eiluned’s two hundred and seventy-six comments

Trying to find the G major tune which often follows this in sessions. It is a lovely scrunchy join and I can play and know both, but cannot for the life of me remember the name of the second tune. more…

Another vote for Last Night’s Fun. I think there is such a lot about playing in sessions that cannot really be expressed except by someone with a bit of poetry and storytelling. more…

I find that if a tune has a big range and I cannot therefore easily sing it, it is far more difficult to memorise it accurately. more…

Great tune! love it. more…

My Glaswegian dad used to play this on the piano way back when I was a child (I’m 64). He called it The Weary Maid. I’ve heard it since, but never before as a strathspey. People in sessions call it Cutting Bracken. more…

I was 8 in 1963, when we first got a TV and there was a drama series called the Dark Island with it as a signature tune. Very early, but accurate memory - albeit in black and white. more…

Is this usually swung? more…

Thanks Ben, it’s an interesting discussion. more…

David50 playing for a dance is a different matter! Even so, if the players are not watching the feet and bodies of the dancers, because they have their head in a book of tunes, there will be no empathy or flexibility to lift the dance. more…

Whatever people’s opinions on learning or playing from dots, I would suggest that traditional music of any sort has to have an element of bonhomie and humour in a session. more…