 |
Jig It
Celtic music is alive and well in Silicon Valley.
By Traci Vogel
Send this Article to a friend!
Printer Friendly
Just a few years ago, it looked like Riverdance might kill
Celtic music. The hand-on-hips bonanza, which was perhaps
entertaining in its original form, had blown up to an Andrew
Lloyd Webber-esque monstrosity on tour, and its poster child,
Michael Flatley, seemed to be everywhere.
Riverdance is still around – it celebrates its tenth anniversary
this year – but thankfully, it’s died back enough so that we can
all go back to enjoying Celtic music without PBS breathing down
our necks. And there’s much to enjoy about Celtic music in
Silicon Valley. With a wealth of well-established Irish pubs,
traditional session (or “seisiun,” if you prefer the Gaelic –
spelled differently but pronounced the same) music thrives.
Almost every night of the week it’s possible to find people
bobbing their heads, playing their fiddles or drums or guitars
or pipes, and sometimes even singing along.
Tony Becker, engineer by day and guitarist by night, attends at
least two sessions a week: Tuesdays at C.B. Hannegan’s and
Thursdays at The Grand Dell. Becker, who started playing and
singing not long after he could talk, says, “There are two ways
of going about playing music – you can form a band or you can
have a session. Celtic musicians tend to do a lot of session
playing.” At a session, he explains, musicians may play from
sheet music or by ear. “We have professionals, we have amateurs.
It’s very lively and fresh.”
Professionals might include people at the level of violinist
Itzhak Perlman, who, Becker says, spends evenings hanging out at
local sessions whenever he’s in a city where he has a
professional fiddling gig. But don’t let that intimidate you –
there’s plenty of room for amateurs. Pete Showman, president of
the Santa Clara Valley Fiddlers’ Association, says folks aged
eight to 80 play at the Hoover Middle School Auditorium the
first Sunday of every month. Showman also helps organize the
Tuesday night “Mostly Celtic” jam at C.B. Hannegan’s, and he
regularly attends the Sunday session at O’Flaherty’s in Downtown
San Jose’s San Pedro Square.
“Sessions vary some in how open they are,” says Showman, “But on
the Tuesday or Thursday jams, anyone with an instrument can show
up and play. Just propose something!”
This is one of the great things about Celtic music, says Becker.
“You’ll see grandmothers and 12-year-olds playing at the same
table. This doesn’t happen in any other genre. Traditional music
has been around a long time and is very wholesome. It’s a lot of
fun. And it’s something you can do at any age.”
SESSIONS SCHEDULE
Every Sunday
O’Flaherty’s Irish Pub
25 N. San Pedro St., San Jose
(408) 947-8007
Traditional Irish session: 5-8pm
First Sunday of the Month
Scruffy Murphy’s
187 S. Murphy Ave., Sunnyvale
(408) 735-7394
Traditional Irish session: 5:30-8pm
Every Monday
and Wednesday
Fandango Pizza
3407 Alma St., Palo Alto
(650) 494-2928
www.fandangopizza.com
Mostly bluegrass
music, with some Celtic: 7-10pm
Every Tuesday
C.B. Hannegan’s
208 Bachman Ave., Los Gatos
(408) 395-1233
www.cbhannegans.com
“Mostly Celtic” open session jam: 7:30pm-11pm
Every
Tuesday
Fandango Pizza
3407 Alma St., Palo Alto
(650) 494-2928
www.fandangopizza.com
San Francisco Pipers’ Club: 7:30pm-9:45pm
Every Wednesday
The King’s Head Pub
201 Orchard City Drive, Campbell (408) 871-2499
www.thekingshead.com/celtic.htm
“Celtic Night” open session jam. Wear your tartan and get a
dollar off drinks! 8pm
Every Thursday
Grand Dell Saloon
1040 Dell Ave, Campbell
(408) 378-3970
Jam night for folk and Celtic music: 8pm
First Sunday of the Month
Hoover Middle School Auditorium
A family-friendly jam, with players ranging in age from 5 to 85.
Styles include Celtic, bluegrass, country and folk. $5
admission; children 16 and under are free: 1pm-5pm
Send this Article to a friend!
Printer Friendly |
