Seisiún vocabulary

[Carey]

A chairde,

Just starting, so pardon the lack of Irish. I'm wondering if some kind soul(s) would toss out a list terms which would be useful during a seisiún. My seisiún mates are at least sympathetic to my attempts at "the language."

I'm wondering things like

"Do you have a tune for us?"
"Brilliant!"
"Practice at home!" (Ha.)
"What shall we play next?"
"A little faster/slower."
"With more feeling" (I'm sure they say something way different)
"Ready for another pint?"

That sort of thing, but the phrase that would be used, not just "literal' translations.

Go raibh maith agaibh.

Is mise,

Carey

[Redwolf]

A chairde,

Just starting, so pardon the lack of Irish. I'm wondering if some kind soul(s) would toss out a list terms which would be useful during a seisiún. My seisiún mates are at least sympathetic to my attempts at "the language."

I'm wondering things like

"Do you have a tune for us?"
"Brilliant!"
"Practice at home!" (Ha.)
"What shall we play next?"
"A little faster/slower."
"With more feeling" (I'm sure they say something way different)
"Ready for another pint?"

That sort of thing, but the phrase that would be used, not just "literal' translations.

Go raibh maith agaibh.

Is mise,

Carey

An bhfuil fonn agat? Do you have/know a tune? (this format is commonly used for singers -- "An bhfuil amhrán agat?" -- so it would be understood in a session.

Go hiontach! or Iontach maith!: Brilliant! You'll also hear "maith thú!": Well done/bravo!

Tá cleachtadh de dhíth ort: You need practice

Níos luaithe or Níos gasta: Faster

Níos moille: Slower

Ar mhaith leat/libh pionta eile? Would you (singular)/you (plural) like another pint?

I can't imagine anyone in a session saying "with more feeling," to be honest.

Redwolf

[MTGuru]

You forgot Póg mo fheadóg, which is very useful.

[Carey]

Redwolf, a chara,

Go raibh maith agat. I thought it would be you to respond.

Good one MT

Is mise le meas,

Carey

[Carey]

Oh heavens me! I forgot this one:

mo fhuisce => My whiskey

(I'm sure there's a much better phrase in Gaeilge for "Oh heavens me!" too.)

And, when I go to make a tune change and fumble the switch I usually say "Damn! Sorry." Which I assume has a parallel.

[fiddlerwill]

Ciúnas! It means; be quite [you noisy rabble and let this person sing!]

[Redwolf]

You forgot Póg mo fheadóg, which is very useful.

Close! "fh" is silent, so when you add "mo" it becomes "póg m'fheadóg" (pohg MAD-ohg)

Redwolf

[MTGuru]

Close! "fh" is silent, so when you add "mo" it becomes "póg m'fheadóg" (pohg MAD-ohg)

[Carey]

Ciúnas! It means; be quite [you noisy rabble and let this person sing!]

Go raibh maith agat, that will get a fair amount of use I'm sure.

[Redwolf]

Ciúnas! It means; be quite [you noisy rabble and let this person sing!]

Go raibh maith agat, that will get a fair amount of use I'm sure.

You might want to follow it with "le bhur dtoil!" ("please" said to multiple people).

One thing I loved in the Gaeltacht was you never had to call for quiet for a singer. As soon as someone would start to sing, the whole pub would fall silent (other than the occasional "maith thú" or "mo cheol thú").

I found that out very suddenly in Donegal. A group of us students from Oideas Gael had gone to Roarty's for a pint, and someone wanted to know if there might be something we could all sing together. I suggested "Nora Bheag," as I knew it was often taught at OG. No one at the table recognized the title, though, so I started singing it softly (thinking that they'd recognize it) and before I'd gotten the second line out of my mouth, the entire pub was silent and listening attentively! Not exactly the song I wanted to make my sean-nós debut with, but oh well!

Very different from my experiences here in the States, where you can be singing your heart out (miked, even!) and everyone just goes on talking as if you were giving a weather report!

Oh, I want to go back so badly! Maybe in a few years, when my daughter is out of school.

Redwolf

[Carey]

Great story. I'll share it with our singers on Sunday.

[Redwolf]

Great story. I'll share it with our singers on Sunday.

There's a tremendous respect for the human voice in the Gaeltacht, which can be quite a surprise for us singers who are used to be dissed here in the good ol' US of A!

The other thing is, they are very pleased if you can/will sing/perform something from your home. In other words, if you're in Ireland and suggest a tune or song that is from your home area, they'll be really tickled to hear it.

I've found it fun to equate American songs with the Irish songs that inspired them. For example, "Sweet Betsy from Pike" takes its tune from the sean-nós song "Thios cois na trá domh" (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiiHf7OzrZs)....they love those connections!

Redwolf

[Carey]

I really enjoy hearing someone sing too. It's especially nice when a visitor can give us as song. I usually ask them to sing whatever it is they like to sing the most, never mind if it's Irish.

How do they feel about sea shanties? Being a flute player, I don't sing often, but I'm not afraid to do Barrett's Privateers when pressed.

C

[Redwolf]

I really enjoy hearing someone sing too. It's especially nice when a visitor can give us as song. I usually ask them to sing whatever it is they like to sing the most, never mind if it's Irish.

How do they feel about sea shanties? Being a flute player, I don't sing often, but I'm not afraid to do Barrett's Privateers when pressed.

C

I don't know...never tried one! Generally they're very pleased, though, if you will sing something from wherever you're from. That's why I like to do "Sweet Betsy from Pike," as it's a California song, but the tune is Irish (and one that's very familiar to folks in Donegal, as it's the tune to a beloved Donegal song).

BTW, I thought I'd answered this (below), but I must have forgotten to hit "submit":

Oh heavens me! I forgot this one:

mo fhuisce => My whiskey

(I'm sure there's a much better phrase in Gaeilge for "Oh heavens me!" too.)

And, when I go to make a tune change and fumble the switch I usually say "Damn! Sorry." Which I assume has a parallel.

You'd want to say "mo chuid fuisce." When you're talking about your share of something that others might have some of as well, you use "cuid" (portion) followed by the genitive (in this case, the genitive of "fuisce" is the same as the nominative.

An equivalent to "Oh heaven's me" would be "A Mhaighdean!" or, if you want something stronger, "A Dhia ár sábháil!."

"Damn it" is "Damnú air"

And if there are any ladies reading this, if you are being hassled by some slimeball in the bar, you can tell him gread leat!. But don't say this to someone you actually like...it's a rather rude way to say "get lost!"

Redwolf

[Carey]

That's what I like about the Irish. Everything they do has a concern for other people built right in. It's not "my whiskey" but "my portion of the whiskey." I hope one outcome of this process is I learn to phrase my English (or is that American?) more like that.