Friday Night Jam Sessions

Nov 22, 2023

Every Friday night, or most anyway, I go to hang out with friends and jam at a little back street cafe in Gent, somewhere behind Dampoort station. It's not even a cafe as such, it belongs to a friend who works with film and movies, but it probably was a cafe once though. It has a piano and some drums, a sort of a bar where you serve yourself, and, most importantly, a warm friendly atmosphere and tolerant neighbours.

Sam the owner also plays pretty good piano, and a few other local players come down regularly so it's a fun hang. Like all jam sessions there is pot luck involved, some weeks are better than others, but the vibe is nice and. As I work full time and really don't have time or energy to run my own jazz group anymore, I'm really happy to show up and partake. It keeps me sane and keeps my chops together.

I think jam sessions are a really important element of jazz culture, well, musical culture in general. (Mozart and Bach were into it, right?). Playing in a jam session is a curious balance of self restraint and assertiveness, and I think that learning to hold that balance is a musical and life skill which never really ends. It's quite a unique thing and it's one reason that I think that the world would be a kinder and nicer place if all people in powerful positions were required to be competent musicians.

(Advice for anyone reading who plays a bit and would like to do this on their local scene, and is wondering how : know tunes. Just that. If you step up and ask to play, the first question, if you are invited, should be "what do you want to play?" So know a few common tunes by heart. That gets you to first base. Personally I am sympathetic to anyone, regardless of level, who took the effort to learn the tune.)

Last Friday was a fun one, even though our regular bass player wasn't around we had two great pianists and also there was a young guy playing decent rhythm guitar. And that's another thing you learn in a jam - how to make it work with whatever you have going on.

I love everything about this scene. I love seeing beginners step in and take a nervous chorus or two and just get through it. I love people who wander in, surprised, off the street, and the locals who are in the know and who show up regularly. I love the chance to blow off a little steam and just enjoy playing music for its own sake, pure and simple. I love the friends I make. I love the mix of anarchy, surprise, and conviviality. I love the Oxford comma I just used.

Most of all I just love playing music. So much. I really can't imagine how dull life would be without it.

It gets pretty late sometimes, so Saturdays I usually potter about at home, take it easy, eat a nice meal and sleep early.