From the New York Times:
Jay Ungar and Molly Mason playing “Ashokan Farewell” at the Ashokan Center.
OLIVEBRIDGE, N.Y. — On a spring Sunday in the Catskill Mountains, Jay Ungar, a fiddler wearing a black vest and hiking boots, and his wife, Molly Mason, playing guitar, stood on a stage in a barnlike performance hall that did not exist a year ago. “Can you stand to hear this tune one more time?” he asked the audience.
From the Kansas City Star:
No delusions here. Daniel Bernard Roumain knows what most kids think about the violin.
“Not very cool, not very cool at all,” he said once to a group of high school musicians. “Bass guitar, cool. Drum kit, cool. Electric guitar, cool. When I was growing up — violin? Not cool.”
Yet Roumain, in Kansas City this week to work with young musicians, knows the instrument he’s been playing since he was 5 can conjure Prince or Paganini.
From The Guardian:
Christopher Walken in A Late Quartet
If Yaron Zilberman’s film, A Late Quartet, can’t make Christopher Walken and company look like real string players, at least it understands the dynamics of a quartet. It’s very difficult to make an actor look as if they can really play a string instrument.
From the Huffington Post:
There is nothing we love more than an impressive freestyle throw down, except perhaps an impressive freestyle throw down accompanied by a classical instrument. The unlikely combo of rap and violin is causing quite a stir online recently, with an infectiously catchy chance duet quickly gaining viral traction on Reddit.
From NBC News:
The 1704 “Betts” Stradivari violin was crafted by Antonio Stradivari, an Italian manufacturer of string instruments. Of the estimated 1,000 violins originally crafted by Stradivari, about 650 still exist. New research suggests these instruments mimic the vowel sounds of the female soprano voice.
Virtuosos who describe the singing voice of a violin may be on to something. The great violin makers, such as Stradivari and Guarneri, may have designed violins to mimic the human voice, new research suggests. The research, described in the current issue of Savart Journal, found the violin produced several vowel sounds, including the Italian “i” and “e” sounds and several vowel sounds from French and English.
From ABC News:
This violin, which was played aboard the Titanic, was authenticated as genuine.
A battery of forensics tests has determined that a violin found in a British man’s attic is the instrument that was used by the bandmaster of the Titanic to play, according to lore, “Nearer My God to Thee” during the ship’s last moments.
From ubergizmo.com:
3D printing seems to be in the news as of late, and apart from obvious hobbyist escapades and medical purposes, you can also make use of 3D printing to roll out something totally different – case in point, this 3D printed violin that costs approximately $12 of capital to churn out, where it relies on a combination of paper, 3D printed parts, as well as cheap wire, resulting in an instrument which is crude to look at, but easy on the ears. Granted, this will definitely be far from a Stradivarius, but to have it make sweet music? That is definitely one huge step forward.
From PostStar.com (Glen Falls, NY):
Geoffrey Ovington hand carves a scroll end that will hold the pegbox of a viola he is working on in his Shushan studio. (LINDSEY HOLLENBAUGH — lhollenbaugh@poststar.com)
It’s hard to imagine Geoffrey Ovington’s Shushan studio was once a dairy barn filled with hay bales. It’s even harder to believe this building is a workshop where he produces world-class stringed instruments — there are no wood shavings scattered about or sawdust, no blueprints or patterns piled on tables, and no detectable odor of varnish anywhere.
Sheet music on music stands provide the road map for an orchestra’s performance, but scribbled annotations by the players impose a conductor’s ideas and serve as simple reminders to make an entrance or count correctly. Now, with more than half-million new digitized pages poured into the New York Philharmonic’s electronic archives, that world is open to inspection. It may prove interesting to concertgoers, and fascinating to musicians who may have to play those parts themselves.
The Philharmonic on Thursday said it had completed the first phase of an effort to put its vast archive on the Internet. Lasting three years so far, the project has made available public programs, scores and internal documents from 1943, when Leonard Bernstein made his debut with the orchestra, to 1970, the year after he left as music director.
The last chunk of Phase 1 focused on the individual parts that entered the Philharmonic’s library in mainly that period and even before, encompassing nearly 1,200 works by a few more than 300 composers. The orchestra said many of the markings reflect the directions of conductors like Bernstein and Andre Kostelanetz. A few reflect those of Toscanini.
The archives, led by Barbara Haws, will now move to digitizing materials from the period between the orchestra’s founding in 1842 to 1908. Phase 3 will cover 1908 to 1943.
The recent images show sometimes worn and browned parts held together by bits of tape. The universal symbol to Watch! — a sketch of eyeglasses — abounds, along with added dynamic markings and reminders at the top left of a page of how many measures rest were noted at the bottom of a previous page, a sign of how the human brain needs to be reminded to concentrate over the time it takes to turn a leaf.
Many of the parts are signed by the principal players, with the dates of performances. It is quaint to see small lines marking out the beats of the oboe cadenza that interrupts the first movement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, probably marked by the orchestra’s principal oboist, Harold Gomberg.
“It’s going to be the most used part of the collection right now,” Ms. Haws said of the scanned sheet music. “Musicians are always looking for how other musicians dealt with challenges in a part.”
via Philharmonic Pours More of Its Archives Onto the Web – NYTimes.com.
Instead of rehairing one of my fiddlerman carbon fiber bows I decided to test it’s strength out of curiousity. I was pleasantly please to discover how tough they really are. Not aware that I was shooting a video my wife informs me that we need to leave in 10 minutes which I thought was hilarious so I left it on the video. 
Get your Fiddlerman Carbon Fiber Bow here.
From Smithsonian Magazine:
Solomon Conn’s violin diary. Photo from the Smithsonian American History Museum.
On May 1st, 1863, Solomon Conn bought a violin in Nashville, Tennessee. By the end of his years as an infantryman in Company B of the 87th Indiana Volunteers, he’d re-purposed it into a diary, inscribing its wood with a list of his travels—one of the most unusual artifacts to survive the Civil War.
From Strings magazine (www.allthingsstrings.com):
Howard Thronson seems like an even-tempered guy. But his voice takes on a certain edge when he starts talking about timber poaching in the forests of Washington state’s Olympic Peninsula, where he began his career as a state forester more than three decades ago. “That’s where the midnight thieves go to cut the older maples,” says Thronson, now region operations manager for the state’s Department of Natural Resources. “They fell the trees and gut them out. They just take out the middle of the tree and leave the rest laying there, like someone poaching an elk takes the head and leaves the rest to rot.”
From the Los Angeles Times:
Quietly giddy, Sarah Thornblade sat on the couch of a Pasadena home nervously anticipating the encounter. She’d been waiting for this moment for weeks; when it finally came she wasted no time. Thornblade stood, unzipped a soft, green case and extended both hands, carefully lifting her much awaited blind date: an $8-million Stradivarius violin.
From the Nelson Mail, New Zealand
In a quiet studio in New Zealand, Adrian Studer sits for hours on end, chiseling, scraping, and planing, over and over again. Surrounded by special tools hanging on hooks and scattered over his shaving-coated workbench, he crafts violins, cellos and violas by hand, taking more than 250 hours for each instrument.
From the Wall Street Journal:
Following a family tradition that he worked to perfect, Carl Becker became one of the most acclaimed violin makers of his time. Symphony orchestras around the world feature players who depend on Mr. Becker’s instruments, known for their bright, loud sound. Others are collected by wealthy amateurs.
“He was, in my opinion, the Twentieth Century’s outstanding maker of new violins, violas and cellos, as well as a meticulous restorer,” said Charles Beare, a London-based violin dealer. Mr. Becker died Jan. 30 at age 93.
From The Courier (Russellville, Arkansas):
Approximately 30 local businesses will be donating items for the Russellville Symphony Guild’s Silent Auction “The Talk of the Town Tables,” but no one gave an item quite like the one provided by Aldona Standridge of Goldmasters: a jewel-encrusted violin.
From Strings Magazine (allthingsstrings) on YouTube:
Michael Thurber (bass) and Charles Yang (violin) perform a duet on their NS Design electric stringed instruments at the company’s exhibit booth at NAMM 2013, the musical instrument trade show held in mid January at the Anaheim Convention Center.
The International Violin Competition is for violin players 17 and under as of the 24 November 2013. This years competition will be held over the 22-24 November weekend in the historic Old Musem Building, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
1st prize:
Guarneri replica violin, handcrafted by Konrad Kohlert, valued at $20.000 AUD. Konrad Kohlert will visit from Germany to hand over the prize.
2nd prize:
Voucher of $3000 to spend at Animato Strings
3rd prize:
Voucher of $1000 to spend at Animato Strings
The winner will perform their Mozart Concerto in a public conceret, accompanied by an orchestra that consists of contestants who didn’t win the first prize (see terms and conditions), comlemented by local viola and cello players under the baton of John Curro. The performance will be on 24 November, 2pm at the Old Museum Building.
A violin has started a journey across the United States and perhaps the world, thanks to Fiddlerman.com member VinceKnight (Dennis) who proposed the idea in the forum on January 7th. The idea took off figuratively and literally.
Dennis’ concept is simple: a violin will be sent from member to member. Each person who has temporary custody of the fiddle will play it, shoot photos and video of himself or herself, modify it by replacing strings or other parts, if they deem necessary, and sign the instrument before sending on to another member.
The Traveling Fiddle has begun its world tour and is now in the capable hands of member FTUFC (Fred).
The fiddle’s progress around the world will be plotted on a map right here on Fiddlerman.com. Follow its journey on the Traveling Fiddle page.
From the Los Angeles Times:
A valuable Scarampella violin is at the center a brewing legal dispute involving a musician with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Filip Fenrych, a Polish-born violinist with the orchestra, claims that he doesn’t owe $43,000 to a woman who authenticated a Scarampella violin after she sold it to him, without authentication, for a reduced price.
On Saturday, January 26th, several Fiddlerman.com forum members gathered, along with local fiddlers and other guests, at the Southern California home of member Fred Telarico (ftufc) for the first ever Fiddlerman SoCal BBQ and Jam.
Read all about it in Fred’s blog…
Watch the video:
Guest post from Jamie of “From His Presence”
You’ve probably heard that playing a musical instrument can do wonders for your child’s education. It’s true, music builds math and reading skills, confidence, and self-discipline; it provides an avenue for your child to make friends with other musicians and it can open doors for college scholarships.
However, music lessons can cost $60-$100 or more each month, and that can be tough on a family’s budget. Here are 5 practical ways afford music lessons, even when money is tight:
Stringed instruments in particular (violin, viola, cello, upright bass) are well-suited for group lessons. Popular string method books for beginners contain exercises that all the instruments can play together, so nobody gets bored.
Group lessons are more fun than playing alone, and playing music with others helps a new string player train his ear to hear correct pitch. Combining funds with other parents to pay for one weekly group lesson is a frugal way to grow young musicians.
The SA is renowned for its ability to train musicians—particularly brass players. The SA community center in my city offers an after-school music program to low-income and high-risk students. Students learn brass, guitar, percussion, and piano.
Not every SA chapter offers music programs, but if yours does and you meet the requirements, you’re not likely to find better instructors anywhere. (Note: I am not affiliated with the SA.)
Check with your local government to see if the city recreation centers offer music/arts programs. If they do, these programs will usually be affordable or even free. Common programs include drum/percussion instruction, dance instruction, etc.
The Joy of Music School in Knoxville, Tennessee, offers free music lessons to disadvantaged youth. If you have a similar school in your area, you’re likely to find excellent teachers and help obtaining an instrument there.
I play in the orchestra at my church, and we have players of all instruments — drums, guitars, bass, strings, brass, woodwinds, and keys — who are ready and willing to mentor.
If you are involved in a local church, ask your worship pastor if he knows any church musicians who would mentor your child. Even if there is no formal program, you still may find someone who is willing to help. Some churches also will have instruments that you child may be able to borrow.
If your child wants to play an instrument, don’t despair! Try one or more of these options and keep your ears open. You may find music lessons are easier to arrange than you dreamed. (Then, you will just have to put up with the noise of practice!)
Do you have any other ideas for how to find affordable music lessons? Leave a comment so everyone can benefit!
Original post: http://moneysavingmom.com/2013/01/5-ways-to-afford-music-lessons.html
Twenty-five fiddlerman.com members sent their videos in for a total of 52 tracks. Here is the result of the 2012 Fiddlerman Christmas Project.
Stay posted on Fiddlerman.com’s first page and especially on the forum for information on future projects
Enjoy!!!
Picklefish’s fiddle
Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I am 41 years old, I was born in Norwalk, Conneticut. My dad was in the Navy stationed in Groton, Ct. We moved pretty much every two years until 1984 when we landed in Merritt Island, Fl. Home of the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral Air station and the Naval Ordinance Test Unit. I am a Conneticut Yankee and was born “Under a wandering star”. I joined the Navy reserves right out of high school, went to bootcamp and tech school in San Diego, Ca. When I came back I went to culinary school in West Palm Beach, Fl. I traveled all over the East Coast working in a variety of restaurants. I was married 16 years and have three wonderful kids.
What made you decide to play the violin?
When my daughter started the third grade, the elementary school was a “school of the arts” so strings participation was part of the deal. When we visited the luthier to rent a violin I decided to rent one for myself in order to show my daughter and practice with her. Of course life, work, disinterest gets in the way and I never really learned much. Good Intentions, Id pick it up every once in a while and fool with it, but nothing serious. We ended up trading mine and hers in for a nicer Romanian model made in 2007 for her high-school orchestra. Fast forward 9 years, my daughter is doing real well with it, making her high school chamber orchestra. I got divorced (voted off the island!) in 2010 and while living with my parents, discovered my great grandmothers violin in the front closet. Needing a hobby to fill the void, I started back up with it using a book and self study.
How long have you been playing the violin?
I will claim 2 years as a serious pursuit. Since November 2010.
