give you his skin.'
There are great bodhran players, but they are far outnumbered by people who think all you do with the thing is give it a good hammering. Listen to or and you will hear true masters at work  then go to one or two of the festival sessions that abound and lament for the goats that died in vain.
I think it was , the great Irish piper and music collector, who said that the best way to play a bodhran is with a penknife. Not strictly true, but there are times when I feel that there ought to be a cull ofÌý bodhran players  as well as politicians, lawyers and hedge fund managers.
A hedge fund manager who plays the bodhran - now there's a terrible thought.
Comment number 1.
At 16th Jul 2009, Fooldude wrote:Although a goatwhacker of many years' standing (we can never get a seat) I do have to agree, but only to an extent. As a regular session player though, it seems to me there are more decent players out there now since the likes of Jonjo have demonstrated that it's not all about buying the biggest tipper and beating the life out of the beast.
But as you can always tell a banjo player..........but, you can't tell him much, I'm not sure you'll agree :)
Complain about this comment (Comment number 1)
Comment number 2.
At 23rd Jul 2009, TomvanderMeer wrote:Unlike unions, no one cries when you cut a bohr... budr... borron... big Irish drum with a penknife!
Complain about this comment (Comment number 2)