Q1. I'm in a slow session group that uses the raising of the leg to signal time to end a tune/set at the end of current round. Got any other politically correct observations/comments on signalling?
Q2. Is there a "rule/protocol" re: how sets are to be played..... groups of 3 tunes, AA,BB of each tune in order, or can one have say 2 tunes and mix up the A,B combinations?
I've read enough of the other discussions to know this could quickly turn into a banter on other interpretations of the term signal, so just hoping to keep things short and sweet. I wish I had to time to read each and every comment but........
You probably don't want to mess with the A and B parts. Unless the specific tune has a different arrangement of parts that is the standard way to play it, I would stick to the AA BB (CC DD....).
As for the number of tunes, it's up to you to decide how many you want to string together, based on the tunes you're playing. Two or three usually works great, but you might string together 5, 6, 7 if you feel inspired, or if you have a big multipart tune, like "Kid on the Mountain", that might be a whole set in itself. It's your call.
I think you'll find that a lot of sessions will use much more subtle cues, especially where people are used to playing with each other. A small amount of eye contact, the raising of an eyebrow, a slight nod, or a slight change in position of the instrument is all that is needed to signal things like tune changes and the end of the set. And often, there is no end of set signal, other than maybe the way the person who started the set phrases the last phrase.
I personally dislike the raised leg thing. If you're paying enough attention listening, you shouldn't need it. I was under the impression that the practice came out of old timey playing, and I don't see it used that much in Irish sessions, although, you run into it on occasion.
But there's all sorts of non-verbal communication that can go on, including the extended glance with the raised eyebrow, which is used to ask another person if they have something they want to play next. And the blank stare at the floor, which means I'm going around again, so don't bother changing
Generally, at the sessions in which I play at on a regular basis, we'll play a tune 3-5 times, and each tune is played the way it was composed, as far as A and B parts, etc. (Except when it's not, of course...) We tend to have a few "session sets", where we play the same tunes in the set. But I often mix it up too, lest we get to reliant upon a particular set.
As for the raising of the leg (I'm guilty). I don't know the start of this. I don't like saying hup or out as it interrupts the tune ( I play flute). Below is out of the sample of Paddy O'Brien's tune collection:
17. The Doon Reel
This is another tune seldom included in sessions. I first heard it played in Lee’s Bar in Geashill, Co. Offaly around 1965. Dan Cleary and Sergeant John Rice played it together on their fiddles. I remember Sergeant Rice poking his right foot outwards as he neared the end of the tune. This was his humorous way of indicating that it was time to put the brakes on.
A lot of people shout the key of the next tune they are going to play. Not me, because as soon as I shout a key, I trainwreck whatever I'm playing. I normally just look up at fellow sessioneers in a slightly panicked way, thinking at them, "I'm gonna switch tunes into I don't even know what....here goes..."
My teacher runs a session where eye contact just before the transition is the signal of choice. The problem is, there seems to be no way (short of speaking, which I can't for the life of me do while I'm playing) to communicate "no, don't change yet, we've only played this tune twice, not three times", which is often the case. As soon as eye contact is made, he switches, and we all follow - tune count be damned. So I usually try to keep my head down at the end of the second round of the tune, just to avoid going to the next tune prematurely. But once I tried that, and I think my teacher assumed that the reason I wasn't looking up was that *I* hadn't been counting properly, so he just looked around until he found another player who met his eye, and we switched anyway. So the signal seems to be that as soon as he looks up, we switch, period.
My answers: lifting the leg just seems a bit peremptory to me. It assumes that the other players aren't listening, but are watching. instead. Rude, I think. The guttural grunt that people seem to use is a little better, maybe - it's at least a signal in the right channel, but I'd think you'd only want to use it when you're changing abruptly, perhaps for some transitional effect that prevents a more normal musical signalling of an upcoming change. If the transition is in some way unexpected - perhaps an odd change of key, or a weird tune, or something - then the grunt might be useful, as a warning.
As for repeats, don't get into the habit of odd repeats, mixing parts of tunes, that sort of thing, especially with beginners. They start playing it that way, then they go to a session and they wonder why nobody wants to play with them, and everybody else wonders what the hell they're going to do next.
Likewise, it's probably good to avoid stereotyped sets, or at least to make a habit of breaking them up. If you only know a few tunes, it's a real drag if you have to say "yes, I know that, but only in this set". If you have a set of reels that you always play together, you should look for opportunities to play them in other sets once in a while - with fair warning, since you're playing with beginners - to prevent the ossification of the sets.
