What is the difference between a session, a concert and a sing song in Ireland?
A session is informal: musicians sit in a circle in a pub, play tunes together, and come and go through the night. A concert is a performance, with tickets, a stage, an audience expected to listen, and a finishing time. A sing song is a gathering, usually in a pub or a house, where songs rather than tunes carry the night and people take turns to sing one, with everyone joining the chorus. Being asked for a song at a sing song is an honour, and a short, honest one beats a polished one. Much of the craic of the night sits in the talk between songs.
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Sources
- Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann: traditional music, sessions and branches, comhaltas.ie
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