Picklefish sitting and relaxing
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I play everyday, probably 45 min to two hours. I often found myself playing at midnight just to unwind from work. I recently quit my job that I hated to practice more and focus on really driving improvement. I will acquire another job after the holidays. My practices are broken up into several smaller sessions. I use a technique I read about to max my brains chances to learn as quick as possible. Its based on a blog post by the bulletproof musician on how to practice. Each session is focused on one particular skill for improvement, always starting with intonation, then bowing and then from there its random depending on how I feel. Usually always variety of staccatos, slurs, arpeggios, string changes, doublestops, and now more recently shifting and vibrato exercises.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
I am on the cusp of being an “intermediate” level player. I feel I need to polish up and learn a few more things to really feel solid about that. I suppose once I can consistently play the 2nd violin of my churches orchestra music I will claim intermediate status. Being self taught its hard to really compare since I’m sure its not the traditional path. Then I found the violin masterclass online website. They have a ratings system based on traditional learning, and according to that I’m still just a beginner. lol. The more I learn, the more I find there is to learn still.
Picklefish playing in the garden
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
The transition from beginner to advanced beginner for me was thrilling. Being comfortable holding and bowing to the point where the fingerings in first position became effortless and harder songs started to get easy. That was awesome. Then teaching this 9th grader who never played before. Its been a year and Ive been able to see him improve and progress and that feeling that I helped is priceless. His life is forever impacted for good because of me. It has been an honor.
What other instruments do you play?
Play implies actually playing, lol. Ive played piano, trombone, clarinet, guitar, but have put those studies on hold until I have advanced more on Violin. I felt that it was too much for my grey matter to deal with. Still am what I would consider beginner level on all those.
What does music mean to you?
Music has always been in my life and my head. Its a terrific challenge for me, something I really enjoy figuring out. There is nothing else so inspirational, influential, international and accepted. All I have to do is mention music to a stranger and suddenly we are talking like old friends. It just brings people together. I love the bluegrass sound and the challenge of classical music. I also like movie soundtracks, the real orchestrated ones.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
My Mom, she has self taught herself to play several instruments over the years, flute, clarinet, violin, oboe and english horn. She has always played in church orchestras and community bands.
What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
My long term goal is to play well enough to try out for the Space Coast Symphony Orchestra and be that old guy everyone wants to take lessons from.
My short term goals all seem to lead along that path. One of which I am doing now, playing in my churches orchestra. The next step when I am consistent with their music, maybe next fall, is to be in the orchestra of The Cocoa Village Playhouse. A local community theater with live musicians hidden under the stage. Playing in public always terrified me until last year when I started hanging out at the park or in parking lots to drum up beginning students to teach.
What type of violin training?
The fiddlerman website of course! Initially I started with the book, All for strings. Then I progressed through books 1 of Suzuki, Oconnor, and Wicklund. I am currently progressing through the book 2s of each of their systems. I had two teachers each for two months. I was able to see that their style wasnt going to teach me much. (I am only moderately arrogant) I am interviewing someone younger for my next teacher this week, I will give him a chance. Since I know more about what is difficult for me, it will be easier to explain what I need from him. I want to know the cool secrets and tricks that impact the performance the most too. The 20% of information that gets 80% of the results.
How do you warm up?
Intonation training on the scale of the day, and bowing rhythm patterns is all i do, nothing special. Each day I work on a different key signature.
What is your favorite type of music?
I listened to country music most when I had a vehicle. Now its Youtube stuff Ive subscribed to which mimics my own musical goals. So finger-style guitar, flamenco and classical music, I like the music from Austin city limits and Woodsong, Songs of the mountain etc..
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
Suo Gan from Empire of the sun movie soundtrack- hauntingly beautiful. I also like the Charge of Ft Sumpter from the Glory movie soundtrack because of its baseline.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Right now I cook, being a former chef for the past 15 years. Nothing especially fancy or complicated, I’m a comfort food kind of guy. I find comfort in Cajun, Caribbean, Italian, Hispanic, German….Well, pretty much any type. I made Shrimp Etouffee this week. My dad is from North Carolina and always smoked some kind of pig at least once a week. I witnessed the process of preparing whole hog BBQ, from barnyard to grill, more than once for a Navy picnic. So, I carry on his tradition and smoke something a couple times a week. Something being pork or beef or poultry. I also like to cycle. I used to ride long distances before I got married. Now I am getting back into it partly to lose weight and partly because its my only source of transportation. I rode 70 miles this week.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Mom always had us 4 boys doing either a sport or something musical. We all swam on swim teams growing up, she usually coached. Two of my brothers played trumpet in school, my other one played french horn. I guess brass instruments were easy, I played trombone. My younger brother who played trumpet ended up getting a degree in music and teaching Highschool band.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
My church orchestra
Do you ever perform publicly?
Walmart parking lot, Target, Local parks. wherever the people are. Church orchestra and thats it for now.
What do you work with?
A 1890-1898 hand made Louis Lowendal special copy of Dominicus Magnalana violin. I assume its a Spanish or an Italian pattern. The sticker says it was made in Berlin, Germany and Louis was only in Berlin for 8 years before coming to America. Its unusual feature is the bone nut. I don’t know what kind of bone, but its not common to have one, I’ve been told. Lowendall was one of a number of late-19th century pioneers of shop made instruments for the mass market, eventually connecting with Sears to sell through their catalog. I gather that at some point he went from being a master luthier in Dresden to the director of a big shop in Berlin, manufacturing for the mass market. Ultimately, I gather he moved to the U.S., which had become the major market for his shop made instruments. Values are troublesome because of his Sears connection but as a family heirloom, to me its priceless.
Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
My violin originally belonged to my great grandmother on my moms side of the family. My mom and Grandmother both played it when they were growing up. I never knew it existed until I found it one day in the front closet. It was like it was waiting for me. My Moms side of the family is quite large and anyone of the cousins could’ve ended up with it just as well. I am very lucky.
I am currently using a carbon fiber bow that I bought from the local violin shop. I should’ve purchased one from the fiddlershop as it was less expensive, but I have also this shop local idea in my head. My original student bow weighed 66 grams and I outgrew it quickly. The carbon fiber makes all the difference.
Twenty-five fiddlerman.com members sent their videos in for a total of 52 tracks. This is the result of the 2012 Fiddlerman Christmas Project.
For information on future projects stay posted at Fiddlerman.com and especially the forum. See below the instructions, sheetmusic and clicktrack for the project.
All interested violinists and violists are welcome to learn the parts arranged and available here on Fiddlerman.com for the “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” International Youtube Project for Christmas 2012.
In the second week of December members will record themselves individually using this click track and send the files to Fiddlerman who will create a memorable combined “Christmas 2012″ International youtube video just in time to post to all your friends on Christmas.
Download the appropriate part or all the parts and learn them as well as you can.
Record yourself using the Click track in ear (not audible on the recording) and SPREND the file to pierre@fiddlerman.com (Do not email any files, they will be too big)
Deadline for turning in the audio or video files is for now, December 10th. Please spread the word to everyone you know that plays the violin. The more the merrier. Ho – ho – ho!!!
If you don’t wish to be seen just record audio. I will mix the parts first then add the video. Sending a video gives Fiddlerman.com the rights to use the video as seen fit for a youtube project.
Demo and help videos of the violin parts by Fiddlerman soon to come.
Everyone is welcome to participate in this fun and exciting project. I encourage you to recruit players to make this event even more fun.
Download any or all parts and choose the most appropriate one to record based on your capabilities.
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen PDF sheet-music parts:
Violin
Viola
MP3 files from Finale file
See previous projects:
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc. 63 years – Madurai, India – Tuticorin, India.
• What made you decide to play the violin? When I was 12 years old, for the first time, I attended a live carnatic music concert and there I was attracted by the violin.
• How long have you been playing the violin? Since August 12, 2010.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions? Before February 2012, I was practicing a total of an hour every day. Now I practice 3 hrs a day.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin? If there is an Intermediate and Advanced category in the Beginner’s section, I may be classified under Advanced Beginner category.
• Your greatest personal experience with playing? It happened one day in May 2012. My violin came alive. I could generate sweet sound and was smooth to play and I wanted to go on and on and on..
• What other instruments do you play? I don’t play any other instrument. Thinking of taking up flute.
• What does music mean to you? I need air to breathe, water to drink and music to hear and feel.
• What or who has been your greatest influence? A seven-string carnatic violinist T.Chowdiah
• What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long. Short Term: To learn all the major and minor scales. Long Term: To play Beethoven’s Violin Concerto Op.61
(I am confident at my current pace, I can play it in another 300 years..)
• What type of violin training? I am taking weekly lessons from a teacher who is located nearly 35miles/56 Km away
• How do you warm up? I play the open strings and then one or two scales and a very well known piece…all consuming nearly 45minutes.
• What is your favorite type of music? Classical music in Western, Carnatic and Hindustani.
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why? Beethoven’s violin concerto Op. 61; The opening drum beats and the 3rd movement transports me to a new world. There are other pieces as well.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin? Reading books and listening to music.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them. My mother learned carnatic music for some years. She had a beautiful voice and to me she was better than world famous carnatic vocalist M.S.Subbulakshmi. My daughter is learning violin. My son plays Guitar, Keyboard and Harmonica. My wife plays the veena
• Are you a member of any orchestra? I hope to be a member in another 100 years.
• Do you ever perform publicly? I practice in the open area in front of our house.(if you treat this as my public performance)
• What do you work with? I am a retired banker.
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well. Mine is a Granada MV888 violin, made in China. It cost me $100. I am using the heavy bow that came with it. I like my violin and the bow.
Twenty one members particapated in the Halloween project 2012. A few members recorded all five parts. Eight members sent in videos. This is the result. Special thanks to all the participants:
Violin 1: Adverse, Esse, Fiddlerdude, Fiddlerman, Janet, Minh, Sara
Viola 1: HeadCheese
Violin 2: Fiddlerman, Heather, Jake, Minh
Violin 3: Fiddlerman, Minh, MusicLover, ViolinGirl
Violin 3 and Cello: Xavi and Dani
Violin 4: Fiddlerman, Julie, Minh, TunesB
Violin 5: Alma, Diane, Minh, Naska
Violin 5 and Cello: Xavi and Dani
Stay posted for information on the next project which will be ready in time for Christmas.
See below the details that were posted beforehand along with all the parts available for your download and demo parts:
All interested violinists and violists are welcome to learn the parts arranged and available here on Fiddlerman.com for the “Ghostbusters” International Youtube Project for Halloween 2012.
At the beginning of October members will record themselves individually using a click track and send the files to Fiddlerman who will create a memorable combined “Ghostbusters” International youtube video just in time to post to all your friends on Halloween.
Download the appropriate part or all the parts and learn them as well as you can.
Record yourself using the Ghostbusters click track in ear (not audible on the recording) and SPREND the file to pierre@fiddlerman.com (Do not email any files, they will be too big)
Deadline for turning in the audio or video files is for now, October 8th. Please spread the word to everyone you know that plays the violin. The more the merrier.
If you don’t wish to be seen just record audio. I will mix the parts first then add the video. Sending a video gives Fiddlerman.com the rights to use the video as seen fit for a youtube project.
Demo and help videos of the violin parts by Fiddlerman soon to come.
Everyone is welcome to participate in this fun and exciting project. I encourage you to recruit players to make this event even more fun.
Download any or all parts and choose the most appropriate one to record based on your capabilities.
Ghostbusters – VIOLN
Ghostbusters – VIOLA
Watch HOW TO videos on each part:
Midi parts:
See previous projects:
Phrasing can make your performance special. To phrase is to do with music exactly the same thing you do when you tell a story or communicate language expressively. Use dynamics and expressions to convey your feelings about a piece of music. Some of the ways of phrasing are moving tempos forward or slowing down, making crescendo’s (getting louder) or diminuendo’s (getting softer) show direction or emphasize certain vital notes. Very often the traditional way to phrase in music is to get louder as you go up and softer as you go down in the scale but this is not a rule. Singing the piece in your head as you play helps understand how it should be played.
Exaggerate dynamics and make every single note count. Sometimes we feel as though we are playing dynamics but in order for others to hear them, we need to do much more.
Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
Hello, everyone!! Well for starters my name is Clint. I am 31 years young and I live in Amarillo, TX. (Yes…another Texan, woohoo!!!) I was born in a smaller town about 50 miles south of Amarillo, called Hereford. (Yes, Hereford; as in the maroon and white cow –sigh-.) So I am actually a small town boy. I have lived in California, Oklahoma and Florida, (the Orlando area for the Floridians in here.) My stint in California was in San Diego and the Camp Pendleton area… that’s right, Marine Corp., baby!! Oorah!! I was in the service for a short period of time. I was discharged early due to tearing up my right leg in Camp Pendleton. But I am still a very proud supporter of our service members. Semper Fi. I am happily married to my second wife and between the two of us we have 5 kids total. Their ages range from 10 down to 4, and I love all my kids as equals. No “step” in any of my kids. I also have 5 dogs, two cats and 18 chickens. (I only claim one dog, though, my Rottweiler, Tater. He is my buddy and best friend.)
What made you decide to play the violin?
I tried to learn the piano a few years back. I bought a $200 keyboard from a music store that was supposed to “teach you to play.” I really enjoyed it. Never really learned to play, but I loved to sit and create whatever sounded good to my ear. I lost my keyboard off the trailer when I moved to Amarillo and it was destroyed on the side of the road. (I was VERY upset.) I never picked up another instrument until the violin 4 months ago. What brought me back to the world of instruments? One word, David Garrett. I was on YouTube one day listening to Metallica S&M and saw another video about some weird guy who broke the Guinness record for Flight of the Bumblebee. So I watched it and thought he was pretty cool. Then I saw his Smooth Criminalcover on the violin and was amazed. It sounded so rock, but also so Classical. David Garrett was the inspiration behind my wanting to become a violinist, (even an amateur one.)
How long have you been playing the violin?
