Irish Session - Unplugged with Keala Venema

About this event

Keala Venema (with co-host Lino) hosts monthly traditional Irish Sessions on the first Tuesday of each month. This is a communal event open to performers of intermediate and advanced skill level. Bring an instrument or just your ears, and be part of a warm, communal night of music-making.

This is a fully unplugged event. It's free to attend and participate in, no rsvp or ticket needed.

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Details from Keala:

This jam is intended for intermediate players to grow and challenge themselves in an encouraging environment. We welcome new players as well but if you don’t feel comfortable in a fast paced environment like the Connor O Neil’s session in Ann Arbor, ask us and we can recommend you some slower-paced jams locally!

Our goal in this session is to sound like one you’d find in Ireland, and that’s including some of the details of the jam etiquette/rules as well:

Guitar players and Bodhran players: We are asking that currently we only have one guitar player and one percussionist per session (and right now we are asking for these instruments to ask to join) - that’s not to say that you are not welcome to join us and you may trade off with the house guitarist on a few tunes! The unique thing about Celtic music is the sole guitarist determines the chord progression of the song and they have full freedom to change and reharmonize on the spot to lift the tune and energy. The bodhran player often has the role of a bass player, controlling the lower pitches harmonically as well as the higher pitch percussion to keep us all together. Both roles have a lot of responsibility and need to have an understanding of the melody as well before they make decisions on how to accompany. Guitar players should also be familiar with DADGAD/or drop D as that is also the traditional way (as of late, by far not the oldest way to accompany) to accompany.

We may also do an onion-style session (depending on the number of people). Rather than one big circle, we will tighten up with host musicians in the middle and an outer ring around them and create a tighter acoustic environment so everyone can hear each other.

No non-traditional instrumentation (non-acoustic instruments or brass or alternative percussion like cajon/spoons etc) unless you ask the host please! Vocalists are always invited, but also know that 80% of the music we are playing are instrumental, with a couple vocal tunes thrown in as a break!

No sheet music/stands as well. This music is all about how we can dance to it, and melody is a key component. It’s hard to be a good listener when we’re worried about sightreading music that might be a different variation on the melody that the host is playing! A general rule of thumb is if you don’t know the tune, don’t play it!

Please disregard these ‘rules’ if the situation calls for it. Whether that’s if you’re already familiar with the etiquette, or if you have a good ear and can quietly and respectfully pick out the melody. These rules are meant to be broken if musicality calls for it, but I am hoping to maintain a certain amount of respect for the tradition/integrity in the music while also being inclusive and educational, and rule no 1 is have FUN!!

I’m so excited to host an Irish session for the community and give back. If you have any questions or want to have a conversation about this music, ask me, Keala Venema ( kealavenema@gmail.com )

The tune-list is only a reference for MY/CO-HOSTS repertoire. I would love it if people came with their own sets and I learned a few too, and we all built a bigger repertoire together. A great reference for jig and reel sets is looking at the Comhalts Fionn Seisiun 1, 2 and 3 albums. Those sets are commonly played around the world and are italicized.

To name a few:

JIGS

Christy Barry’s No 1 & 2(G)

Walls of Liscarrol (Dm)

Cliffs of Moher (Am)

The Kesh Jig (G)

Kilavil Jig (Em)

Most Covered Mountain (Em)

Club Ceili (G)/The Old Favorite (G)

Jim Ward’s (G)

I Buried My Wife & Danced On Her Grave (D mix)

Cook in the Kitchen (G mix)

Tobin’s Favorite (D)

Rakes of Kildare (Am)

Blarney Pilgrim (Am)

Blackthorn Stick (G)

Castle Jig/Sean Ryan’s Jig, (Am)

Out on the Ocean (G)

Kerfunken Jig (D)

Rose in the Heather (D)

Legacy jig (G)

Wise Nora (G)

Banish Misfortune (D)

Blarney Pilgrim (G)

Maids of Selma (G)

Tell Her I Am (G)

Cook in the kitchen (G)

Battering ram (G)

Willie Coleman’s (G)

Connachtman’s Rambles (D)

Calliope House (E and/or D)

Jig of Slurs (D)

Sailor’s Wife (Dm)

Humors of Glendart (D)

Humors of Glin (D)

Carraroe (D)

My Darling Asleep (D)

Hag at the churn (D)

The last train (D)

Tripping up the stairs (D)

Shaskeen Jig (D)

Munster Jig (G)

Haste to the Wedding (D)

Kitty Lie Over (D)

Lark in the Morning (D)

Frost is All Over (D)

Saddle the Pony (G)

Lilting Banshee (Am)

SLIP JIGS

Kid on the Mountain (Em)

Butterfly (Em)

Farewell to Whally Range (F#m)

…

REELS

Silver Spear (D)

Father Kelly (G)

Drunken Landlady (Em)

Christmas Eve (G)

Cooley’s Reel (Em)

Swinging on a Gate (G)

Sporting Paddy (Am)

My Love is in America (D mix)

Old Bush (Am)

Jackie Coleman’s (D)

Mountain Road (D)

Miss Thornton’s (G)

Farewell to Erin (Am)

Star of Munster (Am)

Banshee (G)

Foxhunters (A)

Miss MacLeod’s (A and/or G)

Wind that Shakes the Barley (D)

Reconciliation (A)

MacArthur Road (E)

Julia Delaney (Dm)

Frank’s Reel (A)

Musical Priest (Bm)

Tarbolton (Em)

Longford Collector (G)

Sailor’s Bonnet (D)

Farrel O’Gara’s (D)

The High Reel (A)

Brenda Stubbert’s (Am)

Humours of Tulla (D)

Sally Gardens (G)

Cup of Tea (Em)

…

POLKAS AND SLIDES

Newmarket Polka(D)

Trip to Dingle (D)

Tom Sullivan’s (D mix)

Maggie in the Wood (G)

John Walsh’s (G)

Jessica’s (A)

Britches Full of Stitches (G and/or A)

Brosna Slide

O’Keefe’s Slide

Road to Lisdoonvarna

Dennis Murphy’s slide

Ballyhoura Mountain

Newmarket Polka

HORNPIPES

Boys of Bluehill

Rites of Man

King of the Fairies

Golden Castle

Humors of Tullycrine

Homeruler

Harvest Home

Off to California

MISC

Lucy Farr’s Barndance

Si Bheag Si Mhor

From The Stray, LLC