Melodeon.net Forums

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

News:

Welcome to the new melodeon.net forum

Pages: [1]   Go Down

Author Topic: Sets on The Session  (Read 3479 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

richard.fleming

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 552
Sets on The Session
« on: February 09, 2016, 03:17:47 PM »

The Session website now has a facility for making up sets.
Un fortunately I seem to be having difficulty saving/making up sets in a Midi formula which I would find infinitely more useful than ABC. Jeremy has not yet replied to my query; I wondered if any Mel.net members might know if this can be done..
Logged
Old Paolo Sopranis in C#/D and D/D#

Jack Campin

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 764
    • Jack Campin's Home Page
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #1 on: February 09, 2016, 04:10:27 PM »

Paste them together in ABC and convert the result to Midi.  You should be able to do it in less time than it would take to play the set.
Logged
http://www.campin.me.uk/

I can't figure out how to quit but I will no longer check this group and have deleted all shortcuts to it.

richard.fleming

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 552
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #2 on: February 09, 2016, 05:38:46 PM »

Neither 'paste them together ' nor 'convert them to ABC' make much sense to me. Can you be a bit more specific please? Do you mean do something other than what the Session has in mind for making up sets?
Logged
Old Paolo Sopranis in C#/D and D/D#

Lester

  • MADman
  • Mods and volunteers
  • Hero Member
  • ***
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 9107
  • Hohners'R'me
    • Lester's Melodeon Emporium and Tune-a-Rama
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #3 on: February 09, 2016, 05:58:43 PM »

I've just had a butcher's and it would appear the facility only allows you to create a composite ABC file. You could build the sets in the Session site then copy the ABC it creates and past it into EasyABC which will allow you to export the set as  a midi file.

Chris Ryall

  • "doc 3-row"
  • French Interpreter
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 10171
  • Wirral UK
    • Chris Ryall
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #4 on: February 10, 2016, 09:55:23 AM »

.
  My view that it is more fun to "develop" a tune, explore its nuances, interplay with other musicians rather than always medley, sometimes brutally to something else just as  things get interesting - have been rehearsed here often enough.

I'd see codifying this practice, and then publishing such "on the Web" as truly stultifying. No doubt others will differ, but there it is. 

I'm off to Rhône-Alpes again next week. Last year I started "15 tons" on the Wednesday ….and they were still playing 25 minutes later. I think everyone had a go at a solo or improvisation. It was fulfilling.
Logged
  _       _    _      _ 

Lester

  • MADman
  • Mods and volunteers
  • Hero Member
  • ***
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 9107
  • Hohners'R'me
    • Lester's Melodeon Emporium and Tune-a-Rama
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #5 on: February 10, 2016, 10:05:47 AM »

.
  My view that it is more fun to "develop" a tune, explore its nuances, interplay with other musicians rather than always medley, sometimes brutally to something else just as  things get interesting - have been rehearsed here often enough.

I'd see codifying this practice, and then publishing such "on the Web" as truly stultifying. No doubt others will differ, but there it is. 

I'm off to Rhône-Alpes again next week. Last year I started "15 tons" on the Wednesday ….and they were still playing 25 minutes later. I think everyone had a go at a solo or improvisation. It was fulfilling.

And this helps the OP's interest in their way of doing things in what way?  :(

richard.fleming

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 552
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #6 on: February 10, 2016, 10:52:23 AM »

It's a well established part of the tradition to play sets of tunes. I can't for the life of me see why you can't, if you want to,  "develop" a tune, explore its nuances, interplay with other musicians" when it is in a set as well as when it isn't.
Logged
Old Paolo Sopranis in C#/D and D/D#

Theo

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 13727
  • Hohner Club Too
    • The Box Place
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #7 on: February 10, 2016, 11:06:22 AM »

Do t be too critical Lester.  We all have our pet subjects.  Just don't get me started on glue!
Logged
Theo Gibb - Gateshead UK

Proprietor of The Box Place for melodeon and concertina sales and service.
Follow me on Twitter and Facebook for stock updates.