I started playing shortly after joining the Fiddlerman family. So mid-May? Yea, we’ll go with that.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I play just about every day. My violin sits beside my recliner and whenever the mood hits me, I pull it up to my chin and I’ll play. I’ve been known, much to my wife’s dismay, to begin playing quietly while a movie is going. When I do begin to play, sometimes I will play for 5 minutes or sometimes I will play for a couple of hours. It just depends on how the mood strikes me.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
I am not very good. I can play a few simple pieces, but nothing major. I started taking actual classes in the fall, and I am learning the Suzuki Method. It is interesting and it seems to really click. So taking this into account, three weeks of actual classes, totaling 1:30, four months of Fiddlerman.com and my own personal practice routine…I suck! Ha! But I am learning and I am still enjoying it!
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
So far, my best experience is when I finally got Ode to Joy sounding like, well, Ode to Joy! I know what it is suppose to sound like, so when it finally started sounding good, that was pretty impressive to me. Not a big deal, I know, but to me it was showing I could do this violin thing.
What other instruments do you play?
I can whistle really well.
What does music mean to you?
Ah music! To me music is the only truly pure thing left in this world. With technology taking over every aspect of our lives, to me music is the one escape from everything. The sounds of ever type of music can play to many different aspects of my life. I am very eclectic in my music. Rock, Classical, Heavy Metal, R&B, Soul, Motown, Big Band, Cool Jazz…anything I find I like, I put on my iPod. To me, music is EVERYTHING. (Ok, next to my kids…music is everything.)
What or who has been your greatest influence?
In the field of music, my only influence is myself. I am the one that brought music into my family. My wife listens to the radio, but has no appreciation for it. I fought, tooth and nail, to get my wife to let my eldest daughter start violin this school year. Now that I have my “screeching” going through the house, my wife is starting to like it. Soon, my daughter will be screeching along with me and those sounds will be the sounds of progress and the sounds of a father and his daughter doing something together that does not include Xbox or Wii. And THAT is the legacy I want to leave my family.
What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
Short term goals? I want to be able to learn to read music well enough to help my daughter. Long term goal? I want to be able to pull out my violin on the Fourth of July and play the National Anthem, or play A Night on Bald Mountain during Halloween or Carol of the Bells on Christmas Day. I have no aspirations to be great at the violin. I do, however wish to be able to go into a music store or pawn shop, take a violin off the shelf and play a song that makes people stop and listen. I want to take my violin to the lobby of some busy bank or office complex and begin playing a song in the lobby that they will keep with them all day. My dream is to bring the sound of an instrument back into places where all the music they hear is poor sounding “elevator music” that no one cares about. That is my goal!
What type of violin training?
As stated above… 4 months of Fiddlerman.com and 1:30 of professional one on one training.
How do you warm up?
I warm up with a Twinkle Twinkle from my Suzuki book. Once I get the sound right, I then look over my homework and other material I have.
What is your favorite type of music?
Anything with a great sound. I can listen to anything, Classical, Rock, etc… My all time favorite style of music is Classical Rock. At least that is what I call it. I love Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera, Metallica S&M, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, David Garrett’s Rock Symphonies and other styles of rock music that have an orchestra behind it. The two sounds together are beautiful.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
Beethoven’s 5th Symphony. I first heard it on TV and thought it was cool. Then I heard TSO’s Requiem, the Fifth and fell in love all over again. Then David Garrett and ever rock style version of Beethoven’s greatest piece ever sense. Beethoven was the first true “rock star.”
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
I am an avid NFL football fan. I am a huge fan of the Tennessee Titans (former Houston Oilers). I also enjoy spending a lot of time listening to music on my iPod as I draw or write comic book fan fiction.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
No. My family has never been big on music. My dad will listen to the radio, classic rock, at work as will my other. Other than that; nothing really musical about my family.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Heaven help the orchestra if I was!!
Do you ever perform publicly?
So long as no one is around. 
What do you work with?
My hands and my brain, so not a lot of work there.
Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I have currently, one violin. I have no idea what brand it is or how old it is. Ole Roy is a free violin I got from my aunt. It was my little cousins. He left it after he moved away from home. My aunt was cleaning out her closet one day and found it. Having remembered I was looking for a violin via my obsessive Facebook posts, she called and asked if I would like to have it. I got it and it was in pretty rough shape. I had new D’darrio Pro-Arte strings put on, a new bridge fitted and a nice cleaning. It sounds pretty good for a freebie! My bow is a Fiddlerman Carbon Fiber bow. I also have a Brazilwood bow that came with the violin, but I never use it. It is just a nice backup. My CF bow is my favorite and even my instructor liked it. She said it handled really well. (She said she had never heard of a Fiddlerman Brand, but I told her it was special.) Finally, my violin and bows rest nicely in my Embassy Courier case I bought from Fiddlershop.com. A very nice case, I love it!!
Upon receiving a brand new violin from the internet or local retail store, chances are you need to set or move the bridge in the right location and position and tune your violin up from almost or complete loose.
Learning to easily set up a violin with loose or new strings will make all kind of jobs much easier. Don’t be afraid to work on your instrument. The more you do it the easier it becomes. When changing a whole set of strings, simply loosen, remove, change and re-tune one string at a time.
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc. My name is Diane. I just turned 50 in July. I was born and raised in Rhode Island, attended college in Boston, got a job in Boston after college and have lived in Massachusetts ever since. Now I work in western Massachusetts and live about 30 miles southwest of Boston, just north of the Rhode Island border.
• What made you decide to play the violin? Well, I’ve always loved violin and fiddle music, and have played a number of other instruments over the years, but a seemingly unrelated sequence of events led to my taking up the violin.
A number of years back I had occasion to travel to Shepherdstown, West Virginia a few times for work and discovered a place called O’Hurley’s General Store, which has a Thursday night jam session for local musicians who play guitars, fiddles, banjos, hammer dulcimers, harp, tin whistles, sometimes a bodhrán or Celtic drum. They play Appalachian folk music, Celtic music and the like.
I enjoyed the O’Hurley’s jam session so much that when my husband and I planned a trip to see Civil War and Revolutionary War sites in area, we orchestrated our itinerary so that we’d pass through Shepherdstown on a Thursday.
The last time we were there, which was last December, we really enjoyed one particular song called Eternal Friendship, which we found out later was recorded by Natalie MacMaster. I remarked at the time that I’d love to be able to play it on the violin someday.
The seed of an idea was planted, albeit unintentionally. A few months later, my husband gave me my violin for Valentine’s Day.
• How long have you been playing the violin? Almost seven months, since Valentine’s Day, 2012.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions? I try to play every day. I usually practice 30 to 45 minutes on week days and an hour or more on weekend days.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin? Hmmm. Guess I’d say Intermediate Beginner, if there is such a thing.
• Your greatest personal experience with playing? As far as the violin is concerned, my greatest experience is just getting the violin and realizing what a beautiful instrument it is, how much I love playing it. With music in general, I have many great memories associated with the different instruments that I’ve played over the years: playing the guitar around the campfire at summer camp, playing the flute with the high school band on a trip to Italy and playing the fife at historical events during the Bicentennial.
• What other instruments do you play? My primary instrument is the guitar. I’ve played guitar since I was 11 years old. That doesn’t necessarily mean that I’m really good at it, but I’d say that I play well enough to entertain myself and occasionally other people. My first instrument was the recorder. Then I took up the guitar, and later the fife and the flute. I’ve also dabbled with the harmonica a bit.
• What does music mean to you? Music has been an important part of my life at various times. It provided a way to make friends when I was a kid. As I got older, it’s mostly been a relaxing pastime. I have to admit that my interest in and the amount of time that I devoted to music had waned a bit, but I credit my husband for renewing my musical interest and enthusiasm, first by giving me a new guitar a couple of Christmases ago – a pretty Epiphone Hummingbird that ties in my love of hummingbirds – and my violin this year.
• What or who has been your greatest influence? My family.
• What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long. My short term goal is to be able to play without scratching, squeaking or whistling, and without hitting adjacent strings. My intermediate goal is to be able to play a few songs relatively well for others. My long term goal is to be able to play well enough to play in a group or jam session.
• What type of violin training? I’m taking weekly private lessons at a local music shop. Plus, I’ve been viewing videos and using other instructional materials on fiddlerman.com. And, Fiddlerman’s group projects are serving as “stretch” projects that get me to try more advanced techniques.
• How do you warm up? I start with scales, then I play a few tunes that I’ve memorized, just to shake off the cobwebs. Then I’ll get into exercises in my lesson book, and finally I’ll work on sheet music for a few songs that I’d like to play well.
• What is your favorite type of music? I love anything acoustic, particularly if it includes guitar, fiddle or violin, banjo, mandolin, etc. I enjoy Celtic and Irish music, early American folk music, Colonial and Civil War era music, contemporary folk music, some Country music, bluegrass, and pop music that features acoustic instruments.
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why? It’s hard to pick just one. For violin music, I love Eternal Friendship, as well as a few other pieces on Natalie MacMaster CDs, including Farewell to Peter and Johsefin’s Waltz. I really love the Schindler’s List Theme. There are some songs from movies that I enjoy like Edelweiss and Somewhere Over the Rainbow, and I’ve got a whole set of other favorites on the guitar.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin? Travel and photography, which often go hand-in-hand. I also enjoy gardening and writing, but you only asked for two.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them. Not so much, though my husband plays the keyboards and is learning to play the violin, too.
• Are you a member of any orchestra? No, not ready for that yet. Maybe someday.
• Do you ever perform publicly? Not yet. Unless you count the videos that I’ve posted on Fiddlerman.com and the Bile Em Cabbage Down project. The only people that I’ve ever played for in person are my husband, my teacher and my parents.
• What do you work with? I’m a public affairs officer with a federal government agency. My job involves strategic communications planning, media relations, writing and editing, special event planning, photography, publication development, multimedia production, web publishing and social media.
Although it’s primarily an office job, I’m fortunate that because of the nature of my agency’s work, I have many opportunities to get out from behind the computer and get outdoors to attend and shoot photos at events, field visits, etc. I also get to travel occasionally for work.
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well. My husband gave me my violin for Valentine’s Day this year. It’s not a brand name but I think it has very good sound, and my teacher confirms that. I also love the way it looks with its matte finish.
I have two bows: the wooden bow that came with the violin and Fiddlerman’s carbon fiber bow. I use the CF bow most of the time and keep the other bow in my case, just in case I forget to pack the CF bow (yes, I’ve done that).
I’ve changed the strings once, to Zyex silver. I put a center chin rest on for a while but recently went back to the original regular chin rest. I’m on my third shoulder rest, which is working pretty well.
Fiddlerman members downloaded and practiced parts of 4 varying skill levels and worked hard to perfect them as well as possible. After a determined time they used a click track found on the project page to record themselves and submit their result to Fiddlerman who then put together this cool group video. You too can get involved in the next group project. It’s fun, educational and best of all, It’s FREE!!!!
By: Ronna Kaplan, M.A.
A couple months ago there was a big buzz about a video circulating widely on the Internet. The video, called “Alive Inside,” showed a social worker giving an iPod filled with music to a nursing home resident. What ensued allowed viewers to witness the amazing power of music: Henry, the gentleman featured in the story, does indeed come alive while listening to music of his era, and after doing so he lifts up his head, he opens his eyes, his face lights up and he talks about the music, he reminisces, and he shares what music means to him.
This is just a short clip from a documentary by Michael Rossato-Bennett that follows Dan Cohen, social worker and executive director of Music & Memory, whose mission is to improve the quality of life for people who are elderly and infirm through the use of personalized music and digital technology. His iPod Project brings iPods loaded with patients’ favorite music to long-term care facilities. The project’s aims “are to support the initiation of iPod-based personalized music programs regardless of one’s location (e.g., at home, in a nursing home, assisted living facility, hospital, or hospice) and raise public awareness about the benefits of keeping engaged with a rich personal music environment regardless of physical, cognitive, or social condition.”
What Cohen observed and viewers can observe in the film is that individuals with memory loss seem to “awaken” when they experience music to which they have an emotional attachment. Neurologist Oliver Sacks has explained, “Music imprints itself on the brain deeper than any other human experience. Music evokes emotion and emotion can bring with it memory.”
Furthermore, according to Connie Tomaino, executive director and co-founder of the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function and senior vice president for music therapy at CenterLight Health System, formerly Beth Abraham Family of Health Services, “Music is an essential bridge to connecting people with dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease to themselves, their loved ones and their personal history.”
Using music in nursing homes and health care facilities is nothing new. It’s been happening since the 1940s. Music therapy, “the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has completed an approved music therapy program” has specifically been occurring since then as well. According to the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT), “over 5,300 music therapists currently maintain the MT-BC credential and participate in a program of recertification designed to measure or enhance competence in the profession of music therapy.”
What is new, however, is how readily accessible music can be because of the iPod and other technology. The power of music and its inherent abilities to animate, enliven, stimulate and more are the very basis of the profession of music therapy. The combination of readily accessible music and a qualified, trained professional music therapist is a very strong mixture. Suzanne Hanser writes that patients who are “the most withdrawn and confused” due to Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias “are able to participate actively in music therapy sessions.” [4] In addition, “as music demands reality-oriented behavior in the present without risk of failure, even the most cognitively impaired older adults master musical tasks with enhanced self-respect.” [2] [5] And many music therapists now work with patients and their family caregivers. [3]
Connie Tomaino comments that Henry’s profound response in the film shows how dramatic the right music can be — but it is not until someone speaks to Henry that we hear his response about what the music means to him. Since we know that music can be positive as well as negative, input from a music therapist would maximize the music’s therapeutic benefits. If a person can be awakened simply by listening to his favorite music, imagine what would happen if he participated in sessions with a professional music therapist on a regular basis… Music therapy can take these “in the moment” responses to a different level of improved attention, awareness, social interaction, connection to others, even improved memory, whereas the iPod is only tapping into the possibilities.
Take, for example, a music therapy session with Molly. [6] Molly was a quiet woman who was pleasantly observant during group programs but otherwise nonverbal. She had been diagnosed with advanced dementia, and she no longer recognized family or time and place. Sometimes she was tearful and withdrawn.
