Huntsville, AL
24 March 2008

For Immediate Release

Finnegan’s Pub
3310 Memorial Pkwy, SW

It’s St.  Patrick’s Day Every Week!

Most Huntsville residents know Finnegan’s Pub as the small, building located between Joe Davis Stadium and the Parkway service road; as the origin of Huntsville’s St.  Patrick’s Day Parade; as the truest bit of Ireland that ever graced north Alabama.  What they may not know is that for the past four years, Finnegan’s has been serving up not only the best Irish drink, but the most authentic Irish music in the region.  On 10 April, Finnegan’s owner, Ellen MacAnelly, will host her 200th traditional Irish music “session”.

Huntsville’s Irish Band, SlipJig, will be joined by musician friends from the north Alabama region to help celebrate the milestone.  The music, consisting of jigs, reels, airs and songs, will begin at 7:30 and is free to all.

 

(Additional material on Irish music)

The Irish Traditional Session

A “Session” is loosely defined as a gathering of Irish traditional musicians celebrating their common interest in the music by playing it together in a relaxed, informal setting.  A session may be attended by as few as three or as many as a dozen or more musicians.  Not constrained by a fixed timetable, it may last for several hours with periodic breaks for “refreshment”.  The session is the wellspring of Irish music, its beating heart.
Irish traditional music is characterized by its unison playing.  Although a few solo performances and dances make for a well-rounded evening, the general aim of a session is to get the maximum number of musicians playing together on the maximum number of tunes.  The session is where the music lives and breathes, where it does its homework, where it flexes its muscles.  A variety of tune rhythms will be heard during a session evening: Dance rhythms such as Reels (4/4), Jigs (6/8), Slides (12/8) and Slip Jigs (9/8) are the most common.  Airs and Waltzes are occasional visitors.  Sets of 3-4 tunes of like-rhythm are typically played in a continuous string.  These combinations of tunes are often quite fluid.  “Spontaneous” and “free flowing” are adjectives describing a typical session evening.
Traditional Irish music has a long history of being taught via sound and feel rather than by written music, although written transcripts of tunes may be readily found today.  As a result, today one may find half a dozen tunes -- all bearing the same name -- with different melody structures.  Or one may listen to tunes with the exact same melody that have different names! It can be confusing to say the least when session players meet for the first time.  These permutations of tunes intermingle, morph, evolve into the ever-changing face of Celtic music.  Far from a static stylization, the music is alive with fresh nuances at each playing.  It never sounds exactly the same way twice.  The mix of instruments, the unison playing and the rhythm patterns all set Irish traditional music apart from other forms.  It’s all about bringing musical heritage alive.  The music finds its expression within the interplay of sounds and dynamics, among the exchanged grins and smiling eyes after a well-played set of tunes.  Irish traditional music is not so much listened to as it is experienced. 

The Finnegan’s Session

Pick any country.  If you locate an Irish pub there, you’ll likely find musicians playing.  Whether it’s because of the ambience, the drink, or just the feeling of being home, music and pubs have a natural attraction for one another.  It’s no different here in Huntsville.  Finnegan’s, as the city’s true Irish pub, in 2004, began to be the ad hoc gathering place on Thursday evenings for a handful of traditional musicians.  Ad hoc gave way to structure when the musicians soon coalesced to form the band SlipJig, whose mission became one of bringing traditional Celtic music to the north Alabama region.  The symbiotic, nurturing relationship between Finnegan’s and SlipJig continues to this day.  Every Thursday evening you’ll find fiddles, mandolins, guitars, bagpipes and whistles being played at the “band table” as SlipJig hosts traditional musicians from across the Tennessee Valley.  The music is fast-paced, energetic and crowd-engaging.  You don’t have to travel to Ireland for a great Irish music experience. 
It’s here locally.  In Huntsville.  At Finnegan’s.