There’s a new Irish-style pub in my town, and I’d like to try to convince them to allow a session.
They already have live Irish music one night a week, but I like to show them some evidence that allowing customers to hold a session there would also be a good thing to do, for business, for the community, etc. Any articles or such I could print and show to help sway the management?
Thanks,
ApK
I don’t have any articles, or anything. But my recommendation would just be to get to know the pub management well enough by being a good customer. Let them know that you play Irish music, explain to them what an Irish session is, and suggest that they try it one night.
You can probably tell in the first night whether it will work there or not. Some pubs use an Irish theme as a gimmick, and are really catering to a crowd that won’t appreciate the music. And if you don’t have a strong core of players that are willing to commit, then you might have problems too. There are a million things that can make a pub not want to have a session. But if you find the right spark in that first time, you might have a great location for a regular session.
I can also give you anecdotal evidence of sessions being a very positive thing for a pub. There is a session near where I live, in which they have regular punters that come just for the music. It has done well enough over the years that the pub even contributed money for the session to do a CD recording, so that they can sell it, and use the proceeds to send the session players to workshops and concerts. And I run a session in a local pub (not even Irish themed) that is up and down on various nights, but has certainly showed an average increase in business on the nights when we’re there. We have probably 15-20 regulars that might show up on any given night to hear us play, and they always buy food and drinks. And even though we’ve done the session regularly for years, they still have customers that are pleasantly surprised to find live music being played there. (To be fair, we probably drive some customers away too, though).
As a counterpoint to that, though, I had a session in another town that struggled for years to find a home. We went through about 8 different venues in 2 years, including all the Irish-themed places in town, and never found the right fit. It was some of the best musicians around, too. We finally gave up. Although, there’s now a session there in a new Irish pub, which seems to be working out OK.
But you really can’t force it to happen. Either it will happen or it won’t…
It’s not just that people come for the session, but people that drop in for one end up staying longer than they would otherwise.
What about just going in on a quiet night with some friends and asking if you could play some tunes in a quiet corner, if such a thing exists?
Then see what the reaction is from publican and/or punters and take it from there.
But being a genuine customer as reverend says is the best way to the management’s heart
We think of our publican and wait staff as close friends and treat them accordingly. Everyone’s on a first-name basis, we bring in treats and cards on holidays, players have brought art for the walls when returning from Ireland, etc.
We also tip the willowy tapstresses well every night. Making sure the staff benefits from the session is sure to trickle back to the owner, and everyone’s happy.
Out of interest exactly where are you ApK?
If there is a suitable evening or weekend afternoon that tends to be quiet for the pub, offer to run the session at that time. Then the pub can’t lose. Try and find out who the owner and bar manager are, and then if possible try and find who makes the decisions about this sort of thing.
Good luck
I think Teach Ceol is a new development in Ireland for venues for sessions (and set dancing, etc, I guess), as an alternative to the pubs. Seems to be working well. A lot of people there who play the music don’t want to go to pubs anymore, so there seems to be a whole thriving scene away from them.
Pubs seem to be perenially problemmatic - they operate on a profit motive, so see the music and musicians as a means to that end. On the other hand, many musicians seem to want the pub to pay them to facilitate the session, but the pub doesn’t want to pay them, so you end up with this money dynamic happening, which can be a strain on the relationship, and all-round a bit of a pain.
Good luck making it happen. There are alternative ideas though, well worth exploring, and if you really need to, you can bring your own Guinness!
Get a bunch of you together, turn up on a Sunday afternoon (or whenever you are hoping to start a session, but the busier the better). Buy a round of drinks and start playing - the management will soon understand why having a session is such a good idea.
“explain to them what an Irish session is”
I know the ‘session’ as we know it is not as old a tradition in Ireland as some like to believe and all that, but are they doing running an ‘Irish’ pub if they don’t know what a session is?
ApK - You might have no trouble talking these people round, but don’t assume because it’s an ‘Irish’ pub that it will necessarily be the best venue for a session - such places can often be the favourite haunts of young, rowdy beer-swilling students, whose respect for musicians and everyone else vanishes after the first two pints. I don’t know where you live and what sort of drinking establishments abound in the area, but you might find that other pubs, without necessarily the ‘Irish’ tag, could be more amenable to the idea, with more appreciative clientelle.