Molly’s family had mentioned that she enjoyed old but popular Irish American tunes, like “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling,” and James Cagney movies. Her records mentioned that she grew up in England and then came to the U.S. in her early adolescence. The music therapist worked with Molly in a group program on her unit but found that Molly was mostly responsive to two songs: “It’s a Long Way to Tipperary” and “An Irish Lullaby.” Seeing these positive responses informed the music therapist that Molly had a particular connection to these songs compared to others of the same genre.
Working with Molly in individual sessions, the music therapist played these songs — both live on the accordion and on recordings to further engage Molly’s responses. Remember, up to now she had been nonverbal. With each session Molly started opening her mouth as if trying to sing the song — sometimes random words would be spoken. The music therapist was able to make pauses in the song when these words were spoken to see if Molly was trying to communicate something about the song. As the therapist analyzed the verbalizations she realized that Molly was speaking about an apartment, a house number and her family. Some of the images were of towns in Ireland rather than England. When the music therapist asked Molly’s family about this, they noted that Molly spent her early childhood in Ireland. This information had been forgotten by family as it was so long ago they didn’t think it mattered. Fleeting images were being verbally expressed as the music therapist continued to play, pause and allow Molly to respond to the music in real time. Without this ongoing and regular engagement between the music therapist and Molly, the meaning of these verbalizations would have been missed.
A response in the moment is only “scratching the surface.” It is a fleeting reaction to something familiar. But with the music therapist engaging the client in those responses there becomes a potential for maximizing therapeutic benefit or treatment. The therapist may learn to understand where the responses are coming from and why.
It is the hope of Michael Rossato-Bennett, the filmmaker, “that this film awakens people’s hearts and helps make it possible to bring music to those in nursing homes, people who don’t even know how deeply they need music’s gifts.” And I’d like to add, when the music arrives, it is my fervent hope that there will be music therapists around to guide the process, ready to accept referrals of individuals into the program, develop rapport with them, assess their strengths and needs, set goals and objectives for their therapy, observe, develop music therapy strategies, plan and implement music therapy interventions, evaluate progress on an ongoing basis, and readjust and reassess as needed.
So, the more music the better! Ensuring that residents in nursing homes and others have access to music of their choice is a fabulous goal to strive toward. In addition, with the mission of “advancing public awareness of the benefits of music therapy and increasing access to quality music therapy services in a rapidly changing world,” provision of music therapy services to aid in the recovery of illness or lessen the impact of a disabling condition is also a goal to which we in the American Music Therapy Association are striving.
For more resources, fact sheets, or a bibliography on music therapy with individuals with dementia or to purchase helpful references, such as Music Therapy with Geriatric Populations (Belgrave, Walworth, Darrow & Wlodarczyk, 2011), visit www.musictherapy.org.
via Ronna Kaplan, M.A.: Music Therapy for Individuals With Alzheimer’s and Other Dementias.
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
Well for starters I’m 60 years old now and live in a small town in central North Carolina. I have lived here for almost 35 years now but still call Bristol TN home. I was a military brat for about 6 years until my Mom put her foot down and my father got out of the USAF, the I enlisted in the Air Force during the Vietnam war and got out after 4 years 3 months, then I went to college at ETSU in Johnson City TN. After that I got a job with Western Electric.
• What made you decide to play the violin?
I started playing because I figured if my father could start playing at age 80 I could try playing too.
• How long have you been playing the violin?
I have been playing since just after Christmas of 2011.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I try to play about half an hour a day each day. Some times I make it some times I don’t.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
I’m a fairly bad beginner.
• Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Getting pretty good at playing “Boil Em Cabbage Down”.
• What other instruments do you play?
I used to play Sax almost 20 years ago and tried to play flute once for a while.
• What does music mean to you?
Music is just for fun, I don’t like taking it serious.
• What or who has been your greatest influence?
Not much of anything.
• What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
I only really play for myself and I just want to be able to play a few things pretty well.
• What type of violin training?
Like many others just Fiddlerman and my internet wanderings.
• How do you warm up?
I just start playing and do some scales.
• What is your favorite type of music?
Anything but Rap.
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
most anything from the sixties and seventies.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
I like to fly high power rockets and do a little shooting.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Can’t say that anyone in my family really plays anything. My father gave up on the Violin.
• Are you a member of any orchestra?
Not a member and don’t plan on being one.
• Do you ever perform publicly?
NO!
• What do you work with?
My hands.
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I started out with a Cecilo CVN 500 which I still really like. The second one is a Viola that I can’t play because I can’t reach the notes with my short fingers. Then I bought a VSO from China which has beautiful burl/birds eye maple back and sides. When I got it it was totally unplayable – the strings touched the fingerboard and the fingerboard was bowed in the middle. These were two separate problems which I have been working on. At least now I can play it but it is still not very good. The last Violin I bought was at a fiddlers convention a few miles from the house. It is a German Violin with out a name of any kind. Just this past weekend I brought home my 3/4 German Violin that I loaned my Father. It NEEDS new strings very bad. I will need to get some from FM.com soon. I can’t believe that I have so many instruments already. I bought the 3/4 16 or 17 years ago just to hang on the wall.
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
Well, I was born August 12, 1980 (hard to believe I’m 31!) and was raised just south of Chicago in Northwest Indiana. I lived right on the border of industry and farm land. Just a short trip north, I had the big city life and a short trip south, I had the peace and quiet of the open country. When I was in college at Purdue, I thought I preferred city life, but now I’m growing to appreciate the peacefulness of a small town where I currently reside with my wife of 5 years.
• What made you decide to play the violin?
I have always been fascinated with violin for as long as I can remember! When I was a kid, I was a ring bearer in a friend’s wedding and at the reception, they had violinists performing. I promptly fashioned my own mock violin out of straws, which I confiscated from adult beverages when no one was looking! I played air violin with them all night! That was my first encounter with the violin. In grade school, I actually asked our band instructor to play violin first, but was turned away because they didn’t have any for rent. I ended up taking home a Tenor Saxophone which was as big as I was! My dad promptly made me return it as I could hardly hold it and traded it for a trumpet. After playing trumpet for several years, playing violin was an afterthought until I had a horrible accident at work. For nearly 4 years, I couldn’t play any instruments while I tried to regain mobility and learned to walk again. One day, after physical therapy, we passed a music shop that had violins for sale. There was me, standing there feeling like a kid all over again! I later asked my doctor and physical therapist if I would be able to play violin without causing further damage. That’s when the light bulb lit up! They told me that they would incorporate practice into my home exercise program to help strengthen my neck, back and shoulder! It really helped motivate me during a pretty low period of my life! Plus, it’s a bit comical to see me sitting on a huge yoga ball, marching in place while playing violin in my workout clothes!
• How long have you been playing the violin?
I have been playing violin for nearly 7 months now.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I actually play several times a day. I would probably say 8 to 10 times a day for about a half hour each time with bow. Any other time, I can be found sitting my recliner with my violin in my lap without the bow!
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Definitely beginner! I was leaning toward intermediate, but there’s so much more to learn! It’s going to be fun!
• Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Just the other weekend, I played for a candlelight tour during a Civil War living history.
I had several challenges to overcome such as standing and playing, low light playing, memorizing new songs, speaking in front of a crowd and of course, my own nerves. Things actually went great! We had a crowd of about 30 or 40 people show up and the other musicians and I pulled it off without a hitch! It was a great feeling to have that ovation in the end and knowing that we did it!
• What other instruments do you play?
Wow, several! Almost any brass instrument (trumpet, Bb cornet, treble & bass clef baritone, bugle, tuba, et.), some woodwinds (alto/tenor saxophone, et.), strings (guitar, bass guitar, et.) and piano.
• What does music mean to you?
Music is what drives me in life. Either listening, learning, playing or writing, music is always a part of me. I lost it for nearly 4 years and it was the worst time of my life. It was at that point that I knew how important music really was to me.
• What or who has been your greatest influence?
There are actually several! My wife of course, if it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have anybody else that I would want to impress (and who I met in band at our high school!). My old band instructor, who has helped me immensely from middle school all the way through high school. My doctors who allowed me the opportunity to start playing all over again. And of course, this site and all the members. Without it, I’d still be aimlessly scratching and screeching with only a book to guide me!
• What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
Let’s see, short term would have to be: learn my next position and learn to play “Granny Does Your Dog Bite!” Well, that might take a while! I’m actually attempting to write out and arrange a full violin part for Mary Fahl’s “Going Home.” Long term would have to be learning enough about violin that I can share it with others.
• What type of violin training?
I actually don’t have any formal violin training or have taken any lessons. I use books, Youtube tutorials and forums on fiddlerman.com primarily. I’ve been trying to use my previous classical music training on other instruments to help. But wow, violin is definitely different from anything I have ever played!
• How do you warm up?
Usually with scales on multiple strings, then one string. I’ll also start with bowing individual notes then 1-2 bow strokes per scale. Then play a few easy tunes to make sure my muscle memory is working.
• What is your favorite type of music?
Well, that depends on the weather, time of day, season, mood, how hungry I am, if I’m tired, if I’m bored, if I’m stressed……you get the picture! I listen to many different types such as classical, country, metal, rock, folk, Celtic, et. Right now, I’m currently on a movie soundtrack kick!
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
This is another tough one! I have a few current ones such as: “Ben’s Theme” from the Movie National Treasure, “Ashokan Farewell” by Jay Ungar, “Going Home” by Mary Fahl, “Old Rosin The Beau,” “The Ecstasy of Gold” by Ennio Morricone, “May It Be” by Enya, I could go on all day! I can call each one of these of favorite because I can close my eyes and actually get lost in these songs. They have so much meaning far beyond what’s written and you can actually feel the emotion behind what is being played and attach my own personal experiences to them!
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
That would have to be Civil War Reenacting and Photography! If I don’t have a violin in my hand, I’m sure to have a camera.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Not really. We have a few music hobbyists here and there, but not much. My parents often wondered where I came from! They didn’t even know I played piano for several years. One day, they took me to music store while on vacation and I sat down behind one and began to play. My parent’s jaws were firmly on the ground when I finished! My dad actually though the piano was an auto-player! I had to explain that I also learned piano aside from trumpet in school! It was quite funny!
• Are you a member of any orchestra?
I’ve recently played with the Highland Community Band (trumpet) and several smaller pep bands and community orchestras. Once a year, we all combine and play in the Chapel at Valparaiso University! Having that many musicians in essentially, an acoustic chamber, was mind numbing! But nothing with violin yet!
• Do you ever perform publicly?
Yes I do! Sometimes by accident when I take my violin to practice at the local park, though! I have been playing at our Civil War Reenactments for visitors and for candlelight tours. It’s nerve wrecking, but fun!
• What do you work with?
Before my accident, I was a public relations consultant and worked in media relations. I helped companies and organizations reach the public with new media and social network outlets while maintaining traditional methods such as press releases, media alerts and events. I’m basically a marketing and communication specialist that doesn’t need a sale’s budget!
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
Let’s see, my primary violin is a 2011 Palatino VN-450 with the factory bow. For the price, it was a good buy! It sounds a little big on the bright side, but it’s actually starting to settle in. I also have another violin which I rescued from a garbage pile! It is a 1922 Stainer. Currently, I’m in the process of bringing it back to playing condition and doing a little more research on the type. It definitely has its own personality and style!
Call for international boycott of recruitment auditions at the Malaysian Philharmonic
Published Monday July 30th, 2012 | Posted in Asia, International solidarity, Orchestras
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. You may have seen recent advertisements for positions in the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, to be held in New York, in October, 2012. There are several very important reasons why one should NOT attend these auditions: and more – why the musicians in the MPO need all of your support in answering the advertisement, via email, to the managers, board of directors, and M.D. as to “WHY I AM NOT ATTENDING YOUR AUDITIONS!”
Earlier this year, the new orchestra CEO – Nor Raina, appointed by the parent petroleum company PETRONAS – sent “non-renewal” notices (effectively “termination”) to 9 key musicians in the orchestra, apparently for NO REASON whatsoever. These NINE players have been employed 5 years, 9 years, 12 years, and in 4 cases, 14 years. Almost all of the players have families, most with young children. This CEO, with absolutely no music background, has never spoken face to face with any of the ‘dismissed’ musicians. The M.D., Claus Peter Flor, has remained virtually silent on the action, but has insisted that the decisions were beyond his control. His denials have been met with skepticism by the musicians…
Dismissed are: Concertmaster, Co-Concertmaster, Tutti 1st Violin (Orchestra Committee Chairman…!), Tutti Viola (wife of Orchestra Committee Chairman…!), Section Percussion (also Orchestra Committee member …!), Principal Timpani, Principal Trombone. Also included are Principal Piano and another Section Viola (Piano position is being cut, and 2nd violist is past retirement age, so they are unable to take legal action.) The other seven positions are now being advertised for the NEW YORK auditions. These SEVEN, however, have filed legal action with the Industrial Relations Court, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The file has been sent already to the Labour Minister for review and probable referral to a court hearing.
Management has consistently declared “NO REASON” for selecting these 7 players – and destroying their livelihoods. Now, however, the new contracts are out to the remaining 70 musicians, and the “reasons” seem a little more explainable… and indecent. These seven players, and the Orchestra Committee, would most certainly be the voices of the orchestra in protesting the changes and disrespect that this new contract represents to the musicians. Now, however, the intimidation effect of firing these seven has assured management of little or no resistance in getting it signed and accomplished. Musicians were asked to sign and return the new contracts within a few days.
If these were not reasons enough to boycott the MPO auditions – it gets even more serious: The“new musicians” being sought by management, to fill these 9 chairs, and 23 other vacancies are being offered much reduced contracts. New members will be signing for 20 – 25% LESS pay than existing members – replacing illegally dismissed, long-term, dedicated musicians, with scaled down contracts.
