Irish Tune Learning
Class with Randal Bays - FALL 2023 (8 weeks
beginning September 5, 6, and 7, 2023)
Sign
up for classes here
There's nothing like sitting in on a great
session, but you have to have some tunes to do it. I've been
teaching these tune learning classes for ten years in Seattle
and Olympia, and now online. They're
a good way to build your Irish repertoire in a group setting
and have some fun while doing it. The class learns one
traditional Irish tune per week, puts them in medleys and
plays them together a lot, so by the end everyone has at least
eight good session tunes in common... jigs, reels, hornpipes,
etc. The goals of the class are to build a repertoire
of Irish tunes and to improve at learning by ear.
I try to find interesting tunes that you'll actually
encounter in a good Irish session; not the most common tunes,
but also not the very rare outliers, although there are great
tunes in both those categories.
The Wednesday classes
will be a bit more fiddle oriented, so I’ll spend a little
more time getting into fiddle stuff like bowing and
ornamentation, and we’ll do a couple of tunes in G minor and
D minor, keys that can be difficult for flute and whistle.
All instruments are still welcome in the Wednesday class and
I’ll post all the tunes, including the “fiddle-centric”
tunes, on our class website. Contact me if you have
questions.
DUE TO THE PANDEMIC we moved these classes online in 2020. All
classes will continue on Zoom according to the schedule
below.
WEST COAST
Tuesdays, starting April 4, 2023, 7 to 8:30pm Pacific Time (8 weeks)
Wednesdays, starting April 5, 2023, 7 to 8:30pm Pacific Time
(8 weeks)
EAST COAST
Thursdays,starting April 6, 2023, 7 to 8:30pm Eastern Time (8 weeks)
In addition to the online classes you'll get access
to the class web page to learn the tunes and access
my archive of hundreds of tunes I've taught in this class over
the years, including slow recordings, links to other musicians'
settings, lots of background on the music, etc. (See below)
We have all levels of musicians in the
class, but if you're just starting on an instrument you
might find it challenging. More advanced musicians are
definitely welcome but you'll need to be OK with learning
slowly and with lots of repetition... it's traditional.
:-)
The traditional tunes are taught by ear... we
won't be using written music in the class.
Cost: $140
for all eight classes, including website access, archives,
etc.
If you'd like to take the class but
money is tight, please don't hesitate to let me know and we
can work something out... I really want everyone who's
interested in Irish music to be able to take these classes.
Please send me an email to register or for more information. You can
pay via PayPal, Venmo, or check. Thanks!
PayPal: rsb@randalbays.com
Venmo: @Randal-Bays
www.randalbays.com
Many thanks for the generous support of:
Ceol Cascadia Irish Music Association
Private lessons -
SPRING 2023
IRISH FIDDLE - all levels
GUITAR - accompaniment OR fingerstyle (DADGAD)
My private lessons are mostly online using Zoom
or Skype, and I also teach at my home studio in Olympia, WA.
In private lessons I'll teach tunes or use
tunes you already know to improve rhythm, phrasing and style,
which leads into bowing, fingering, and ornamentation.
Occasional lessons - $60
for a 55 minute private lesson
Ongoing lessons: $50 per lesson if you sign up
for at least four consecutive weeks and pay in advance.
If you're enrolled in a current series of tune
learning classes the cost of an occasional lesson is $50 and a
series of 4 is $45 per lesson.
Email for
more information or to arrange a time.
Home page: www.randalbays.com