(reviewing your post, I see I've made an assumption, perhaps unwarranted, that you're playing with beginners. Apologies if this is not the case, but the advice still seems to make sense)
Most folk I know shout key changes with a little code that seems to have developed to replace the often easily misunderstood key names, most of which are too rude to type here.
A look is usually all thats needed to signal the end and if it's to be repeated again then; "again" usually dose the trick.
In Scotland timing changes are common place in scots trad sets, march/strathspey/reel or hornpipe/jig etc, a look is usually all thats required.
Melody players who give out lots of information are IMO great people, even if the info supplied is a bum steer as is often the case. Half the fun is not knowing what's about to happen next.
Lifting of the leg seems like a lot of effort to me but then I personally am pi$$ poor at communicating changes. Listening is king though.
>Often people shout "hup!" as the signal. But >sometimes "hup" just means "hup" - like "go baby go!"
Hup pretty much indicates a change in this neck of the woods, although it is only occasionally used.
I sometimes use "hup" when I'm changing, but usually only if i'm going to change early (after once or twcie through). And then usually to try to get more poepl involved if no-one is playing along, particualraly if it is the second tune in succession that has come out as a solo.
Great fun though to shout hup during someone else's set as you ehad to the bar though. Best done only to your mates
I usually indicate that a set has ended by dropping my plectrum and muttering feck it.
Chris, don't you often try to communicate a change by attempting to say the name of the next tune but doing it in a way that causes whoever is playing next to you to be like, "What??"
Good input. Thanks everyone! Much appreciated. To answer Jon Kiparsky....... we're not really beginners but not up to full session speed either. Some of us are seasoned Appalacian folk musicians and others competent musicians but new to the Celtic genre. We sometimes have guest musicians show up to add to the fray..... had a drummer (not bodhran, but still nice to have more tempo), and a very talented harpist last night..... oh what a treat that was! Everyone's open to sharing what they know, introducing new tunes, giving each other pointers. Good stuff. We're getting better at coordinating ourselves, but there's always room for improvement. Your tips will help tremendously. Thank you!
Two parts - three times through, more than two parts - twice through. Well, that's our usual rule. Some people can say the next key or name, but body language usually suffices. Or listening of course.
three part jigs and reels usually twice, but monsters like the frieze britches probably twice unless the feeling is otherwise
single reels 4 times.
if no-one joins in I'll only play twice, although I can be fooled into thinking someone has just remembered how a tune goes and keep going for longer when they're really only trying to pikc it up. If the next tune has no other takers I'll usually just play it once.
Speaking of signals and raising a foot, maybe what is needed is a flashing neon sign which can be operated by a foot pedal. Whenever you get to the last time through a tune, someone can push the foot pedal so the sign starts flashing "LAST TIME" for a few seconds to get everybody's attention.
I always understood the foot-lifting came from bands, where the leader had too much else to do to speak, but could manage to lift a leg.
Certainly they use it in the Carolina Chocolate-Drops, which might indicate a link with old-timey.
I admit, I am pretty rubbish at communicating changes. It doesn't help that I have the terrible habit in sessions I am relaxed at of not counting how many times I play a tune through, so expecting a change after 3 times is dodgy, as I might play it 2, 4, or 5 times.
None of us can count, so we use the "hup" along with the eye and eyebrow thing. We have designated "hup-pers" -- one who plays fiddle/guitar, one who plays fiddle/banjo and if they're not around, I'll do it since i play mandolin. If one of the flute players wants a shorter or longer round, they'll give the designated 'hup-per' an eye sign. We also play the tunes as is -- AABB, say -- to avoid train wrecks, mostly.
We try to play tunes AABB. Doesn't always work. One good friend of mine has earned the nickname "Captain B Part" because he frequently adds extra B parts, or plays the wrong one.
in the poorly lit arena of the Glasgow pub, the everage eyebrow isn't always enough to catch the eye of the fellow sessioners.
That is why I always take new arrivals aside and give them a pair of false bushy eyebrows to attach to themselves. I find that with a liberal blob of superglue the eyebrows can stay attached for months at a time.
One of our more inventive regulars recently had the idea of taking one of the spare eyebrows and attaching it to a short stick or baton which he places on the table in front of him. Whenever he is about to change tune he will hold a long note with one hand and casually, raise the eyebrow-cane with the off hand. This has become known as "Playing the Hairy Joker".
Whilst effective, this latter method is frowned upon by our more traditional regulars.