This, in itself, is an affront to the music profession, and symphony orchestra standards. The concept of FIRING long term musicians only to try their luck at hiring slightly cheaper ones, is disgraceful and beyond most decent people’s moral comprehension. ANYONE WHO TAKES THIS AUDITION, AND FILLS THESE SPOTS, WILL BE JUSTIFYING THE MPO MANAGEMENT’S ACTIONS AS A FINANCIAL SUCCESS. Further, the remaining 70 musicians and their families will simply become ‘corporate targets’ for further “cost-cutting” strategies. Fire another 10 or 20? Reduce some more costs? Beyond this, the current audition procedure is completely corrupt and without standard voting procedures. Will you waste your time and money on this type of audition?
As well, anyone receiving a contract offer had better read some of the new clauses VERY CAREFULLY. The usage of “Fixed Term Contract”, is widespread in this document – and is the management’s way out for cutting any musician at the end of any term, without cause or reason. You will not be treated as an “employee”, or be regarded as “having tenure”. Can you build a future on this uncertainty?
Musicians around the world are therefore kindly requested to do the following
Write a Reply to the MPO Audition ad, stating the “REASONS I WILL NOT BE ATTENDING YOUR AUDITIONS:”
Refer to industry standards that they are abandoning.
Let them know that THE WORLD knows what is going on in MALAYSIA, and the total disrespect they are showing to professional musicians. The Board of Directors must realize that the new CEO is destroying the reputation of a once great orchestra, and is harming the reputation of Malaysia at the same time.
Please send your message to Nor Raina (CEO) and Timothy Tsukamoto (new GM – actually sympathetic to the musicians)
rainaa@petronas.com.my
timothy.tsukamoto@petronas.com.my
Please CC: to the Board of Directors, and Music Director listed below
cpf@flormusic.com (Claus Peter Flor, MD)
medan@petronas.com.my
normani@petronas.com.my
hamidbakar@scientige.com
cpkhor2@yahoo.com.sg
ta29y@hotmail.com
juni@petronas.com.my
Please BCC:
mpomusicians@gmail.com
office@fim-musicians.org
Toni (coolpinkone) playing though the hours of the night.
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
To begin my life with the beginning of my life, I record that I was born (as I have been informed and believe) On September 30,1965. Toni Colleen is my name.
I have been in California all my life and until I know otherwise, I believe it is one of the best places to live. I have two raised children that live away from home. I am a first time empty-nester. Since I was 18 I have not lived in a home with children. My daughter is 23 this year and my son 27. I have two grandchildren Elliott who is 6 and Abigail who is nine months. Grandchildren are pretty much the most unexpected wonder of my life so far.
I am married and I have a 4 year old Basset Hound named Dexter, and a 11 year old Chihuahua named Le Le. I live in Roseville, California. I knit, spin, crochet, cross stitch, and cook, and I have a full time job that keeps me just busy enough to have my obsession have to battle for Toni time. I have a book and knitting blog that I like to play with also. Books and books and books are another passion.
• What made you decide to play the violin?
My sister played the violin when I was growing up. She played well. I am not sure why my parents put the violin in the wrong child’s hands. But they did. When she was not home, I would take it out and hold it, and play with the bow. Part of the fascination of course… Horse hair! I suppose I was going to play some instrument, but an unsettled home and life was the normal, and I think I just got left behind. My babysitter could play about 7 instruments and she would bring them over and let me play with them. I wanted to play so badly. So it isn’t that I now decided to play, I was always going to play and it wasn’t unit now that I took control of my desire. I can truly say that Youtube, Hilary Hahn, and the Sad Romance song were gentle nudges to follow my heart.
• How long have you been playing the violin?
Since January 2012
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I play everyday. I can practice from 20 minutes to two hours, depending on my mood, job, and family.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
I am a beginner, with a few songs under my belt.
• Your greatest personal experience with playing?
I don’t know that I have a great personal experience. Every time I play a song I am in awe and motivated to play and become a very good player.
• What other instruments do you play?
Zero other instruments. However after I learn a song on the violin, I do enjoy pecking it out on my IPAD keyboard. And I think to myself, it is so much easier on the piano. Probably not, but it feels that way.
• What does music mean to you?
Music is everything me. It always has been, from the very very oldies in old movies to the latest and newest top 40 music. Music has saved me in many ways. From Elvis, the Beatles, Abba, Heart, Madonna, Whitney, Christina A. to Gaga. Music makes the world go ’round. I dance and sing my way through life for the most part.
• What or who has been your greatest influence?
Lately I guess it is Hilary, Pierre, and all the friends at Fiddlerman.com. As relates to the violin. Life role models, I am sorry to say there have been too few, I am still looking.
• What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
Proficiency in reading music as well as I can read a book is the first goal. To play well whenever I want to hear music is the second goal, and some of that is being realized. I would like that on a grander scale. VIBRATO… I am really hoping to get there, I will get there and for me I know I will have achieved a major goal. And when it happens, you all will be the first to know it. Long term…give me Bach and Beethoven, pretty please.
• What type of violin training?
7 months Fiddlerman.com, and 2 months of private lessons. (actually about 5-6 lessons)
• How do you warm up?
D-Major Scale, Twinkle.
• What is your favorite type of music?
I like it all. I am one of the few people that doesn’t really listen to country music, but I don’t hate it. IF it is violent, hateful, or racial, then I am not interested. But I love U2, Depeche Mode, Pearl Jam, oh there isn’t enough time in a day for me to list the music I love.
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
Currently.
A. Glazunov – Violin Concerto in A minor, Op. 82, by Hillary H. (link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_jnXPIEwis
Because when I hear it, I weep from the inside and it consumes me and nothing else matters, I am not sure I know why it has that effect on me. But most of Hilary’s playing does that to me. I feel enriched.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
That is a hard question. But I love to knit and drink wine.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
No one plays music. But everyone loves it.
My sister is a music freak like myself. She doesn’t play violin any more. ( I hope to change that as she moved in with me this past month). She hasn’t said NO to the violin. About my sister, she is my “other half” in life. We are polar opposites, but I feel her as my twin in life. I have that connection with her.
• Are you a member of any orchestra?
Nope, not yet.
• Do you ever perform publicly?
Yes, OMG.. last month. I played two songs in a recital. It was unnerving and fabulous. Yay for me! You all got me through it, did you ever think I was going to shut up about it?
• What do you work with?
I am in Marketing and Sales, but I’d call it admin work. Customer service. I work for a great company but my job isn’t one to envy. Except the fact that I have one, right. Gotta eat and pay rent.
In another life I worked with mechanics and engineers in a Semi Conductor Facility. I also taught preschool. (12 – four year olds that should tell you something about me).
If I would complete my degree I would be a liberal arts major and teach. I don’t like the business world, but I had to raise a family.
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
Franz Hoffman Concert Violin with a Shar Fusion bow
Mendini Pink Violin.
Emilie Autumn is one of the most unique artists of our times. She is an American singer, author, poet, and violinist combined. Emilie performs with an all-female backing band called “The Bloody Crumpets” and labels her style of music “Victoriandustrial”. Her influence is taken from plays, novels, and history, particularly the Victorian era.
Emilie incorporates elements of classical music, cabaret, electronica, and glam rock with theatrics and burlesque.
Emilie kindly agreed to be interviewed by Fiddlerman, who will be giving away one of Emilie’s new releases to a lucky winner.
I really enjoy watching you perform and for me it is obvious that you are passionate towards what you do.
Can you tell us a little about yourself, your age, where you grew up and where you live?
EA: Thank you for taking the time to have tea with me today! It’s my absolute pleasure, of course. To begin with…well, this is always the hard part…truthfully, like anybody who’s not fatally egotistical, I’m not very comfortable talking about myself, and would much rather be asking you questions, but, let’s see…alright! I was born at a very young age in the year 1979, Sept. 22nd, 2:22 A.M., which makes me a Virgo, moon in Sagittarius, which explains quite a lot. I grew up in Southern California, Malibu and Los Angeles specifically. The seawater is in my blood… Now, I live in the Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls, which is really where ever I am.
Who was your favorite violin teacher and what made that person special?
EA: Now that I am a safe distance away from all of them, I can truly say that there was only one teacher whom I never had any strife with, but who did me the simple honor of teaching me how to play the violin, and for that pure and precious start, I am privileged and grateful. He was my very first teacher of all, and, had he not been so calm, kind, and patient with this painfully shy but overly ambitious four-year-old who wanted to learn the pieces in Suzuki book 5 when she was only supposed to be looking at book 2, I would, no doubt, not have hung in with the fiddle long enough to go on to all of the other teachers I would grow to like significantly less than my first.
Can you tell us about your time at the Indiana University?
EA: My time in Indiana University’s Music Conservatoire was quite dissatisfactory, but I’m sure you’ve already heard all this. I showed up in my early teens, tested the highest in the entire incoming student body, and so was set up to be taken rather seriously, but none of this really matters once your esteemed professors decide that your appearance is distracting, and you have a little too much personality (apparently, if you’ve been a violin professor locked inside the comfortably repressive cage of a conservatoire for long enough, you lose the ability to operate more than one of your senses at a time – it’s a known phenomenon – and, thus, seeing and hearing is simply too overwhelming, and to attempt this causes some sort of mild heart attack). I stayed for two years, then said, “Fuck this…” and went back to Hollywood where I belonged. From that day forward, I never took another violin lesson. I had the very important realization that I had been taught all the technique I would need to do anything I ever wanted to with the instrument, and that my development from then on would be completely artistic, an area which is not taught by a professor, but by one’s own ears, by one’s own desires, and by actually living life. That’s where my real journey began – everything prior to that was just warm-up…just the scales and arpeggios. Now I wanted to actually make music. And I did. And I will never stop.
I understand that you began playing the violin at the age of four. Who wanted you to learn and did they have to push you?
EA: This is what I understand to be a rare case of no one pushing the four-year-old into becoming a classical violinist. I saw a fiddle in a shop window and thought it was pretty, and that’s the end (or beginning) of that.
Your flamboyant outfits are always exciting, do you come up with your own designs or does someone do it for you? There is a rumor that you make them all with your very own hands.
EA: For once, the rumors are true! I do design and build all of my costumes and those of my Bloody Crumpets, the girls who join me on stage, although I’d be remiss if I didn’t say that they do a brilliant job at customizing their costumes with their own signature touches, most importantly, the thousands of crystals that they glue to everything save the soles of their shoes. And if I had extra sparklies, I’m sure they’d try that too…
You are the only artist that I know who plays the violin, acts, sings, writes poetry, composes music and has written a book. Do you have a preference or do you like to do it all equally as much?
EA: Aw, thanks for noticing! I also do knife tricks and am working on a cookbook, but that’s another interview… Playing my violin, pure and simple, and primarily classical, has always been my first and true love, and the place I feel my heart beat the fastest. But I will say that my vision of myself has altered dramatically over the years. When I first started out on this whole journey, I wanted more than anything in the world to become a great violinist. Then, later, I wanted to become a great writer, and then a great singer. But now, in this past year, I’ve realized that all of these things are only valuable to me in that they enable me to become what is now my ultimate purpose, and that is to become a great storyteller. All of these skills, and the many more I hope to develop and master in my lifetime, are nothing more than colors in my paint box, tools I can use to tell a story.
How do you find enough time to do all these things plus everything else you do? Do you even have time to sleep?
EA: At this moment I have not slept in 48 hours, and I have a massive Album Release Tea Party to host in a day, so there’s your answer I suppose… Really though, doing all of this, and far, far more, is not impossible, not so incredibly special, I don’t think at least. It simply comes down to priorities, and how you choose to shape your lifestyle. Let’s be real for a second and say that, no, you can’t expect to do extraordinary things if you live an ordinary life. I definitely live no ordinary life, and while it certainly wouldn’t be for everybody, I think normality is extremely over-rated.
Your shows are filled with colorful art and movement. Are all the ideas your own or do you just have a great choreographer?
EA: That’s very flattering that you would even suspect I had any outside help! Hooray! But no, it has always been just me from the very beginning, and then my girls, Captain Maggots, The Blessed Contessa, and Naughty Veronica, all three of whom are brilliant dancers and performers, and so, between all of us, we have a pretty sizable arsenal of skills with which to put on a damn good show.
Besides the violin, have you studied dance, had singing lessons, or is that just natural talent?
EA: Nope, I haven’t studied either dance or singing. Or piano, now that I think of it.
Can you tell us a little about your violin studies, teachers, idols?
EA: Nigel Kennedy, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons video. Changed my little violin world overnight. Done. Oh, and Stephane Grappelli of course, who I am listening to right now!
What inspires you to write your own arrangements? Can you be creative at any time or do you have to be in a special mood?
EA: There is such a variety of styles and moods that I compose in that I’d have to break it down a bit and say that, to write something really tragic, I have to be a little bit past it, a bit past the “I’m gutted and can’t pull myself off the floor” point, that I can write the saddest things when I’m happy, that my best absolutely vengeful and brutally angry work is best done when I’m madly in love, that there is honestly 100% truth to the cliché that you have to be tormented to create good art (although there are varying degrees of torment as well as causes of it, so it’s not always as dire as it sounds, thank heavens), but that, once the emotional groundwork is done, I can create arrangements, orchestrate, etc., absolutely any time, any where, especially since I compose everything in my head and then just take it to pencil and staff paper.
You mix styles a lot, what is your favorite genre to play?
EA: Baroque.
You wrote an autobiography called “The Asylum for Wayward Victorian Girls” about your experience in a psychiatric ward. How many copies have been sold and please tell us why we should go out and get a copy of it?
EA: As of this moment, I am aware of approximately 20,000 copies having been sold, and that’s self-published and being sold only online, and only on my shop website at www.AsylumEmporium.com. Should everybody go out and buy a copy? Absolutely not. It’s rated R, and it’s not for the faint of heart. It’s also a beautiful and healing story about the miracles that can happen when people (in this case girls, but applies to boys as well) come together in the face of a common enemy. It’s magical, it’s fantasy, it’s time-travel, it’s suspenseful psychological thriller, murder-mystery, and, while it’s also true, that almost doesn’t even matter anymore…it’s grown to be so much bigger than myself, to be about something so much greater than me. At the end of it all, it’s just a good story, and it can be absorbed on many levels, much in the same way as my music and live show can be.