I hope my comments don’t come across as too discouraging. I wish you the best of luck in starting up a session.
I have to agree with ragaman, oftentimes “Irish” pubs are the hardest to convince, they are often comercialised and part of a chain. Neighbourhood pubs, no matter what national theme, are usually my favourite. I have had some success with starting sessions in pubs but many more failures. Once, I had a wonderful session set up and was interrupted mid set by some emo-pseudo punk band claiming that they were next at the open mic, needless to say, we never returned to that pub. I find that it’s best not to get discouraged, ask, be nice and see how it goes, if it doesn’t work out, move on to the next pub. Best of luck.
It so easy to explain these to publicans now, even in the States or outside of Ireland.
Just print this sucker off and be like “Hey, howza ’bout I run one of these here fer ya?”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_traditional_music_session
Lots of good thoughts, thanks!
For the record, I’m in NJ, USA, not far from this place:
http://www.theshannonrose.com/shannonroseclifton.html
My thinking in pitching the idea to this Irish-style pub (and yes, I did have to explain to the manager what a session was) is that 1) they already have a license for live music…that’s a show stopper for many small potential venues in my area, and 2) as an Irish theme pub they might be more easily convinced that they NEED a session to lend authenticity, while to another neighborhood bar, it might be seen as really just a bunch of customers being loud….
I’m not actually much of pub-goer myself, so organically growing a session out of the actual regular patrons of a place will have to be left to others. I just think having more outlets for recreational music-making is good for the community, so I’m trying to instigate. I SHOULD probably spend more time there, though, to see if it’s even viable, should they want to.
ApK
I’ve seen a good few sessions start, carry on, and finish. So here’s a few suggestions, which should be taken with a small number of grains of salt:
1) Sessions are better at keeping customers in the bar than getting them there. Pick a time that’s towards the end of a busy time for the venue (happy hour, post brunch, etc), if you want the most positive business effect.
2) Be REALLY NICE to the bar staff. The attitude of the bar-staff may be the biggest deciding factor in whether your session lasts. If the bar staff doesn’t like you, the session is doomed. If they like you and your music, you’re good to go.
3) Try to sound good. If your session sounds like a bunch of cats being tortured, it’ll drive customers away. Pubs tend to run on tight margins, so no reasonable publican will put up with you for long if he/she feels you are driving away their business…
All that said, the way to start it up is probably to get a bunch of music-playing friends together and ask the bar if you can play a tune. If it goes over well, (don’t forget to tip generously!) then you’ve got a foot in the door…
As a last note, the bars that try hardest to appear “Irish” tend to not be the best venues for lasting sessions, oddly enough. Places like that tend to not really understand sessions, and often prefer a dude with a guitar and an accent singing drinking songs to a crowd, rather than a bunch of Americans quietly playing jigs and reels for their own enjoyment.
Very good advice by Georgi, I agree with just about all of it. Be sure to keep us updated on your session making process!
I’d second Georgi’s advice about treating the staff right.
My wife works for an outfit that asks the receptionist after every job interview if the candidate was polite to them. If the answer is no, the resume is binned. Treat the staff right in the pub, and you are half way there to achieving a stable session. A smile, some small talk, and remembering their names goes a long way.
At two local sessions, the publicans complain/explain that the staff don’t like the session because the musicians don’t tip. I think you should tip the staff as if you were drinking a lot, even if you are drinking water, or getting the drinks comped or at a discount.
Hugh
Hugh makes a good point(I always like to hear that) about tipping. I was always brought up to tip quite generously and habitually tip beyond my means, sometimes more than the bill. I was playing an impromptu under 5 people session and my fiddling friend tipped 50 bleeding pent at the end of the night, I had to go back and add to my tip to make up for his lack of tact and culture. Needless to say, I had a firm talk with him explaining that if I bring him into an establishment as a friend, his behaviour and sh*te tipping is a reflection of myself. I don’t think he quite understood, he wasn’t socialised well as a child.