We hold a weekly evening session in a pub (in England).
The pub is licensed to serve alcohol until 11pm; it is quite generous in allowing (in practice) ~30 minutes of "drinking up" time, but insists that the music should stop well before this limit.
When we first started the session, it used to begin around 8:30pm; "early birds" could get in a few quiet (or practice) tunes before rush-hour at sometime after 9pm.
More recently, the pub (which also serves food up until 8:30) has put notices on our tables "Reserved for Musicians from 9pm". This works out at an absolute max. of 2 hours 15 min of "official" playing time, which is simply never enough.
How do your own sessions compare? Bear in mind that for the majority of musicians, this may be the only session they attend during the week.
The main one I go to runs from 5.00 - ish until 7.30 - ish ... there's no
curfew that I know of - but the latest I've seen is 8.15. If it went longer
I'd stay longer - unless my wife vetoes that schedule of course
Sunday: 8pm - 2am or later (Irish, English, French/Breton - weekly)
Sunday: 6pm - 11pm (Irish - weekly)
Monday: 9pm - 12.30am (Irish - weekly)
Tuesday: 8pm - 11pm (French/Breton - monthly)
Wednesday: 8.30pm - 11.30pm (English - monthly)
Wednesday: 8.30pm - 12am (English, Irish - monthly)
Private sessions: one pub lets us play until 2am or 3am, whenever we like really. Another lets us play until around 12am. Great landlords for music.
Good times, good times.
We go 8 to 11 at the two sessions I frequent. Sometimes that's not enough, sometimes it's more than enough, depending on how people are feeling. I miss the 2AM closing - the sessions started at 8 or so, and finished when they were done. That might be by 9:00 on a slow night, or we might end up staying after hours. I think the real drag is the enforced time limit. When you have to stop, it always feels like you're being cut off just when it was getting good, even if you know it was only average and staying that way.
A couple of those sessions are in West London and Berkshire, so not, unfortunately, within staggering distance. In fact, only three of them are within reasonable cycling distance for me. Gives my liver a chance mind you.
Don't know about Etruscan music, but there is a guy from Galicia who's a mean hudy-gurdy player. They've got some mean tunes in Northern Spain I'm tellin' you.
The longest time I've ever played for at a session was just recently in Devon (England) - nearly seven hours. (It was a "survivors" session, at the end of a festival).
The session was already in full swing when I got there, and was still going when I left !
Throughout the session musicians were leaving, but new ones were turning up to replace them. Everyone seemed to have a different repertoire, so very few tunes got played more than once.
The only time that I've ever felt tired from playing.
Surely length is not the most important factor {as I keep telling 'her indoors'} but rather the quality of the music?
i.e. I'd far rather enjoy an absolutely brilliant session for an hour, than sit all day at a festival in a dull, crappy one!
Which reminds me of my favourite session of all time .... a wonderful 12 hour session in Derrygonnelly a few years back, which was in C!
I thought I'd died & gone to heaven.
It included Ciaran Kelly, a brilliant Guitar player by the way, Maurice Bradley on Flat Pipes & Fiddle & Marcas O'Murchu on C Flute, plus myself tagging along for the ride, on Fiddle.
I say 12 hours, but we did stop for 20 minutes to have our dinner!
Regular Pub sessions around here usually last from between 2 to 3 hours, usually.
We start just after 9.00pm once the customary pleasantries have been exchanged. Then batter in virtually non-stop till midnight and often beyond. Occasionally into the wee small hours. The earliest we have finished is probably about 11.45. The latest must be.....erm...2.00am? ...3.00am? Not sure.....
By that time it is usually just singing plus just the odd set of tunes.
Depends on when the last musician wanders away. I'll be there until they do! We get started on Sundays at 3 or so. Last week I packed up at around 10, sometimes it's 7 or 8, sometimes it's 11.
