Unusual Instrument at a Jam

[Pappyrich]

I attended our monthly acoustic jam last night and had a unique experience. On the second go-around a young man who had accompanied himself with a guitar on a couple of "Muddy Waters" tunes the first time around unpacked his bagpipes and played a medley of Scottish tunes. I'm an old time player, so I thought it was kinda neat. I'm not sure how most everyone else took it, but it made me wonder what the most unusual instrument you all might have encountered at a jam. A few years back, we had a lady show up and play the saw. She also brought a wash tub bass one time, but that didn't seem too unusual.

Anyway, just wondering what you might have encountered.

[Southern Man]

There is a guy who has brought an autoharp to the local OT jam.

Occasionally I've seen a fellow with an accordian around at some of the community events, but I don't think he's ever been at any of the jams I've been to.

The jams I go to definitely lean towards the beginner and accepting side of things, but I don't know how welcome the accordian would be.

[Tavy]

Tea chest bass? There's someone local that plays Celtic (Cornish actually) tunes on trombone, which must some work to be honest. Several different kinds of pipes too... in fact I do actually know a professional bagpipe player, though interestingly he only brings his banjo to sessions - maybe it's more socially acceptable ?

[tiltman]

Our BG band, fairly traditional, was practicing on the bass players porch. Neighbors and people passing by often stop to listen (and it’s led to a couple of gigs- beer fest, wedding).
One night a guy asked if he could join us on trumpet. He was nice about it - and turned out to be really good! It was a lot of fun.

Kirk

[mjbee]

Vintage typewriter. It made for a subtle solo. Could have used a pickup.

[Charles E.]

When I lived in Raleigh NC, one or two times a year a friend would be in town and jam with our group on a didgeridoo...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY_pwtnLDWA

Sorry for the poor video quality.

[Ranald]

Perhaps Ottawa's weird, but no one but a newcomer would be surprised to see highland or uileann pipes at a Celtic jam. Accordions of many types play at jams of differing genres. I've seen didgeridoo often, Celtic harp, the occasional saw, spoons, kazoo, and washtub bass. One woman sometimes plays snare drums, which are good on the Scottish and Irish marches, at Celtic sessions(she does not play them continually throughout a session). If there are any Newfoundlanders present, they might play the "ugly stick", an upside mop with a face on it, and a rubber boot at the other end, pounded up and down and hit or scraped by a stick. Nails driven through bottles caps situated up the broomstick provide that extra je ne sais quoi. Even more amazing, I've seen five or six mandolins at a session. And this is supposed to be "the city that fun forgot."

Here's a Newfoundland band with two ugly sticks, playing the traditional tune, "Mussels in The Corner."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_SW...=DriveTheGlobe



Here's a little more about them -- there's far too much material about ugly sticks available:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ugly_stick

[milli857]

The most unusual instrument I've seen is sqeezebox in an old time jam. It worked pretty well in context.

[Sue Rieter]

I love that ugly stick! Now I want one.

[jaycat]

I have seen, in local "bluegrass" jams:

Accordion
Melodica (a la U Roy)
Cajon
Harp
Harmonica (I am guilty of this one)
Spoons
Bones

I'm OK with anything but accordion. It drowns everything out, and when you hit a clam YOU REALLY HIT A CLAM!!

[Steve 2E]

I love that ugly stick! Now I want one.

I want one too. It might be the only instrument that I can actually build and then play. I think I have enough skills to make one. Maybe. I'm gonna start saving my bottle caps.

[Sue Rieter]

I want one too. It might be the only instrument that I can actually build and then play. I think I have enough skills to make one. Maybe. I'm gonna start saving my bottle caps.

Me too. Been drinking beer in cans. Will have to go back to bottles
I think I may already have the boot.

[Ranald]

Exporting ugly sticks is an important part of the Canadian economy. I've often seen them for sale at O'Brien's Music Store in St. John's, Newfoundland. However, Canada regularly fights with the US over softwood lumber tariffs, so, if you're an American, make sure yours is custom-made of the finest hardwood.

And I'm with you, Steve. For the first time, I can actually see myself making a musical instrument. This year, ugly sticks; next year, mandolins.