When I have had enought, my favorite signal is to stop playing in the last bar and reach for my pint - that is an open invitation for at least one other person to start another tune (hopefully more than one person, just for a bit of chaos).
To be honest, any decent leader should be able to change the tune slightly so everyone knows either its the end, or something else is going to happen so listen up.
I've been coaxing along a new strummer recently, so instead of eye contact or hup I call out the key of the next tune.
However, I realized this isn't going to work. "D!" I'd say. "G?" he'd say. Sigh.
So, we ended up using acronyms:
"Green!"
"Delta!"
"Echo Minor!"
"Alpha Minor!"
...and in those wonderful yet all too rare cases:
"Bravo Minor!"
Of course, we have those sets that we do all the time, and he knows those. It's when I freelance and improv sets on the fly I jabber some code to him while giving everyone else 'the nod'.
James Byrne had the best way of signalling I've ever seen. when he was about to change tune he'd raise his fiddle slightly, look up and make a big rounded left to right movement so that everyone would catch his eye. No need for any shouting or anything like that. No shouting of keys either.
Leg-raising is commonplace in the Seattle area, where I got my start in ITM. I got a reaming from a prominent American fiddler, who will remain anonymous, on deploying my leg in a session with him - he testily told me that such behavior is seen as insulting in Ireland.
I like that Byrne method Mr. Hippo, and I use that quite frequently myself when I'm not tutoring any 'new-to-the-music' strummers on any improvised sets.
On 'those' sets, the 'usual' ones, that's all it takes, just a little reminder, or even improved sets with an experienced backer, or in any regular situation, really.
Will Morgan, ah yes, I understand (I think). Evidently it must be something like the quantum entanglement beloved of modern physicists.
Just a thought or two about why the stuck-out leg could be seen as an insult in some cultures:
indicates a potential kick (and a couple of years ago in a session in Ireland I witnessed an irate session leader kick a bodhran out of its owner's hands and order said owner to leave)
one could trip over it and spill one's beer
the displayed sole of the shoe could have unattractive material embedded in it
there have been certain ladies who, on sitting down in a pub, would position their feet so that a potentially interested gentleman could read a telephone number or address written on the sole of the lady's shoe
Then there is the Edinburgh method: Yelling "A*se, D*ck, C*nt and other such words corresponding to keys. Because sometimes in a loud session you can't hear whether someone is saying A or E and in some accents they sound kinda similar.
One guy I played with had a story about how he fell out with another musician at a gig because the second muso had not been appraised of this method of signalling key changes. So when the first muso started yelling, "A*se, d*ck!" at him, he got really offended.
Signals and sets
Signals and sets
Q1. I'm in a slow session group that uses the raising of the leg to signal time to end a tune/set at the end of current round. Got any other politically correct observations/comments on signalling?
Q2. Is there a "rule/protocol" re: how sets are to be played..... groups of 3 tunes, AA,BB of each tune in order, or can one have say 2 tunes and mix up the A,B combinations?
# Posted on June 16th 2009 by CW
Re: Signals and sets
I'd like to know what the politically incorrect signals are?
# Posted on June 16th 2009 by Mike Floorstand
Re: Signals and sets
I've read enough of the other discussions to know this could quickly turn into a banter on other interpretations of the term signal, so just hoping to keep things short and sweet. I wish I had to time to read each and every comment but........
# Posted on June 16th 2009 by CW
Re: Signals and sets
You probably don't want to mess with the A and B parts. Unless the specific tune has a different arrangement of parts that is the standard way to play it, I would stick to the AA BB (CC DD....).
As for the number of tunes, it's up to you to decide how many you want to string together, based on the tunes you're playing. Two or three usually works great, but you might string together 5, 6, 7 if you feel inspired, or if you have a big multipart tune, like "Kid on the Mountain", that might be a whole set in itself. It's your call.
# Posted on June 16th 2009 by jasonb
Re: Signals and sets
I think you'll find that a lot of sessions will use much more subtle cues, especially where people are used to playing with each other. A small amount of eye contact, the raising of an eyebrow, a slight nod, or a slight change in position of the instrument is all that is needed to signal things like tune changes and the end of the set. And often, there is no end of set signal, other than maybe the way the person who started the set phrases the last phrase.
I personally dislike the raised leg thing. If you're paying enough attention listening, you shouldn't need it. I was under the impression that the practice came out of old timey playing, and I don't see it used that much in Irish sessions, although, you run into it on occasion.
