Last Update:
2010-02-05
First and Third Sunday of every month 2pm-5pm
Royal Oak Pub 318 Bank St. at MacLaren
Join us for a little taste of Cape Breton in the heart of the Nation's Capital!
Photo by Lois Siegel Videos by John Patterson Vid 1 Vid 2
The aim of Ottawa Cape Breton Session is to share Cape Breton music and culture with the National Capital area. The Sunday Pub sessions are open to anyone who enjoys the music. Sessions are primarily for the musicians to share the experience of traditional music, rather than perform for an audience. They are loosely organized, open to anyone who can play the common tunes of the tradition, and a great way to learn new tunes and meet new people. That said, it sure is a lot of fun for the audience too!
Want to join in? You can! To get familiar with the Cape Breton repertoire we have practice sessions every other Sunday from 2-5pm at various locations. If you already know some of the tunes join in the first and third Sunday of every month at the Royal Oak Pub (318 Bank St. at MacLaren.) Sessions are led by Aylene, Ernie or Beth—let them know if you have some tunes you'd like to share.
Cape Breton Fiddler's Association
Extra Extra Read All About It! - There is an opportunity to have Jake Charron (who will be accompanying Troy MacGillivray on his eastern Ontario tour) give some workshops/lessons on guitar and/or piano accompaniment. The workshops would take place on Sat. Feb. 20 either 9-12am location TBD or 1-4pm at St. Thomas Church on Alta Vista. Whether these workshops go ahead or not will depend on the number of interested participants. If you would like to participate please send an email to cbsession@ripnet.com indicating piano/guitar; beginner/intermediate or intermediate/advanced. If you are selecting piano please also indicate if you have your own piano available to bring to the workshop.
Tickets for the event in Petawawa are available by contacting Line (pronounced like Lynn) Jones at the Petawawa Civic Centre Parks and Recreation Office at 613-687-5678 ext. 0 or recreation@petawawa.ca. For more information, including tickets you may also contact the event coordinator Stuart MacDonald at 613-735-1104 or stewmac66@hotmail.com. Tickets are also available at any Sunday Session from Beth MacGillivray.
February Events
Feb 7 —Pub Session: 2pm-5pm Royal Oak Pub 318 Bank St. at MacLaren.
Feb 14 —House Session: 2pm-5pm Volunteers Needed for a Valentine's Day House Session! XX00
Feb 18 — Special Event: 8-10pm House Concert with Troy MacGillivray, Terri-Lyn Mahusky and Jake Charron hosted by Graham Crate. $20. Email gcrate@rogers.com for tickets. Limited seating (first come first served). Location: 925 Parkhaven Ave. 613-820-1535. Woodroffe north to Georgina (1st lights north of Queensway). Left on Georgina, left on Parkhaven (four way stop). House is on the left across from the school. Google Map
Feb 20 — Special Event: 1-4pm OCBS fiddle workshop 1pm-4pm with Troy MacGillivray. $25.00 per person. Contact cbsession@ripnet.com or Beth at 613-258-0153 to register. Limited to 15 participants. St. Thomas the Apostle Church 2345 Alta Vista Dr. Google Map Click here for details. Intermediate/Advanced level. SOLD OUT
Feb 21 —Pub Session: 2pm-5pm Royal Oak Pub 318 Bank St. at MacLaren. Special Guest: Troy MacGillivray - Troy will play a few solo sets as well as join the rest of the group. Come early if you want to get a good seat! Thanks to the Royal Oak for making this possible. TO BE CONFIRMED
Feb 27 - Saturday Special Event: Cape Breton Ceilidh at the Petawawa Civic Centre. An evening of culture and music Cape Breton-style! Milling frolic, singing, fiddling (of course!), stepdancing and a showing of "Faire Chaluim MhicLeoid" (The Wake of Calum MacLeod) . OCBS will be performing as part of the lineup along with MacLeod's Crossing and others. Come see the show! Email cbsession@ripnet.com if want to offer or find a ride to Petawawa. Once you are there the Quality Inn and Suites is right across the street from the Civic Centre - a 5 min walk, and next to Kelsey's if you are hungry. Tickets for the event in Petawawa are available by contacting Line (pronounced like Lynn) Jones at the Petawawa Civic Centre Parks and Recreation Office at 613-687-5678 ext. 0 or recreation@petawawa.ca. For more information, including tickets you may also contact the event coordinator Stuart MacDonald at 613-735-1104 or stewmac66@hotmail.com. Tickets are also available from Beth MacGillivray at any Sunday session.
