Online Tunes Sessions

**** AUGUST 2025 SESSION TUNEBOOK IS NOW OUT. YOU CAN DOWNLOAD IT ON THIS PAGE ****

Online Tunes Sessions

(Mon & Thurs 8pm - 9.30pm UK time)

Join by clicking on this link when the session is live:   https://us04web.zoom.us/j/793527147 (if prompted, enter 245476)

We believe great things happen when we play tunes together! People connect with each other and make friends, and we keep our music traditions alive by sharing tunes and passing them on. What’s more, playing tunes can make you feel happy, and if you do it often enough, you’ll notice that you are getting better at playing your instrument too!

It turns out that you don’t even have to be in the same place…great things still happen when we play music together, online from the comfort of your own home.

You can play tunes with us every week, online, as follows (UK time):

  • Monday 8pm – 9.30pm (steady pace)
  • Thursday 8pm – 9.30pm 

These are open access sessions, so there’s no need to book in advance, you’re welcome to just turn up and join in! 

We’ve created a tune book (see below) with some of the best tunes we know, mixing well known session tunes with some favourites from the Northumbrian tradition. Every week, we work through the tunes in order, starting where we left off last time (although we always warm up with our favourite Scottish air, Cumbernauld House). We get through around 18 sets in a session, and it takes around 4-5 sessions to get through the whole book, so there’s plenty of variety!

Everyone is muted, which means that you hear your own instrument, completing a trio with our fiddle and guitar. You can play the tune, or try some harmony!

Sessions are led by Marina Dodgson (fiddle) and Maurice Condie (guitar).

“Phoenix Folk creates an experience which is the nearest I have found to a live session (and is very near indeed)”
“We enjoy these sessions immensely, with friends. Loads of tunes to download and playalong with others. You can even pop the kettle on at your leisure. Try it.”

Our sessions are relaxed and friendly (and we especially like it when pets put in an appearance!)

Resources

Our session tunebook is free to download. Voluntary contributions in our Tip Jar are always appreciated.

Most of the tunebook is also available as a series of play along videos and, with on-screen sheet music and chords. The new sets added in August 2025 are available as an audio recording instead.

If you enjoy playing harmony, the Phoenix Folk Harmony & Duets Series contains duet parts for over 190 tunes, many of which are still in our online session tunebook.

We also run a weekly singaround, a monthly Northumbrian Session, and a Virtual Ensemble.

Just for Fun...

Here’s a short clip from our 222nd live session, from 3rd June 2021, which was one of our Thursday ‘regular speed’ sessions.The tunes are Maggie in the Woods/Mairi’s Wedding, and Cumbernauld House.

 

In our online tunes session, you’ll play along to live fiddle and guitar. Sometimes we’re broadcasting from the same studio, but sometimes we’re 8 miles apart! During the Covid-19 lockdown, we developed a method that allows us to play together live (with no latency) from separate locations, as this video demonstrates.

Back in May 2020, some of the regular participants in our Zoom tunes sessions asked if we could create a project to hear what we would sound like if we were all playing in the same room. They sent in some recordings and we made this video.

This has now evolved into our Phoenix Folk Virtual Ensemble, which is open for anyone to join.

 

 

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