Jocelyn Pettit has been enthralled by traditional folk music since she was nine years old, when her parents began taking her to weekly Irish ‘sessions’ in Vancouver. It was there she discovered the session format that would later shape her own musical community in Squamish.
“I became interested in the fiddle at a young age,” said Pettit. “I was really drawn to the fun, danceable energy and lively spirit of the instrument.”
After returning from her master’s program in traditional music at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Pettit started running monthly trad music sessions, through Coast Mountain Folk, right here in Squamish.
Each session runs for two hours and is based on the Irish and Scottish traditions of mostly informal gatherings where musicians play traditional folk tunes, and onlookers get to listen or even dance.
“Traditionally they’re [Sessions] held at a pub or a cafe, a community space or even sometimes someone’s kitchen,” said Pettit. “Repertoire varies from region to region, but our sessions here in Squamish are primarily tunes from the Irish, Scottish and Canadian traditions.”
Pettit holds each session at the Brackendale Art Gallery, and now they are held on the third Saturday of each month, with upcoming spring dates on April 18, May 16 and June 20, all running from 1 to 3 p.m. Admission is free, supported in part by the Squamish Arts Council.
The sessions have grown steadily since their launch in 2024. “We started off the very first one with about 13 players,” said Pettit. “A year later we had 27, so it doubled.”
Attendance now regularly sits in the mid-20s, with a rotating mix of local musicians and visitors from Vancouver, Whistler, the Sunshine Coast and beyond. On any given Saturday you might find fiddles, cellos, accordions, flutes, whistles, concertinas and mandolins filling the gallery with sound.
For those new to the session world, Pettit hosts a paid morning workshop on each session day, covering repertoire, chord accompaniment, tempo and session etiquette. Groups are kept small, around six to ten people, to allow for individual attention. Workshop participants are asked to RSVP in advance.
Coast Mountain Folk also runs a summer traditional music retreat, now in its fifth year, scheduled for the first weekend of July in downtown Squamish. The weekend is geared toward string players, guitarists and other instrumentalists interested in Celtic and traditional music, with workshops, performances and a public concert on the Saturday evening followed by a session on the Sunday.
For Pettit, it comes back to the same idea that drew her to the fiddle as a child, music’s ability to bring people together.
“I’ve loved connecting with people around the world through this music,” she said. “It’s a really great way of making friends in new places and sharing this commonality, this connection through music, that’s the goal.”
To attend a workshop or learn more, find Coast Mountain Folk on Facebook and Instagram or visit Jocelyn Pettit’s website to get in touch