But there's all sorts of non-verbal communication that can go on, including the extended glance with the raised eyebrow, which is used to ask another person if they have something they want to play next. And the blank stare at the floor, which means I'm going around again, so don't bother changing
Generally, at the sessions in which I play at on a regular basis, we'll play a tune 3-5 times, and each tune is played the way it was composed, as far as A and B parts, etc. (Except when it's not, of course...) We tend to have a few "session sets", where we play the same tunes in the set. But I often mix it up too, lest we get to reliant upon a particular set.
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by Reverend
Re: Signals and sets
raising both legs would be politically incorrect.
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by mcknowall
Re: Signals and sets
I too would want to know what politically incorrect signals would be.
Maybe if someone shouted "Vote BNP!" or summat
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by D.J.F.
Re: Signals and sets
Often people shout "hup!" as the signal. But sometimes "hup" just means "hup" - like "go baby go!"
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by Hup
Re: Signals and sets
As for the raising of the leg (I'm guilty). I don't know the start of this. I don't like saying hup or out as it interrupts the tune ( I play flute). Below is out of the sample of Paddy O'Brien's tune collection:
http://www.chulrua.com/pobsamp.html
17. The Doon Reel
This is another tune seldom included in sessions. I first heard it played in Lee’s Bar in Geashill, Co. Offaly around 1965. Dan Cleary and Sergeant John Rice played it together on their fiddles. I remember Sergeant Rice poking his right foot outwards as he neared the end of the tune. This was his humorous way of indicating that it was time to put the brakes on.
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by madfluter
Re: Signals and sets
A lot of people shout the key of the next tune they are going to play. Not me, because as soon as I shout a key, I trainwreck whatever I'm playing. I normally just look up at fellow sessioneers in a slightly panicked way, thinking at them, "I'm gonna switch tunes into I don't even know what....here goes..."
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by DrSilverSpear
Re: Signals and sets
My teacher runs a session where eye contact just before the transition is the signal of choice. The problem is, there seems to be no way (short of speaking, which I can't for the life of me do while I'm playing) to communicate "no, don't change yet, we've only played this tune twice, not three times", which is often the case. As soon as eye contact is made, he switches, and we all follow - tune count be damned. So I usually try to keep my head down at the end of the second round of the tune, just to avoid going to the next tune prematurely. But once I tried that, and I think my teacher assumed that the reason I wasn't looking up was that *I* hadn't been counting properly, so he just looked around until he found another player who met his eye, and we switched anyway. So the signal seems to be that as soon as he looks up, we switch, period.
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by Tall, Dark, and Mysterious
Re: Signals and sets
My answers: lifting the leg just seems a bit peremptory to me. It assumes that the other players aren't listening, but are watching. instead. Rude, I think. The guttural grunt that people seem to use is a little better, maybe - it's at least a signal in the right channel, but I'd think you'd only want to use it when you're changing abruptly, perhaps for some transitional effect that prevents a more normal musical signalling of an upcoming change. If the transition is in some way unexpected - perhaps an odd change of key, or a weird tune, or something - then the grunt might be useful, as a warning.
As for repeats, don't get into the habit of odd repeats, mixing parts of tunes, that sort of thing, especially with beginners. They start playing it that way, then they go to a session and they wonder why nobody wants to play with them, and everybody else wonders what the hell they're going to do next.
Likewise, it's probably good to avoid stereotyped sets, or at least to make a habit of breaking them up. If you only know a few tunes, it's a real drag if you have to say "yes, I know that, but only in this set". If you have a set of reels that you always play together, you should look for opportunities to play them in other sets once in a while - with fair warning, since you're playing with beginners - to prevent the ossification of the sets.
(reviewing your post, I see I've made an assumption, perhaps unwarranted, that you're playing with beginners. Apologies if this is not the case, but the advice still seems to make sense)
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by Jon Kiparsky
Re: Signals and sets
Most folk I know shout key changes with a little code that seems to have developed to replace the often easily misunderstood key names, most of which are too rude to type here.
A look is usually all thats needed to signal the end and if it's to be repeated again then; "again" usually dose the trick.
In Scotland timing changes are common place in scots trad sets, march/strathspey/reel or hornpipe/jig etc, a look is usually all thats required.
Melody players who give out lots of information are IMO great people, even if the info supplied is a bum steer as is often the case. Half the fun is not knowing what's about to happen next.
Lifting of the leg seems like a lot of effort to me but then I personally am pi$$ poor at communicating changes. Listening is king though.
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by Solidmahog
Re: Signals and sets
>Often people shout "hup!" as the signal. But >sometimes "hup" just means "hup" - like "go baby go!"