Were you able to be creative in the asylum? Did you even have your violin with you?
EA: Ha! No, no violin. Nor clothes, nor books, nor pens, nor phone, no belongings of any sort, nor dignity, nor privacy, nor safety. We’re talking maximum security, no frills, scary fucking prison, not some retreat that films like “Girl Interrupted” make it out to look like. That was a goddamned spa in comparison to where I was. That being said, yes, I was able to be creative in that this is entirely where I wrote the book.
Fiddlerman.com’s members are always interested in great etudes and studies and look at artists like you for inspiration. What do you recommend to the members who want follow in your footsteps?
EA: There’s certainly no shortcut. I would recommend that you practice all of those repetitive and tedious exercises, scales, etudes, Paganini Caprices (not something I’d ever endure listening to if I had the option not to, but useful to learn), all of it, until your fingers bleed, because you really do need to learn the rules before you can break them. I couldn’t do anything I’m doing, not a single element of it, had I not put in the work, developed my technique from the ground up, developed a work ethic that is basically the answer to your above question about how I find time to do all of these things at once, and paid my dues to the extreme. You can’t just decide to be a rebel and skip the training and think it’s going to amount to anything important just because the standards of rock music are so much lower – it’s still important to do the work. Think about violists, and electric violinists, and definitely violinists in rock…a very high percentage of all of these three groups are failed classical violinists, which gives an unnecessarily bad name to all. There is nothing wrong with the viola at all. The viola is just lovely. But it’s something of a joke because so many players are just violinists that weren’t good enough to be violinists. Electric violin is infinitely easier than acoustic. You can hide so much with distortion and volume, and the subtleties just don’t exist in the same way, which means that your technique doesn’t have to be as subtle, i.e. pristine. But it still counts, and it definitely still shows. If I were a failed classical violinist, I wouldn’t be a successful non-classical one. I chose to do what I’m doing. I didn’t have to. Do the work.
You have some pretty cool designs on your fiddles. Who designed or designs the artwork and how many fiddles do you have and use?
EA: You’re going to get bored of me saying this, but I did it. My violin is a ZETA (it’s the same one I’ve had since I was 14 and which I keep painting over and over), which is a bit of a problem since they’ve shut down.
We fiddlers are always looking for effects that suit our instrument. What equipment and effects do you use for your electric violin?
EA: I love and still use the Line6 Pod, not only for live shows but even for recording. It’s a beautiful, versatile little unit that just works for the fiddle.
Are there any projects that you can tell us about that you have lined up for us all to enjoy in the future?
EA: The most important work I’m doing is, of course, the Broadway musical version of my book. This is going to occupy the majority of my next two years, but will, I hope, be the most important thing I’ve ever done. The musical will be directed by Darren Lynn Bousman who also directed “The Devil’s Carnival,” a musical film series I star and sing in, so I feel that this project is destined to be something extremely special…
Thank you for sharing with us.
EA: And thank you for your excellent and very interesting (a must appreciated rarity) questions! Looking forward to our next chat, and love to you and all of your dear readers, from my Asylum to yours.
If you want to learn more about Emilie Autumn, please visit http://www.asylumemporium.com where you will also find information on buying her book, recording, tickets and more.
DanielB playing his black violin
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc. I turned 51 years old this year. I have an AA degree in music. Married, 4 kids, the youngest of them is autistic and taking care of him takes up a lot of my time. I was born in a hospital in western Pennsylvania. I have the somewhat dubious distinction of having spent the first year of my life in a barn. The house my father had just bought burned most of the way down just before I was born. So they temporarily moved into an old barn on my grandfather’s land. I was too young to remember it much, but when people ask something like “Where are your manners? Were you raised in a barn?” I can say “Well, yeah.. At least for a while when I was little. What’s your excuse?” I grew up in the country, moved to a small city in western NY state where I have spent most of my adult life so far. So I’m basically a hick from the sticks. LOL
• What made you decide to play the violin? I first thought I might like to play it back in about second grade when the teacher was trying to get us to be able to hear the different instruments and know them by their sound. For violin, she used Danse Macabre, probably because Halloween was coming up. I thought it was a really cool sounding instrument, and was told it was one of the hardest to learn. Then in the 70s, I’d see bands on TV like ELO using electric violins and I’d think “Someday I’m going to get me one of those..” At various points in life I thought about getting a violin/fiddle and learning to play it. Then one day I had a bit of spending budget on Amazon from a bit of work and was looking at musical gear and a violin showed up in the sidebar. I did a search and found out some of them were very cheap, down to 35$ or so at the time, so I thought I might get one of those. But I also looked at the electrics. Some of those weren’t expensive either, but ran more like 80$ or so. I asked my wife what she thought of one of the 35$ acoustic ones I was looking at. She said something like at that price it couldn’t even be quality cardboard, at least go for one that was definitely actually made of wood. She saw the electric off to the side on my desktop in another window and asked how much that one cost. She said to get that one, and if it was too expensive for me at the moment, she’d pay the difference. I had enough, but asked why. “It is an electric. Even if it is crap, you’ll get it to sound decent.” So I ordered it and at that moment decided that I was definitely going to learn how to play it. Been having great fun learning and playing ever since.
• How long have you been playing the violin? A little less than 3 months. I started playing violin about the third week of April, 2012.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions? I consider practice and playing to be two different activities, and I do both every day. I practice basics for anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour. I will play at odd moments throughout the day and night, whenever I feel like picking up the instrument or if I hear an interesting bit of melody I want to try. I also try to spend at least a few minutes every day just jamming/improvising against backing tracks, which might be any genre from blues to techno.
DanielB enjoying playing outside on a beautiful summer day.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin? That is always hard for a self-taught individual to evaluate. Some days I feel it is poor for the amount of time I have put in, and other days, I feel it is quite good for that amount of time on the instrument. Trying to be objective about it, I would say I am doing reasonably well but I am certainly no prodigy.
• Your greatest personal experience with playing? Assuming you mean on the violin, I don’t think I have been playing long enough to have had enough experiences to have great ones just yet. But a couple days ago, I had just woke up and I had an old song stuck in my head. It was one that I had never actually played before on any instrument. I hadn’t gotten to even my first cup of coffee yet, and I was still half asleep, but I picked up the violin and played through a verse and chorus at tempo without botching anything. That was playing cold with no warm-up or even checking tuning or trying a few notes to decide on a key to try it from. I didn’t have to listen to the piece or look at a sheet of music. My fingers knew where the notes were without my having to think about it, and it just flowed without a single thought other than the lyrics and the emotions. Then I knew that if I keep at it, I can eventually learn how to play this instrument. LOL Of course, a little later after waking up the rest of the way, I warmed up and tried it again and didn’t play it as well. What I need to work towards eventually is getting the mind out of the way. The hands are developing the mechanical skills and they can already play at least to some degree. The mind tries to calculate, worries about messing something up, overcompensates when it does mess something up, forgets stuff.. It is just what minds do. When the mind gets out of the way, when you find the Zen for playing, then you are not a player who is playing a piece of music. There is no separation between you and the music. You are not playing the music, you just are the music. Those are the finest moments I know of, and they make up for all the rest of the effort required for everyday life. LOL
• What other instruments do you play? Guitar (acoustic/electric/12-string/slide), Bass Guitar, Piano/Keyboard/Synthesizer, Appalachian Dulcimer, Flute, Autoharp, Harp, Oud. There may be a few others that I can play a bit that I’m not thinking of right offhand, but those are the main ones.
• What does music mean to you? Music is something I’ve done most of my life. Being able to pick up an instrument and play is just kinda part of who I am. It also helps me hang onto what could laughingly be called my “sanity” some days.
• What or who has been your greatest influence? Well, at the risk of sounding like a suck-up, the people here at fiddlerman.com and you have been quite an influence on my violin playing so far. But if you mean like some recording artist or concert violinist, there are quite a few, but Regina Carter would at least be up there.
• What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long. Short term, I’m just trying to get the basics of the instrument down and learn it’s sounds. Long term, I want to be able to just pick it up and play anything that comes to my mind and sound like I at least pretty much know what I’m doing.
• What type of violin training? Mostly just what you have here on Fiddlerman.com and to a lesser degree some other bits from out on the Internet. I haven’t used any books or methods or taken any actual lessons for violin at this point.
• How do you warm up? I start with some scales, then some simple melodies that can be played on individual strings, then melodies that use all the strings, then I’ll try running a scale up an octave or more on each individual string. That is usually enough to shake the dust and cobwebs off the fingers for the day.
• What is your favorite type of music? I would have a hard time thinking of even one genre of music where I can’t find something I like in it. So I would say I actually have no favorite type of music, it depends entirely on what I’m in the mood to listen to. In a “typical” half hour, I might listen to anything from classical to baroque to metal to punk to rap to pop to oldies to techno to seriously weird stuff. Then back through some blues, bluegrass, jazz or Celtic. I can’t say that I like everything, but I can definitely say that I have yet to find a type of music where I couldn’t find at least a few song to like. Oh, and I do also like some of the assorted “rock style stage show” stuff that some people seem to worry will be the ruination of classical music or something. Vanessa Mae and Bond (to name a couple of examples) don’t actually dress all that scanty and their versions of classics are pretty cool, though definitely “versions”. Personally I think that if Mozart and Paganini were alive today, they’d likely be writing “Concerto for wild looking people with big stage show #4 in E minor” or something. Well, that’s assuming they weren’t too busy doing duets with Lady Gaga. A lot of the composers that some people seem to feel that a light show or some electric instruments are somehow disrespectful to were the wild and crazy musicians of their day. I’ve seen some authorities claim that Paganini was the first “Superstar’ in music and I’d be inclined to agree. And if Paganini would have had KISS’s stage show? I think he very likely would have used it, right down to the hydraulic risers, explosions, lasers and stacks of amps. LOL Bach, maybe not. But I think Bach would have given his eye teeth for a modern synth and a rack of effects, even if it was just to play around with it when nobody was looking.
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why? I don’t know as I actually have a favorite piece of music either. For violin, I like Danse Macabre and The Devil’s Trill, but probably most people do. I find some of Milsteins’ versions of Bach impressive to the point where it is hard to understand how it was even humanly possible. For fiddle, the Orange Blossom Special is one of my all time faves. I’m not good enough to effectively tackle any of those yet, but someday. If I can keep at it and the universe is kind, anyway.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin? Hmm. Other than the obvious one that we can’t say because there might be underage folks reading this? LOL Probably cooking and making things with my hands. I like making stuff, whether jewelry, electronics, or whatever.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them. Actually, growing up I was told more than once that there was no musical talent in my family, and that I’d be better off putting my efforts into about anything else. I just wasn’t willing to accept that. I had a grandma who played the harmonica and could play almost anything she heard, but she was considered an exception. Until I was in my teens there wasn’t really anyone who played music in my family at all. Then I got given a small chord organ and I played it a lot, and eventually got a guitar and really set my mind on the idea of being a musician. My aunt ended up marrying a guitar player around then and that helped. My own household, well, I married my vocalist. LOL Hey, if you find a vocalist you can actually work with, it is at least worth thinking about it. Almost everyone in my own household can play at least one instrument. I didn’t grow up with music being encouraged or instruments being around from early childhood, but we decided to do better for our own kids.
• Are you a member of any orchestra? No. While I enjoy listening to recordings of orchestral music, it is not what I usually think of as being my style for performance. I tend to prefer informal attire, a relaxed atmosphere and styles of music with more improvisation.
• Do you ever perform publicly? Used to. Not for the past decade or so, though. My son is autistic and I’m the main person he looks for and will listen to, so I just don’t have the luxury these days of being able to go off for a few hours for rehearsal or gigs. Prior to that, though, I and/or my wife were almost always in some band or other, and there was always a gig or project coming up.
• What do you work with? Do you mean what do I do to pay the bills these days? I have to work from home, so mostly I write. I ghostwrite articles, web pages, blog entries, term papers, music, whatever. Sometimes I make a few bucks doing things like repairing instruments or amps.
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well. Well, let’s start with the bow. I have an A Breton bow that wasn’t expensive, but when I picked it up at the music store just felt much lighter and livelier in my hand than the “freebie” bow that came with my electric. My electric violin is a cheapie. Enough so that it didn’t come with a brand name or model name. LOL But it holds tune well and plays good. Very comfy action, and I just like how it feel and sounds. I replaced the pre-amp circuitry with one I built and fine-tuned myself. Other than that, the mods on it were a set of fine tuners and a set of knobs I like better. It is my favorite, even though it is a bit heavier than my acoustic and as such a little harder to shift positions on. But the action and neck are so easy that I think a baby could probably play it. My acoustic violin is a Mendini MV300 that my family bought for me as a treat. It has needed some work, but it is getting to where I like the sound and how it plays. It looks a bit different than most since I took the “ebony” paint off the fingerboard, so it has a blonde fingerboard and I prefer to play it without a chin rest or shoulder rest because it just fits right into my collarbone and shoulder bare like that.
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc. I’m mid-twenties and from central Texas. I move around enough that where I am at any time can only be determined by using models developed for calculating the probability of an electron’s location around an atom. It’s a good thing I have a solid little truck to travel in! Most of the year, though, I’m away at school where I’m working on a Master’s degree in mechanical engineering.
“Fiddle4Fun” with the winning CVN500 from fiddleman.com’s giveaway
• What made you decide to play the violin? Well, I was looking for a hobby that was relaxing, solitary, and portable. I thought that, since I have always loved music, learning a musical instrument would be good. The baby grand piano was too big to fit in my suitcase so I naturally turned to the other instrument we had in the house: my great-great-grandfather’s fiddle.
Also, the fiddle was talking to me. She was, she was. Every time I walked by I would hear a plainative “Play me” coming from the case. No doubt she was just as terrified as I was that if she sat unplayed long enough my grandmother would sell or donate her.