Anahata

  • This mind intentionally left blank
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 6357
  • Oakwood D/G, C/F Club, 1-rows in C,D,G
    • Treewind Music
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #8 on: February 10, 2016, 12:25:37 PM »

It's a well established part of the tradition to play sets of tunes.
Different conventions in different traditions. In what I've seen at typical Irish music sessions someone might start by playing a couple of reels, twice each, then others will take it in turns to add more reels on the end, until after about 20 minutes they run out of ideas (or arms and fingers start hurting, or they get thirsty, or tired of reels) and they stop. Then the same again with jigs...
In English music sessions, tunes in pairs, three times each is common, though far from universal. American old-time and bluegrass sessions are (I'm told) a bit like Chris's French music sessions, playing a tune many times though with everybody taking a turn to solo while the others drop back into accompaniment mode.

Quote
I can't for the life of me see why you can't, if you want to,  "develop" a tune, explore its nuances, interplay with other musicians" when it is in a set as well as when it isn't.
Sometimes that needs a few more times than twice through, but sometimes the interplay is more about having on-the-fly ideas about following tune A with tune B because it'll work nicely, or because you've never done it before and want to hear how it'll work.

Funny thing about sessions - people get stuck into habits and then forget that theirs isn't the only, one true right way of doing things.

As discussed recently in another thread, thesession.org was always intended to be about ITM so I guess ITM conventions are appropriate there.

Lester's suggestion of downloading the concatenated ABCs and running them though an ABC to MIDI converter seems to answer the question, anyway.
Logged
I'm a melodeon player. What's your excuse?
Music recording and web hosting: www.treewind.co.uk
Mary Humphreys and Anahata: www.maryanahata.co.uk
Ceilidh band: www.barleycoteband.co.uk

Chris Ryall

  • "doc 3-row"
  • French Interpreter
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 10171
  • Wirral UK
    • Chris Ryall
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #9 on: February 10, 2016, 02:25:37 PM »

Do t be too critical Lester.  We all have our pet subjects.  Just don't get me started on glue!
  ;D

Indeed. I'd emphasise that a 25 minute blues was well on the extreme side, but resisted all efforts to close it down (sang the last verse 3 times)! 

But eg (2) on sunday I led off Orange & Blue in Wakefield. A young fiddler joined in, started doing things, I dropped to chords and gave him space (as did the room (:)) then I had a go too. About 3-4 times through in all and (unusually) drew a ripple of applause. More importantly, it was really pleasurable.

Others might have medleyed into eg another Morris tune. Maybe even in 4:4 time ::) The key to this sort of thing incidentally is not playing, it's listening, and a willingness to enjoy the moment.  :neigh:

To return to topic, yes of course 'sets' work too, but hopefully not all the time, and ideally not in completely vitrified forms?
Logged
  _       _    _      _ 

Gromit

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 519
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #10 on: February 10, 2016, 06:03:45 PM »

Quote
...typical Irish music sessions someone might start by playing a couple of reels, twice each, then others will take it in turns to add more reels on the end, until after about 20 minutes they run out of ideas

No offence but that doesn't sound like the typical Irish session that I attend (in London) where a fair percentage of the players are Irish and the session led by Irish players. Usually tunes are played 3 times through and in sets of three tunes, sometimes a couple of sets together. What you describe is what I've heard in the past at English folk festivals like Towersey etc. ie. predominantly English players playing Irish tunes.
Logged

Anahata

  • This mind intentionally left blank
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 6357
  • Oakwood D/G, C/F Club, 1-rows in C,D,G
    • Treewind Music
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #11 on: February 10, 2016, 08:05:40 PM »

No offence but.....
What you describe is what I've heard in the past at English folk festivals like Towersey etc. ie. predominantly English players playing Irish tunes.