Hup pretty much indicates a change in this neck of the woods, although it is only occasionally used.
I sometimes use "hup" when I'm changing, but usually only if i'm going to change early (after once or twcie through). And then usually to try to get more poepl involved if no-one is playing along, particualraly if it is the second tune in succession that has come out as a solo.
Great fun though to shout hup during someone else's set as you ehad to the bar though. Best done only to your mates
I usually indicate that a set has ended by dropping my plectrum and muttering feck it.
- chris
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by ramblingpitchfork
Re: Signals and sets
I just make eye contact and play a wee bit louder (fiddle, so, ya I can) and everyone seems to get it.
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by Farr
Re: Signals and sets
Chris, don't you often try to communicate a change by attempting to say the name of the next tune but doing it in a way that causes whoever is playing next to you to be like, "What??"
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by DrSilverSpear
Re: Signals and sets
Good input. Thanks everyone! Much appreciated. To answer Jon Kiparsky....... we're not really beginners but not up to full session speed either. Some of us are seasoned Appalacian folk musicians and others competent musicians but new to the Celtic genre. We sometimes have guest musicians show up to add to the fray..... had a drummer (not bodhran, but still nice to have more tempo), and a very talented harpist last night..... oh what a treat that was! Everyone's open to sharing what they know, introducing new tunes, giving each other pointers. Good stuff. We're getting better at coordinating ourselves, but there's always room for improvement. Your tips will help tremendously. Thank you!
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by CW
Re: Signals and sets
Yes, I do, do that SilverSpear,.
But then that is not much different from any other converation that I have
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by ramblingpitchfork
Re: Signals and sets
Two parts - three times through, more than two parts - twice through. Well, that's our usual rule. Some people can say the next key or name, but body language usually suffices. Or listening of course.
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by minijackpot
Re: Signals and sets
hornpipes usually just the twice.
three part jigs and reels usually twice, but monsters like the frieze britches probably twice unless the feeling is otherwise
single reels 4 times.
if no-one joins in I'll only play twice, although I can be fooled into thinking someone has just remembered how a tune goes and keep going for longer when they're really only trying to pikc it up. If the next tune has no other takers I'll usually just play it once.
usually...
- chris
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by ramblingpitchfork
Re: Signals and sets
oops: three part jigs and reels usually three times, but monsters...
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by ramblingpitchfork
Re: Signals and sets
Speaking of signals and raising a foot, maybe what is needed is a flashing neon sign which can be operated by a foot pedal. Whenever you get to the last time through a tune, someone can push the foot pedal so the sign starts flashing "LAST TIME" for a few seconds to get everybody's attention.
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by fauxcelt
Re: Signals and sets
I'm sure Jim & Fred could add something like that to their great invention here for listening-challenged backers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bexIdm0awwo
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: Signals and sets
I always understood the foot-lifting came from bands, where the leader had too much else to do to speak, but could manage to lift a leg.
Certainly they use it in the Carolina Chocolate-Drops, which might indicate a link with old-timey.
# Posted on June 17th 2009 by Guernsey Pete
Re: Signals and sets
I like the quick glance or raised eyebrow. Never liked the raised leg thing.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by jwvansteenwyk
Re: Signals and sets
I admit, I am pretty rubbish at communicating changes. It doesn't help that I have the terrible habit in sessions I am relaxed at of not counting how many times I play a tune through, so expecting a change after 3 times is dodgy, as I might play it 2, 4, or 5 times.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by DrSilverSpear
Re: Signals and sets
None of us can count, so we use the "hup" along with the eye and eyebrow thing. We have designated "hup-pers" -- one who plays fiddle/guitar, one who plays fiddle/banjo and if they're not around, I'll do it since i play mandolin. If one of the flute players wants a shorter or longer round, they'll give the designated 'hup-per' an eye sign. We also play the tunes as is -- AABB, say -- to avoid train wrecks, mostly.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by Mandogal
Re: Signals and sets
We try to play tunes AABB. Doesn't always work. One good friend of mine has earned the nickname "Captain B Part" because he frequently adds extra B parts, or plays the wrong one.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by DrSilverSpear
Re: Signals and sets
in the poorly lit arena of the Glasgow pub, the everage eyebrow isn't always enough to catch the eye of the fellow sessioners.
That is why I always take new arrivals aside and give them a pair of false bushy eyebrows to attach to themselves. I find that with a liberal blob of superglue the eyebrows can stay attached for months at a time.