• How long have you been playing the violin? One year.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions? I try to play every day for at least fifteen minutes. I prefer to play for an hour or more but my schedule doesn’t always permit it. Also, my practice times have been getting longer since I will play something on one fiddle and then switch to the other to play it again.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin? Hahaha. Not so good. There’s some room for improvement.
• Your greatest personal experience with playing? I guess that would be the first time I knew a piece well enough to play it on muscle memory alone. It was strange and wonderful when I first felt like my fingers were entirely disconnected from my brain and I was able to focus on feeling the music instead of hitting the right note.
• What other instruments do you play? I started violin in grade school but ended up quitting since it just wasn’t fun the first time around because of all of those recitals. Then, I played the flute in HS and college but stopped since I just didn’t enjoy the instrument that much. The last straw with the flute was when I was taking a lesson with a bad cold and started to gray-out due to not having enough air for both my brain and the instrument.
• What does music mean to you? I have a lot of good memories revolving around music. For instance, going to see performances is something my sis, father, and I have done together for years. Among more local performances, there’s the summer we drove to Seattle to see Howard Shore conduct his Lord of the Rings Symphony. There’s the time my sis and I skipped a day of school to fly to NYC with my father so we could see John Williams and the New York Philharmonic.
I also remember doing the Music Memory program with my friends in grade school. It didn’t matter how short the clip was or if it was a variation on a theme instead of the standard version; I always correctly identified the piece.
My best final exam in college was for a music appreciation class. The prof played ten second clips of music and we had to identify the work and composer. Easiest exam ever. Also, I got to listen to music and call it studying. That’s a win in my book.
So, music in general has always been positive.
• What or who has been your greatest influence? None for music. In general my horse, Leo, has most greatly influenced how I view the world and interact with people and animals alike. He taught me to be a much better person.
• What are your goals for playing violin? I just play for fun so it’s more about taking my playing as far as I can without losing interest. To keep off the pressure I don’t really have any official goals. I do, however, have a couple of pieces I am working on and would like to learn tolerably well.
• What type of violin training? My primary instructor is a bluegrass fiddler in my hometown. From him, I’ve learned mainly by ear. Last fall I tried studying with a classical instructor but I didn’t enjoy it much so I now rely on the fiddle teacher when I am home and this website when I am away.
• How do you warm up? Well, I like to start with some nice stretching and an easy walk…oh, you meant for playing. I, uh, didn’t know people warmed up for that. I guess the answer would be “I don’t.”
• What is your favorite type of music? In terms of genre, I am all over the place. My dad started me at an early age on film scores and that expanded into classical. I also like celtic, folk, and bluegrass. Recently, my sister introduced me to symphonic metal which is suprisingly good.
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
My favorite piece is “Hills of Glenorchy.” It is relaxing and anything that reduces my stress is automatically going to be a favorite of mine. Gotta love 6/8 time.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin? I enjoy recreational napping and spending time with my animals. I don’t see them as often now since I’m gone so much, though. My family has two quarter horses, Monkey and Leo. Leo, the black and white paint, is my baby. He’s taught me more about teaching and leadership than any person. We also seem to collect cats. I think the neighbors have started relocating any that are dumped in the neighborhood. I’ve also got a black GSD.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them. My family is fond of music but we’re not really that musical. There was the one great-great- grandfather who was a fiddler and, apparently, I had a great-great grandmother on the other side of the family who was a concert pianist. My sister played the piano and violin but that’s about it.
• Are you a member of any orchestra? No, I’m not that disciplined.
• Do you ever perform publicly? No, I’m not that good.
• What do you work with? Mostly I’m a student. I do a little tutoring as well. I used to spend a lot of time working as an animal trainer (horses, dogs, cats) but I’m taking a break from it. I don’t have the room to foster at school and I don’t have the time right now to work as a trainer. I volunteered as a foster for years when I was an undergrad and also worked for a local rescue as a trainer and adoption counselor. Although I learned how to train animals by working with horses and I fostered dogs, I prefer to work with cats. Probably because a lot of people don’t realize one can train a cat.
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well. I have two violins. The first is my heirloom violin which dates to the late 19th/early 20th century. The fiddle’s early history is pretty fuzzy. She was built by my great-great-grandfather and he played her in a band in Chicago during the 1920s and that’s about all we know. After he died, she bounced around from family member to family member until she ended up being stored in an attic for decades. We had her completely rebuilt when my sister started playing.
The second violin is the CVN-500 I won in the Fiddlerman ad contest. It’s a great little fiddle and I derive endless amusement from how different it is from my other one. The neck is both thinner and narrower on the CVN-500 so it’s tough to get my fingers correctly positioned on the strings. It is, however, easier to use my fourth finger for those same reasons. So far, I like to switch back and forth between the two when I practice.
As for bows, I have four right now. One is a Coda Conservatory bow (carbon fiber) which belongs to my sister and is my current bow-of-choice despite its weight and length. Two are the bows that came with the CVN-500 which do not impress me being generally stiff, thick, and heavy. The third bow is the bow that was originally in the case with the old violin. I don’t know it’s age or it’s maker as it is unmarked. Of the four, it is the only one that is not usable at this time. I’m working on that.
Thanks,
F4F
Learn to play Yanni’s solo, or similar, from “Until The Last Moment”. Study my ideas and listen to Yanni’s playing as well as other artists extensively, then do you own interpretation of this piece. This piece will give you ideas for improvising yourself. Download this and many more pieces written out for your convenience here:
fiddlerman.com/studies-etudes-and-music/
Make your playing interesting by adding and enhancing dynamics (musics color) and expressions.
Ever felt like none of the shoulderrests available suit your needs? So did Fred in Southern California, but instead of continuing his search, he decided to do something about it.
Fred and his trade marked, “The Slipper” shoulder-rest
Intelligent and well-spoken, in recent years Fred has moved his focus from MMA (multiple martial arts) fighting to playing violin and fiddle. We found out in the course of this interview that his favorite audience happens to be just a bit unusual. He still keeps busy with snowboarding, wakeboarding and other extreme sports as well as diverse artistic pursuits. If Hollywood was looking for the next great action adventure hero story, they should talk to Fred. The only question would be whether it might be better to have his character played by Bruce Willis or Steven Seagal.
Recently he also has been exercising his abilities as an inventor and turned his attention to solving the long-standing problem of violin shoulder rests that are simply neither ergonomic nor aesthetically pleasing. Even if you don’t mind buckling a crude looking piece of plastic or metal to a musical instrument worth hundreds to thousands of dollars, the problem is that poorly designed shoulder rests can damage the instrument and even injure the violinist due to muscle stain and pressure on their bones and joints.
Read here what Fred had to answer to our questions.
About “The Slipper” shoulder rest, what problems or issues did you see with standard available shoulder rests that made you think “There just has to be a better way”? After having spent a couple hundred dollars on a multitude of different rests, I still never discovered a solution I was happy with. Every rest I tried, and I’ve tried most of them (a couple by Kun, Mach One, a couple by Bonmusica, foam rests, and various combinations of them) never resolved the discomfort I experienced every time I played or practiced. The biggest issues for me were neck strain, and pressure from the chin rest bracket on my collar bone; not being able to keep my violin stable and in place was merely an annoyance; I always seemed to keep re-positioning it on my shoulder. Until I actually decided to design my own solution, it seemed the closest solution was a thick molded piece of foam held in place with a large band, however it kept slipping and moving out of place, which again caused contact with the hard bracket. But clearly it was the discomfort issues that motivated me to take action. Besides my discomfort, I couldn’t imagine that I was the only person experiencing these same or similar issues.
Fred playing the violin using “The Slipper” shoulder-rest
How did you come up with the rather unique curve of the rest? I spent a lot of time analyzing the causes of my discomfort and dissatisfaction; they were because the instrument was positioned too low, and the instrument slipped around and never stayed in one place. As a beginner, trying to find a way to keep my violin in place while at the same time needing to move my hand back and forth to attempt vibrato was just a combination I was unable to achieve. So I began cutting out contours from scraps of thick closed-cell foam and experimenting with them as a replacement rest for all of the expensive rests I had purchased. The more I fine-tuned the shape, the more I discovered the shape that was developing was something that partially looped over the top of my shoulder on one end and supported the instrument off my chest on the other end. So it turned out that the three critical components for me were a partial loop over the shoulder, the short leg in back and taller leg in front, and the contour of the rest to the body at all points of contact with the body. In addition, I tested a dozen different materials for the foam pad, looking for a soft foam that had a high degree of tactile grip or surface grip as well as memory that wasn’t too thick or too thin, before I came upon the pad now used on the rest.
Freds son cutting a new, “The Slipper” shoulder-rest
What were the steps you went through in it’s evolution? I may have answered this question in the last two questions, sorry. The most difficult challenges weren’t related to designing and making the rest, but establishing a related business that my son Nick could own and operate. Nick is just starting his first year of college and is working p/t at Subway. His interest is in International Marketing (Japan specifically) I am a firm believer that the best way to learn business is to run a business. So I have helped him set up all of the grueling minutia related to starting a business. The website development has been the biggest challenge for me. I am a finance guy, NOT a computer guy. I developed the design of the site and stumbled through the initial setup, but the functionality of the site was very challenging for me, and for some damn reason, site development tools are not “simple” and they are not “intuitive”. Pierre (Holstein, aka, Fiddlerman) was very instrumental in helping me get the site functional. You can see it for yourself at www.theslipperrest.com
Why do you feel it is the best shoulder rest? In other words, how do you feel it is better than the other manufactured designs available? Very simply, because it’s the most comfortable, stress-less, and stable design I’ve ever used and a lot of players who’ve tried it say the exact same thing. So far, nothing comes close. An important component to this rest is that it is hand-made of quality materials, which not only lends to its durability and useable life, but also to its beauty and aesthetic appeal. I don’t know of a rest that compliments the look of the instrument it’s attached to better than The Slipper.
What interests/qualifications/experiences does your son have that you feel make him a great person to do fine craftsmanship? Nick is a meticulous craftsman who, for the most part, can create what he sees. He is 19 and has been developing his woodworking skills for the past 4 years. When I finally showed him my first prototype, which by the way was very rudimentary and bulky and heavy, I asked him if he thought he could make something like this. He took my prototype to the workshop and a few hours later came back with a sleeker version of exactly what I gave him. He made his first out of pine, which was very difficult to work with, so I was confident he could produce exactly what I was after, given a finer piece of wood. We now use an expensive blemish-free, tight-grained, hard maple.
What kind(s) of violin do you have? My first was a Scott Cao STV-017 and my second is a Scott Cao 1740 Heifetz 850; I LOVE both of them.
What kind of strings and rosin do you use? I primarily use D’Addario, Pro Artes and Zyex. The rosin I use is pretty common, it’s the D’Addario Natural Dark.
What kind of bow do you like best? Both of my bows are Cao’s, one is rosewood and one is pernambuco.
Do you play any other instruments? As a teen I played guitar, poorly, strictly to showcase my softer side to chicks; it was pathetic, lol.
How long have you been playing violin/fiddle? 1 week shy of 6 months.
Did/do you take lessons, or are you self-taught? I am fortunate that I found a really good teacher in my neighborhood. I could write pages about why he’s such a great teacher.
When/how did you first get interested in playing violin/fiddle? I am now 57. I have wanted to play violin for the past 20 years, since I first heard Stephan Grappelli, but it wasn’t until I saw & heard a video of Annie Staninec and Luke Abbott playing “Roscoe” that I was compelled to buy a violin and start learning. Annie is an incredible young fiddler who is a wonderful human being. We’ve communicated several times and her sincere, down-to-earth spirit is very endearing,,,, then when you watch her play, you are blown away.
What was the first song you learned to play on violin/fiddle? The first real songs (aside from scores of etudes) I happened to learn were Christmas carols, just because that’s the time of year I first got my violin.
What song/piece are you working on most recently? I am currently working my way through Mark O’Connor’s Violin Method books which I rave about. Outside that book, the last few songs I learned were, Blackbird, Yellow Submarine, Amazing Grace, & Danny Boy.
Do you see yourself as more classical oriented or more folk/fiddle oriented? I clearly find Bluegrass/Folk more appealing at this point. There’s just so much more of a connection for me with those songs. And the nice thing about them is, there is a simple version and a very stylized version which is much more difficult, and you can work your way from simple to complex in comfortable steps. My goal though is to play more jazz & blues violin as well as Bluegrass.
What do you like most about playing? It’s just very rewarding to see my progress. It’s about the only thing I do that is just strictly for me. I also like being able to experiment and improvise, well, to the extent that I can anyway, it’s clearly becoming a creative outlet, the more I learn.
Have you done any public performance? (and yes, for family/friends does count) I’ve played a few times for small groups of friends and/or family, but I think to date, my best audience is the wildlife that I play to from my veranda,,, they are VERY non-judgemental; if they like it they stay and listen, if they don’t, they quietly and quickly dispatch themselves without comment.
Freds Daughter, professional singer and musician.
Is there any one song/piece, where if you could play it well, you’d feel like “Ok, now I play *good*”? No one song comes to mind actually. My goal is to be able to play/jam with other musicians. My daughter is a professional musician and my dream would be to be good enough to jam with her and accompany her.
When you are not playing violin/fiddle, what is your favorite pastime? My favorite pastime isn’t “work”, but that’s what I seem to be doing a lot of lately! It’s very depressing to admit, but I no longer participate in my lifelong passion because of my advanced years; I used to LOVE training in mixed martial arts (MMA) and fighting each week. It was a very exhilarating sport and kept me in the best shape of my life; you tend to become very motivated to stay in great shape when you know the consequence for not doing so is most likely getting punched in the face, or worse. So now I get my kicks from snowboarding, wakeboarding, photography, collecting contemporary art, and traveling.
Normally birthdays are no big deal for me, just a good excuse to do something fun or be treated a little special. We officially turn one year older though in reality only seconds older than before the label.