Feb 28 —House Session: No Session today as we will be travelling back from Petawawa.
March Events
Mar 6 —Saturday Special Event: St. Patrick's Day Social at St. Patrick's Basilica corner of Kent and Nepean streets. Coordinator: Brian MacLean Brian.McLean@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca Let Brian know if you can join us to play for this event, or if you'd like to get tickets to attend. Google Map
Mar 7 —Pub Session: 2pm-5pm Royal Oak Pub 318 Bank St. at MacLaren.
Mar 14 —House Session: 2pm-5pm Hosted by Nancy MacDonald 613-235-4100 at Springhurst Residence 130 Springhurst Ave. From the Queensway, (East end of the city) take Nicholas Ave turn- off; lean right to Lees Ave . West on Lees to Concord (left turn) and two blocks to Springhurst. Alternate Route : Main Street , turn left past Immaculate High School onto Springhurst and follow it to 130. (Springhurst is two blocks North of St. Paul's University). Google Map A pre-St. Patrick's Day chance to play a few Irish tunes!
Mar 17 —Pub Session: St. Patrick's Day 10:30-1:30 Back again by popular demand, OCBS will be hosting a session at the Royal Oak. Come take your lunch break with us! Musicians: parking expenses will be reimbursed, please keep your receipts or if you are at a meter keep track of how many loonies you feed into it and submit your expenses to Beth. All musicians playing with us on St. Patrick's Day will get a ticket for one free beer/wine or two free non-alcoholic beverages. Get your ticket from Bethj and please give your ticket to the server at the time of ordering.
Mar 21 —Pub Session: 2pm-5pm Royal Oak Pub 318 Bank St. at MacLaren.
Mar 28 —House Session: 2pm-5pm Volunteers Needed!
April Events
Apr 4 —Pub Session: Easter Sunday - TBD: Session may be cancelled
Apr 11 —House Session: 2pm-5pm Volunteers Needed!
Apr 18 —Pub Session: 2pm-5pm Royal Oak Pub 318 Bank St. at MacLaren.
Apr 25 —House Session: On the Road Again! - OCBS will be joining forces with the Glengarry fiddlers once again. Maxville Manor concert 1:30pm to 2:30pm. Drive to Alexandria for a session at the curling club from ~3pm to 5pm or later if you wish. Maxville Manor residents always show up in full force - we'll need a lot of musicians to help generate the volume needed for the rather large audience so we do hope you can join us that day! Follow that up with a Glengarry-style gathering at the Alexandria Curling Club.
May Events
May 2 —Pub Session: 2pm-5pm Royal Oak Pub 318 Bank St. at MacLaren.
May 9 —House Session: 2pm-5pm Mother's Day - Volunteers Needed!
May 16 —Pub Session: 2pm-5pm Royal Oak Pub 318 Bank St. at MacLaren.
May 23 —House Session: 2pm-5pm Mother's Day - Volunteers Needed!
May 30 —Fifth Sunday : 2pm-3pm West End Villa - Tentative. To be confirmed.
May 9 —House Session: 2pm-5pm Mother's Day - Volunteers Needed!
NEW PHOTOS HAVE BEEN POSTED TO THE CAPE BRETON SESSION ONLINE ALBUM. CHECK IT OUT!
Looking for something more Irish? Everything you need to find Irish music and culture as well as Ottawa Valley and other Celtic music in Ottawa is at 
Listen to Irish/Celtic music from Ottawa online at the Gaelic Hour on CHIN 97.9fm-Ottawa
Both sites contain links to various Celtic happenings in the Ottawa area. Irish Music Ottawa also has links to genealogy resources, local music teachers, instrument sales/repair, also links to tune archives.