One of our more inventive regulars recently had the idea of taking one of the spare eyebrows and attaching it to a short stick or baton which he places on the table in front of him. Whenever he is about to change tune he will hold a long note with one hand and casually, raise the eyebrow-cane with the off hand. This has become known as "Playing the Hairy Joker".
Whilst effective, this latter method is frowned upon by our more traditional regulars.
- chris
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by ramblingpitchfork
Re: Signals and sets
Fiddler: D Minor!
Box Player: Eh?
Result - off we go in two separate keys.
When I have had enought, my favorite signal is to stop playing in the last bar and reach for my pint - that is an open invitation for at least one other person to start another tune (hopefully more than one person, just for a bit of chaos).
To be honest, any decent leader should be able to change the tune slightly so everyone knows either its the end, or something else is going to happen so listen up.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by geoffwright
Re: Signals and sets
I've been coaxing along a new strummer recently, so instead of eye contact or hup I call out the key of the next tune.
However, I realized this isn't going to work. "D!" I'd say. "G?" he'd say. Sigh.
So, we ended up using acronyms:
"Green!"
"Delta!"
"Echo Minor!"
"Alpha Minor!"
...and in those wonderful yet all too rare cases:
"Bravo Minor!"
Of course, we have those sets that we do all the time, and he knows those. It's when I freelance and improv sets on the fly I jabber some code to him while giving everyone else 'the nod'.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: Signals and sets
James Byrne had the best way of signalling I've ever seen. when he was about to change tune he'd raise his fiddle slightly, look up and make a big rounded left to right movement so that everyone would catch his eye. No need for any shouting or anything like that. No shouting of keys either.
If you were backing you just had to anticipate.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by The Tune Composer
Re: Signals and sets
Leg-raising is commonplace in the Seattle area, where I got my start in ITM. I got a reaming from a prominent American fiddler, who will remain anonymous, on deploying my leg in a session with him - he testily told me that such behavior is seen as insulting in Ireland.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by will morgan
Re: Signals and sets
But you weren't in Ireland, were you? So how could they possibly be insulted?
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by Trevor Jennings
Re: Signals and sets
The entire island was insulted anyway, they just knew!
Not the people mind you, the island itself was insulted.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: Signals and sets
I like that Byrne method Mr. Hippo, and I use that quite frequently myself when I'm not tutoring any 'new-to-the-music' strummers on any improvised sets.
On 'those' sets, the 'usual' ones, that's all it takes, just a little reminder, or even improved sets with an experienced backer, or in any regular situation, really.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: Signals and sets
"But you weren't in Ireland, were you? So how could they possibly be insulted?"
I was in Santa Fe, New Mexico, bastion of ITM.
# Posted on June 18th 2009 by will morgan
Re: Signals and sets
Will Morgan, ah yes, I understand (I think). Evidently it must be something like the quantum entanglement beloved of modern physicists.
Just a thought or two about why the stuck-out leg could be seen as an insult in some cultures:
indicates a potential kick (and a couple of years ago in a session in Ireland I witnessed an irate session leader kick a bodhran out of its owner's hands and order said owner to leave)
one could trip over it and spill one's beer
the displayed sole of the shoe could have unattractive material embedded in it
there have been certain ladies who, on sitting down in a pub, would position their feet so that a potentially interested gentleman could read a telephone number or address written on the sole of the lady's shoe
# Posted on June 19th 2009 by Trevor Jennings
Re: Signals and sets
I tried the Byrne method once: a big rounded left to right movemnt of the banjo. Everyone covered in beer...
# Posted on June 19th 2009 by ramblingpitchfork
Re: Signals and sets
That Byrne method sounds like a waste of good beer.
# Posted on June 19th 2009 by fauxcelt
Re: Signals and sets
Then there is the Edinburgh method: Yelling "A*se, D*ck, C*nt and other such words corresponding to keys. Because sometimes in a loud session you can't hear whether someone is saying A or E and in some accents they sound kinda similar.
One guy I played with had a story about how he fell out with another musician at a gig because the second muso had not been appraised of this method of signalling key changes. So when the first muso started yelling, "A*se, d*ck!" at him, he got really offended.
# Posted on June 19th 2009 by DrSilverSpear
Re: Signals and sets
The very first posting I ever did on this website, way back in 1975 was a response to, "Signals and sets".
I related the Edinburgh standard and got immediately barred.
# Posted on June 19th 2009 by llig leahcim
Re: Signals and sets
1975 eh?
I don't remember you contributing way back then.
# Posted on June 19th 2009 by AlBrown