No offence taken at all!
I'm sure you're right. I was describing what I've heard said about "Irish music sessions", and it probably was about English people playing Irish music, which is a whole genre of it's own, and not one I have anything to do with.
Logged
I'm a melodeon player. What's your excuse?
Music recording and web hosting: www.treewind.co.uk
Mary Humphreys and Anahata: www.maryanahata.co.uk
Ceilidh band: www.barleycoteband.co.uk

Chris Ryall

  • "doc 3-row"
  • French Interpreter
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 10171
  • Wirral UK
    • Chris Ryall
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #12 on: February 10, 2016, 08:31:48 PM »

Nor here. I have had a wonderful time on the Irish West coast (twice) and ….well it has its own traditions, including generally unison play. If "the session" wants to pickle certain traditionsl Irish tune sets in aspic and publish them as ABC I am not qualified to comment, though there were some "variations" detectable, particularly in Galway.

my own interest is in English and various European tunes, (including some Irish, Scottish, Welsh ones) and extends out of folk into swing and early jazz. Anahata is an acknowledged champion of good Englsih music. Each to his own, and that includes the medley brigade. But there is another way. It is inventive, and actually great fun.  (  :neigh: )
Logged
  _       _    _      _ 

Stiamh

  • Old grey C#/D pest
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 3538
    • Packie Manus Byrne
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #13 on: February 10, 2016, 09:00:28 PM »

Nothing to do with pickling them in aspic, Chris, merely a convenience for people's personal use, for storage in their profile. Nothing prescriptive about it.

As you could have ascertained in half the time it took you to give us the benefit of your opinion about the question of playing tunes in sets, totally irrelevant to the topic as it is - as your opinion usually is, in fact, in any discussion remotely connected with Irish music.  ;)

Chris Ryall

  • "doc 3-row"
  • French Interpreter
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 10171
  • Wirral UK
    • Chris Ryall
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #14 on: February 10, 2016, 09:24:34 PM »

I actually agree with you wrt irrelevance. I enjoy Irish traditions, valid as any other. Been on expeditions three times now, i have even danced them when younger, but am never going to be a player of any competence (I have tried).  I personally think I am as entitled to observe, and compare as anyone else?  The sensitivities of some adherants do sometimes make that a little challenging.

As Anahata suggests, also my own experience, the way Irish music is expressed here in Britain is rather different from Eire, or for that matter in most other countries I've been to. I personally enjoyed it most on the West coast. If that upsets you, well, I still enjoyed it most on the West Coast, sorry.
« Last Edit: February 10, 2016, 09:33:08 PM by Chris Ryall »
Logged
  _       _    _      _ 

richard.fleming

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 552
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #15 on: February 10, 2016, 11:24:51 PM »

It was a fairly simple question. Should I be surprised that it caused so much chuntering?
Logged
Old Paolo Sopranis in C#/D and D/D#

brackenrigg

  • Geoff Wright
  • Member
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 25
    • Bracken Rigg Scottish Ceilidh band
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #16 on: August 23, 2017, 06:30:47 PM »

ABC is quite usual for workshops etc in Ireland so most musicians over there read it and it is used to pass tunes on. Many don't do dots.
Logged
Bracken Rigg Band
brackenrigg@gmail.com
www.brackenrigg.co.uk

rees

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4734
  • Windjammer
    • Wesson Accordions
Re: Sets on The Session
« Reply #17 on: August 23, 2017, 09:39:49 PM »

As I understand it, The Session enables you to be your own sets from individual tunes so not pickled in aspic but unique.
Logged
Rees Wesson (accordion builder and mechanic)
Gungrog, Welshpool, Wales, UK
www.melodeons.com
Pages: [1]   Go Up
 


Melodeon.net - (c) Theo Gibb; Clive Williams 2010. The access and use of this website and forum featuring these terms and conditions constitutes your acceptance of these terms and conditions.
SimplePortal 2.3.5 © 2008-2012, SimplePortal