[Caberguy]

i think it might be time to dust off my tuba and start practicing some bluegrass tunes.

I started off saying it as a joke, but now I kind of want to... bonus that I can actually read music on the thing.

[DaveGinNJ]

I attended our monthly acoustic jam last night and had a unique experience. On the second go-around a young man who had accompanied himself with a guitar on a couple of "Muddy Waters" tunes the first time around unpacked his bagpipes and played a medley of Scottish tunes. I'm an old time player, so I thought it was kinda neat. I'm not sure how most everyone else took it, but it made me wonder what the most unusual instrument you all might have encountered at a jam. A few years back, we had a lady show up and play the saw. She also brought a wash tub bass one time, but that didn't seem too unusual.

Anyway, just wondering what you might have encountered.

Bagpipes are definitely an acquired taste. They are grating enough that even banjo players look down on them

The only semi unusual instrument was a cello at a Wernick jam class. However the player was very good and it worked well

[Bill McCall]

Harp and dulcimer at a BG jam. Dobro at a swing jam.

Accordions are fine for gypsy jams.

[Charles E.]

Yes to the Tuba!

[Stopstop]

One thing I know for sure is that the accordion "ain't NOT no part of nothin," as evidenced here:
https://www.google.com/search?client...id:4_IEa9-xhaM

[stevo58]

i think it might be time to dust off my tuba and start practicing some bluegrass tunes.

I started off saying it as a joke, but now I kind of want to... bonus that I can actually read music on the thing.

It’s not bluegrass, but don’t underestimate the tuba. Eli Newberger on tuba with the great Jimmy Mazzy:

https://youtu.be/Sbu2uyGft3E

[Jim Garber]

Yesterday at our Québécois jam a family showed up and the father played whistle and spoons (not all that odd) and his teenage son brought his melodica which he actually played well but played piano backup and did an excellent job considering the crookedness of many of our tunes.

At our old time jam we have had cellos, harps, ukuleles, and harmonicas.

[gspiess]

Last month at a folk jam in Harrisburg PA: spoons, dulcimer, saw, recorder - all rather practiced and not "novelty" players.

This week at a "BG jam" in Duncannon: mountain dulcimer, accordian (when I saw the woman pull it out my first thought was "oh gosh, here we go", but she was really good!) Then I pulled out my Pono octave which really drew a lot of interest.

As for ugly sticks, there is an Irish contemporary Christian band of international fame - Rend Collective - where the percussionist is very accomplished.

[keith.rogers]

Keep an open mind is my thinking!

I was at one of the “camps” at Old Settlers last year and the entire brass section from the California Honeydrops came by and sat down. I kept my mandolin in the case and listened to absolutely amazing “crossover” music while they picked up on anything that came their way, pulling multipart harmonic arrangements out of the air. Mesmerizing.

[soliver]

We've had guys show up to our Jam on the Marietta Square with Brass in the past. So I've played along side a very talented trumpet player and an equally talented sax player on 2 separate occasions. We also had a kid from a nearby college marching band bring his tuba which was fun.

Once a guy showed up with some sort of small hand held Middle Eastern or maybe Caribbean metallic drum (not pleasant at all) and he was overbearing and obnoxious with it, and the banjo player (ironically) asked him to leave.

[tiltman]

“ and the banjo player (ironically) asked him to leave”

That’s hilarious.

Kirk

[journeybear]

Somehow I've managed to be fortunate enough to have escaped anything like the horror shows described here. But I did once have an uneasy encounter with a musical saw at a gig. Someone brought a musical saw to my band's weekly gig - and played it! It was someone I vaguely knew, who worked sometimes as a clown, and he was friends with the fiddler sitting in with us that night. But why he thought it would be appropriate to bring it out, unbidden, and play with a band playing a mix of Cajun, country, and bluegrass, completely escapes me. Midway through the second song I told him it didn't fit, and to his credit, he did stop. I have not gotten that responsible response from others deciding they had to join in and share their wonderfulness with all present (or whatever), such as spoons, harmonica, and tambourine. I guess enough people get a kick out of their "contributions" that they'll continue, but it's really up to the performing musicians, not audience members.