MK Sessions: MK Sessions Chat

Sunday, March 08, 2009

MK Sessions Chat

To expand the facilities of the website I have decided to add a forum which should make it easy for anyone to contribute material & information as well as exchanging viewpoints and some (hopefully!) friendly banter. It is set up so that all visitors can view posts but posting topics or replies will require registration. A permanent link to it is on the right of page.

ABOUT SESSIONS

Music sessions are most often described as "Open Mic" or "Acoustic".

Open Mic sessions usually have a PA system available and musicians are invited to take turns at performing. Types of music can be very varied.

Acoustic sessions are non-amplified and once a musician has started a tune other players can join in. Types of music can be varied but folk tunes usually dominate though a few sessions are more biased toward guitar/singers.
Some acoustic sessions are "round the room" where players are invited to take turns at starting a tune (these are generally those that are more guitar/singer based).
The more instrumental & folktune based sessions are less formal and anyone can start a tune at an appropriate moment. However, this requires a degree of etiquette so that all players get a fair chance to play tunes at their own level of ability or confidence.

Jazz sessions have their own format which usually relies on the ability to read from musical arrangements and being able to improvise.

MIDIS

Midi files can be of great assistance in learning new tunes. Unlike normal music formats such as mp3 etc, midi files are tiny as they are only a set of instructions for the synthesiser on your sound card to play a series of notes. With the appropriate software the files can be automatically converted to notation which will visibly follow the notes as the tune is played. A free basic player/converter is available below. More advanced player/converters allow the speed to be varied and the key to be transposed. This more versatile software usually has to be purchased. There are thousands of midi files available covering all types of music....the links below should give you access to many downloads.

Sunday, March 08, 2009

MK Sessions Chat

ABOUT THIS WEBSITE

ABOUT SESSIONS

THIS WEEK'S SESSIONS

CONTACT 01908 562736

VENUES (details & locations)

MILTON KEYNES SESSION FINDER

MESSAGE BOARD

THE FORUM

PLAYERS WHO CAN BE CONTACTED VIA THIS WEBSITE

LOCAL MUSIC SERVICES & EVENTS

LOCAL SITES

GENERAL MUSIC WEBSITES

MIDIS

Links to midi files

NOTICE BOARD

ARCHIVES