Grab a pint, sing a song

This is a quick Irish culture/pub culture post. I have definitely decided that the Crane Bar is my favorite pub in Galway. This is mostly because of the amazing trad music that is played there nightly. It has an upstairs and downstairs and there are usually trad artists doing sessions in both parts. I think I've mentioned this, but trad sessions are basically people getting together and playing traditional Celtic music.

But one of the best aspects about the Crane isn't just its trad music, but the sean-nós. In the Irish language sean-nós means "old-style." Sean-nós singing is a highly-ornamented style of solo singing. Basically what happens, or at least what I've experienced at the Crane, is the trad artists will be playing for a bit and then "shhhs" will make their way around the pub until everyone falls silent. After that, most often a man, will start singing a sean-nós song. The singing is always done a Capella and is very beautiful. They are usually slower songs or ballads, and can be sung in Irish or English (I've heard both). I've only heard this a few times, and always at the Crane. But that makes it even more special every time it happens. The music is definitely my favorite part of the pubs.

This is a great video of a trad session -- at the Crane!!

(This is actually a session by the Trad Soc, which is the Traditional Music Society of NUIG, so it's all college students playing.)