My two both seem to be stabilizing at about 2 - 2&1/4 hours. SO and I used to get a bit anxious, but we now know no-one else will turn up before 9 much, and all us old farts like our bedtime, and not to be hanging about till the small hours waiting for the first overnight bus.
Our regular weekly goes from around 7pm to whenever, usually 11pm or a bit longer with a bit of a break by the hungry ones for food somewhere around 9pm. One we travel to (much too seldom now) begins at 7:30pm and goes until we eat around 10:30pm. Closed sessions that we attend go from 2 hours to 5 hours depending on the pub - after we've had our meal. We don't play any regular sessions without being fed at some point. Oink, Oink...
WRT sessions, though, 2 hours of intense, heads-down, tunes tunes tunes punctuated with a smoke/pints/song break or two is my preference and gravitate towards sessions with that sort of intensity. I dislike the circle of death format for the very simple reason that is painfully boring.
Thanks for all your responses so far, and for keeping the board clean; look out for my spin-off discussions "How long can you keep it up for?" and "Does length really matter?"
How long is yours?
How long is yours?
.. session, that is (in hours & minutes).
We hold a weekly evening session in a pub (in England).
The pub is licensed to serve alcohol until 11pm; it is quite generous in allowing (in practice) ~30 minutes of "drinking up" time, but insists that the music should stop well before this limit.
When we first started the session, it used to begin around 8:30pm; "early birds" could get in a few quiet (or practice) tunes before rush-hour at sometime after 9pm.
More recently, the pub (which also serves food up until 8:30) has put notices on our tables "Reserved for Musicians from 9pm". This works out at an absolute max. of 2 hours 15 min of "official" playing time, which is simply never enough.
How do your own sessions compare? Bear in mind that for the majority of musicians, this may be the only session they attend during the week.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Rick Payman
Re: How long is yours?
The main one I go to runs from 5.00 - ish until 7.30 - ish ... there's no
curfew that I know of - but the latest I've seen is 8.15. If it went longer
I'd stay longer - unless my wife vetoes that schedule of course
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Hup
Re: How long is yours?
Sunday: 8pm - 2am or later (Irish, English, French/Breton - weekly)
Sunday: 6pm - 11pm (Irish - weekly)
Monday: 9pm - 12.30am (Irish - weekly)
Tuesday: 8pm - 11pm (French/Breton - monthly)
Wednesday: 8.30pm - 11.30pm (English - monthly)
Wednesday: 8.30pm - 12am (English, Irish - monthly)
Private sessions: one pub lets us play until 2am or 3am, whenever we like really. Another lets us play until around 12am. Great landlords for music.
Good times, good times.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Dragut Reis
Re: How long is yours?
Thanks for that, Robert (talk about feeling inadequate) ...
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Rick Payman
Re: How long is yours?
We go 8 to 11 at the two sessions I frequent. Sometimes that's not enough, sometimes it's more than enough, depending on how people are feeling. I miss the 2AM closing - the sessions started at 8 or so, and finished when they were done. That might be by 9:00 on a slow night, or we might end up staying after hours. I think the real drag is the enforced time limit. When you have to stop, it always feels like you're being cut off just when it was getting good, even if you know it was only average and staying that way.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Jon Kiparsky
Re: How long is yours?
Wow Robert! I'd expect it though at Oxford - that's probably not the
whole list either, you forgot these -
Etruscan jam: Wed 6.30
Moroccan: Tue 3.15
Sinhalese: Tue: 4.20 etc etc
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Hup
Re: How long is yours?
A couple of those sessions are in West London and Berkshire, so not, unfortunately, within staggering distance. In fact, only three of them are within reasonable cycling distance for me. Gives my liver a chance mind you.
Don't know about Etruscan music, but there is a guy from Galicia who's a mean hudy-gurdy player. They've got some mean tunes in Northern Spain I'm tellin' you.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Dragut Reis
Re: How long is yours?
4-5 hours, occasionally longer.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Whiddler
Re: How long is yours?
