On Monday night, I played in my very first Irish music session at a local pub (Fiddler's Hearth in South Bend). My husband and I were there for dinner, and I wanted to just listen in. As we were leaving, we asked the leader to tell us a little more about the group that would be there, and foolishly let him know that I am a harpist. He asked how far away I was from my harp, and told me to come back right away!
Absolutely terrified, I joined the group a few minutes later with my new Blevins Celtic harp in tow. Poor Jeff just had to sit at the bar and drink Guiness all night while I tried to keep up with a group of stellar Irish musicians! I had really no idea what to expect. In my typical line of work, I never have to memorize harp music. So the only tunes I could play are the ones in my books - having sheet music is of course a cardinal sin in this session. But I've known for awhile that this is something I need to tackle - my new goal is one tune memorized per week.
I felt more comfortable when I was just able to play chords in the background like the guitarists and mandolin players. My music theory is quite good, so it's no problem to do that, as long as I know what key we're in! I finally figured out that if I watched the guitarist across from me, then I could see when the chord changes were coming, and I was able to anticipate them a little better myself.
This was certainly an 'out of my comfort zone' experience for me! But I know I want to go back, so I need to get memorizing. I'm sure Jeff won't mind a couple of Guinesses a week either!