Twice a week from around 9pm to midnight sometimes later if we're really enjoying ourselves.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Mac Donn
Re: How long is yours?
The longest time I've ever played for at a session was just recently in Devon (England) - nearly seven hours. (It was a "survivors" session, at the end of a festival).
The session was already in full swing when I got there, and was still going when I left !
Throughout the session musicians were leaving, but new ones were turning up to replace them. Everyone seemed to have a different repertoire, so very few tunes got played more than once.
The only time that I've ever felt tired from playing.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Mix O'Lydian
Re: How long is yours?
The weekly session I normally go to runs for about 3 hours usually. Some of the best ones are the 6 hour ones at festivals and the like - good fun
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by camwebby
Re: How long is yours?
Surely length is not the most important factor {as I keep telling 'her indoors'} but rather the quality of the music?
i.e. I'd far rather enjoy an absolutely brilliant session for an hour, than sit all day at a festival in a dull, crappy one!
Which reminds me of my favourite session of all time .... a wonderful 12 hour session in Derrygonnelly a few years back, which was in C!
I thought I'd died & gone to heaven.
It included Ciaran Kelly, a brilliant Guitar player by the way, Maurice Bradley on Flat Pipes & Fiddle & Marcas O'Murchu on C Flute, plus myself tagging along for the ride, on Fiddle.
I say 12 hours, but we did stop for 20 minutes to have our dinner!
Regular Pub sessions around here usually last from between 2 to 3 hours, usually.
Cheers
Dick
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Ptarmigan
Re: How long is yours?
We start just after 9.00pm once the customary pleasantries have been exchanged. Then batter in virtually non-stop till midnight and often beyond. Occasionally into the wee small hours. The earliest we have finished is probably about 11.45. The latest must be.....erm...2.00am? ...3.00am? Not sure.....
By that time it is usually just singing plus just the odd set of tunes.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Rudall the time
Re: How long is yours?
Depends on when the last musician wanders away. I'll be there until they do! We get started on Sundays at 3 or so. Last week I packed up at around 10, sometimes it's 7 or 8, sometimes it's 11.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by SWFL Fiddler
Re: How long is yours?
My two both seem to be stabilizing at about 2 - 2&1/4 hours. SO and I used to get a bit anxious, but we now know no-one else will turn up before 9 much, and all us old farts like our bedtime, and not to be hanging about till the small hours waiting for the first overnight bus.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Guernsey Pete
Re: How long is yours?
I think I successfully avoided any double entendres in my answer ( Phew ! ) .
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Guernsey Pete
Re: How long is yours?
Our regular weekly goes from around 7pm to whenever, usually 11pm or a bit longer with a bit of a break by the hungry ones for food somewhere around 9pm. One we travel to (much too seldom now) begins at 7:30pm and goes until we eat around 10:30pm. Closed sessions that we attend go from 2 hours to 5 hours depending on the pub - after we've had our meal. We don't play any regular sessions without being fed at some point. Oink, Oink...
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by vonnieestes
Re: How long is yours?
That's a rather personal question!!!
WRT sessions, though, 2 hours of intense, heads-down, tunes tunes tunes punctuated with a smoke/pints/song break or two is my preference and gravitate towards sessions with that sort of intensity. I dislike the circle of death format for the very simple reason that is painfully boring.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Seosamh Ui Sinan
Re: How long is yours?
...that IT is painfully boring. sheesh.
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by Seosamh Ui Sinan
Re: How long is yours?
for me, it depends of who's driving
# Posted on December 11th 2008 by macaileacs
Re: How long is yours?
We usually start around seven P.M. and play for two or three hours.
# Posted on December 14th 2008 by fauxcelt
Re: How long is yours?
Thanks for all your responses so far, and for keeping the board clean; look out for my spin-off discussions "How long can you keep it up for?" and "Does length really matter?"
# Posted on December 14th 2008 by Rick Payman