This morning I woke up not even thinking that it was my birthday and began my routine of checking mail and posts when I saw this new post called “A Birthday Present for Pierre“. I have to confess that my eyes got real watery. I was so proud to be able to share this with my family and friends and quickly posted it to Facebook. Fiddleman members are my second family and the inspiration I get from all the great members provide ample energy to fuel my work for countless of projects.
I can’t properly express my thanks to all involved.
Meet “dionysia” from Fiddlerman’s “Fiddle Talk” forum
Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc. Age: Grown-up (well, mostly); Place of birth: Kansas; Residence: Kansas; etc.: Married with a 6 year old son and a 9 year old daughter
What made you decide to play the violin? My grandfather was an old-time fiddler. He left me his fiddle when he died in the hope that I would finally learn how to play.
How long have you been playing the violin? I started playing this spring (2012). So at this point, about 3 months.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions? I play whenever I get the chance. Practice sessions are limited by how much housework needs to be done and how much attention the kiddos need.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin? Absolute total noob!
Your greatest personal experience with playing? The first time I tried to play my fiddle, and it made notes instead of skronky noises.
What other instruments do you play? I had to learn the recorder in school, but never kept it up. I also tried to teach myself to play piano, but then I had my daughter and didn’t have the time.
What does music mean to you? Music is something that is everywhere – knocking around in my head, on the TV or radio, coming out of my kids’ mouths…
What or who has been your greatest influence? Children. They seem to understand that music is more about enjoyment than perfection.
What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long. My short-term goal was to play a song that someone could recognize. I recently achieved that with “Red River Valley”. Long-term I would like to reach a level where I wouldn’t be embarrassed to play a tune for someone who had known my Grampa’s playing.
What type of violin training? 100% FIDDLERMAN.COM!!
How do you warm up? Under a blanket with a cup of hot tea. Oh – you mean musically! I usually just jump into a song, quickly before my kids pull me away.
What is your favorite type of music? I like lots of stuff – classic rock, classic country, old-time music, heavy metal, 80’s pop, folk music… with the kids I listen to a lot of Disney and Nick music now.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why? I don’t really have a favorite. I always liked whistling “Ein Klein Nachtmusik” and when I think of fiddle music I always hear “Faded Love”
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin? Just 2? OK, well…..I like to read about stuff and I like to make things.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them. There is my grandfather, obviously. His dad was Swedish, and played fiddle. His mom played piano and organ. His whole family was very musical. The current generation, not so much. My kids love music. In their own fashion, they are teaching themselves to play violin, piano, guitar, recorder, drums, and xylophone. They also have a ukulele stashed away somewhere.
Are you a member of any orchestra? No.
Do you ever perform publicly? Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Just Fiddlerman progress videos.
What do you work with? I am a government paper pusher working in land management.
Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well. Most of what I know is on my forum thread about my Grampa’s fiddle. My grandma bought it as a Christmas present for my grandfather in 1946, the year they were married. There is no label inside as far as I can tell. She found it in a “hawk shop” in Topeka, Kansas. The first thing Grampa did was put on steel strings and mechanical tuner heads. He used the classic old-time chest hold, so the chin rest I found in the case wasn’t ever used. There were three bows in the case as well. Only one was strung up. I remember the day in the early 80’s that his buddy came by and offered to get it haired with some new- fangled synthetic hair. He promised Grampa that it would last a lot longer than horsehair. He was right. I soaked off the gunk in alcohol and it plays just fine! The other two bows are not haired. I am taking them to a luthier to get whichever one is better rehaired. The leftover bow will be a learning project for me to learn how to hair a bow. Apparently my grandma used to rehair my grandpa’s bows for him. I should ask her if they used hair off of their own horses. She is pretty frugal, so I am guessing the bow hair may have been homegrown.
This project is finished. See former instructions and get your parts for this project below. Stay tuned for next project.
All interested violinists and violists are welcome to learn the parts arranged and available here on Fiddlerman.com. for the Bile Em Cabbage Down International Youtube Project.
At the end of July members will record themselves individually a click track that will be posted here to create a memorable Bile Em Cabbage Down International Youtube Project.
Download the appropriate part or all the parts and learn them as well as you can.
Record yourself using the Click-track in ear not audible on the recording and SPREND the file to pierre@fiddlerman.com (Do not email any files to me, they will be too big)
Deadline for turning in the audio or video files is for now, July 30th. Please spread the word to everyone you know that plays the violin. The more the merrier.
If you don’t wish to be seen just record audio. I will mix the parts first then add the video. There is a possibility that not every video will be seen but all the appropriate audio from the video files will be. Sending me a video gives Fiddlerman.com the rights to use the video as seen fit for a youtube project.
Demo videos soon to come for help on how to play the parts.
Everyone is welcome to participate in this fun and exciting project. I encourage you to recruit players to make this event even more fun.
Download any or all parts and choose the most appropriate one to record based on your capabilities.
Bile Em Cabbage Down for VIOLN
Bile Em Cabbage Down for VIOLA
MIDI PARTS
Bile Em Cabbage Down – Four Parts – MIDI file
Bile Em Cabbage Down – violin 1 – MIDI file
Bile Em Cabbage Down – violin 2 – MIDI file
Bile Em Cabbage Down – violin 3 – MIDI file
Bile Em Cabbage Down – violin4 – MIDI file
CLICK TRACK – for recording in unison – download, save, practice with, and record while playing in-ear. Bile Em Cabbage Down – Click Track – to save, right click (control click for Mac) and choose “Save Link As”.
Instuctional Videos for the “Bile Em Cabbage Down Project”
Check out the last two projects results.
Arrrrr!!!! We Fiddlerman.com band ‘o pirates have put together a movin’ picture wit’ mates from all over th’ seven seas. Ye too can join in th’ next project at Fiddlerman.com
This is how our projects work.
Parts are posted free on this site for anyone to learn and enjoy. We as a group work on those pieces on the Fiddle Talk Forum as well as a lot of discussion and tips from all the friendly forum members and some demo videos by Fiddlerman. Many members post their progress to get used to playing in front of each other. Many member choose to play more than one part. When enough members feel that they are ready with the piece we set a deadline (which is traditionally broken many times ) Fiddlerman uploads a click track to use when you make your own recording to keep the parts synchronized. Participants upload their movie files to a server and Fiddlerman puts it all togeter.
Stay posted for the announcement of the next project soon on our forum.
This months,”He’s a Pirate” International Fiddlerman Youtube Project is starring:
Cindy Marshall, Marina Goman, Minh Thien Nguyen
as Soguns Black Violin, Naska as Mad_Wed, Sara O. as SaraO, Denise as dionysia, Brigitte as NoirVelours, Terry Taylor as TerryT and Pierre Holstein as Fiddlerman
We will soon be announcing the next project which you will hopefully also become involved in.
Physisporinus Vitreus
A soggy wooden board carpeted in soft white fungi doesn’t look like much, but in the right hands it can become a world class violin. According to a recent sound test before about 180 people, two fungi infested violins bested a multi-million dollar Stradivarius.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I think that our violin would be identified as the Stradivarius.” said Francis Schwarze, a scientist at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research who treated the wood used in the bioviolin.
Ninety nine percent of wood-attacking fungi create loose and soft wood that has strange acoustic properties. By measuring how sound echoes through a tree, scientists can get a good idea of how healthy the tree is.
While using sound waves to check up on trees, Schwarze noted that a handful of fungal infections didn’t produce widespread rot. The density of the wood decreased slightly, but the speed of sound remained the same. Schwarze and Swiss violin maker Michael Rhonheimer decided that they would try to make a violin out of fungi-treated wood and see how it sounded.
The top and bottom plates of a violin are made using two different kinds of wood. Spruce for the top plate, and maple or sycamore for the bottom plate. Each wood is treated with a different virus. Physisporinus vitreus for the spruce, and Xylaria longipes Nitschke (also known as Dead Moll’s Fingers) for the sycamore.
Each quarter cut, along with a piece of slate, inoculated with the appropriate fungi, is submerged in a box of water. The fungi grows from the rock slate into the wood, degrading the pit membranes on both sapwood and heart wood but leaving the majority of the wood unaffected.
Six to nine months later the scientists remove the wood, now covered in a white coat of hyphae and up to 15 percent less dense than before, from the boxes and behind the mechanical process of turning the wood into an instruments.
The less dense wood now has different acoustic properties. Generally speaking, the wood sounds warmer, a combination of increasing the dampening factor that makes high notes more palatable to the ear, and an increase in the radiation ratio, or the ratio of the speed of sound to the density of the wood.
“Wood with a low radiation ratio makes it almost impossible to build a good violin,” said Schwarze.
According to Schwarze, treating the wood with fungi artificially recreates the structure of the wood that was naturally occurring during Antonio Giacomo Stradivarius’s lifetime. The Little Ice Age, a period of abnormally cool weather between 1645 to 1715, made trees create more uniform wood. Treating wood with the fungus artificially recreates wood similar to that which was created in the Little Ice Age.
Schwarze and his colleagues built five violins. Two violins were created using wood from the same tree but not treated with the fungus. Three violins were made from wood treated with the fungi for six, nine and 12 months. Only the violins treated for six and nine months were used in the testing. The violin treated for twelve months developed cracks during production and was discarded.
Using the four violins, two treated and two untreated, and a Stradivarius valued at $2 million, British violinist Matthew Trusler played for an audience of more than 180 people earlier this month at a forestry conference.
More than 90 people ranked the bioviolin treated for nine months as the Stradivarius. Matthew Trusler’s real Stradivarius came in second, followed by the violin treated for six months. The two untreated violins came in last.
Treating quarter cuts with fungi isn’t likely to become standard practice for violin makers, said David Wiebe, a violin maker from Woodstock New York, but the idea is “worth following up on.”
Whether the violin is an original Stradivarius or made from fungus-treated wood, it takes a master violinist to bring out a violin’s complete promise.
A great violin “cannot be accomplished with one or another secret chemical or biological application,” said Wiebe. “It has to do with a deep lifetime dedication.”
via Fungi-Infected Violins Best Stradivarius : Discovery News.
Kenneth (Fiddlestix) is the happy guy on the far top right
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
Hi, everyone. My name’s Kenneth / Ken Johnson, I’m soon to be 69 years old, was born in Highland Park, Michigan, grew up in Royal Oak, Michigan and now reside in Davisburg, Michigan, about 40 or so miles north of Detroit. I’m a retired Union carpenter for the past three years and absolutely bored. I spend a great deal of time reading posts now and working in the yard. I have 2 children / adults. My son will be 49 yrs old June 16th and my daughter just turned 43 yesterday, May 8th. I have 4 grandchildren, 2 girls by my son and 2 boys by my daughter. My son in-law is a Michigan State Trooper and also in the U.S. Army and is presently stationed in Afghanistan, his second tour there. My daughter owns a beauty salon in Frankenmuth, Michigan and my son is a carpenter contractor.
• What made you decide to play the violin? I have always loved violin and when I found “Fiddlerman’s” website, I became interested again.
• How long have you been playing the violin?
I began playing at age 4 and played until I was 10 when my mother could no longer afford lessons or rental for my instrument. Lessons were $1.00 per week and the rental was like $5.00 per month, I’m not sure, maybe even less, but we didn’t have a lot of money in those days, my real father died before I was born so it was just her and I…. Oh, and my Grandfather. There has always been a violin at my disposal, but I would pick it up now and then and put it away for years before trying again. I have attached a picture with some of my fellow players. I’m in the back row to the far right, the boy to the far left was the son of my school orchestra teacher, he went on to play in some symphony orchestra, I’m not sure where though, Chicago comes to my head.
• How often do you play?
How long are your practice sessions? Since I’ve hooked up with “Fiddlerman’s” website I play everyday and my practice session’s can last anywhere from one hour to 10 or 12 hours, like I said, I don’t have much else to do. It’s always with me, I played last night while watching the ball game.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Very tough question, I’m a beginner with 50 some years of experienced dabbling. Make sense?
• Your greatest personal experience with playing?
This is not a great experience, but when I was around 10 years old, I was playing solo in a recital, standing on stage (alone) when all of a sudden my A-string snapped. Now what do I do? I just kept on playing and skipped the notes that involved the A-string and finished the song. Mind you, there weren’t a lot of notes requiring the A-string. I got a lot of applause for that.
• What other instruments do you play? When I stopped playing violin, I bought a mail order guitar for $7.00 from selling flower seeds door to door and taught myself to play. I also play piano, organ (real organ, no electronics).
• What does music mean to you?
I love music, all types however, rap and hard rock are out though. I prefer country, I’ve played guitar and sang in several bands, including singing at “Tootsie’s” in Nashville, TN. That was only for one night though.
• What or who has been your greatest influence?
I would have to say it was my mother, she taught me a bunch, how to play baseball, football, golf and how to fish. When I was young, her and I would do the dinner dishes, she would wash, I would dry and we would sing songs together. That was a great period in my life.
• What made you decide to play the violin?
I have always loved violin and when I found “Fiddlerman’s” website, I became interested again.
• How long have you been playing the violin?
I began playing at age 4 and played until I was 10 when my mother could no longer afford lessons or rental for my instrument. Short and long. Short term goals are just being able to play proficiently, long term? I’m 68, remember ?
• What type of violin training?
As I said earlier, I started when I was 4 up until I was 10, so there were constant lessons.
• How do you warm up?
Usually I warm up with fast fingering, doesn’t matter what note’s I play, I skip around the fingerboard working on changes. After that I play whatever comes in my head.
• What is your favorite type of music?
I prefer country, but have recently been interested in classical, watching the Detroit Symphony Orchestra on webcast. I enjoy watching the reactions from the musicians while they play or are at rest.
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
I really don’t have one particular piece that I like over other’s, music is relaxing, so I guess you can say all music is my favorite. I guess if I really had to choose one, it would the our National Anthem…. gives me goose bumps. I play that as well.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin? I build model planes and helicopters now. My flying days are over since I sold my airplane several years ago. I was into skydiving for a few years, then my wife suggested I do something a little more on the safe side. She suggested scuba diving, can you imagine that? Safe? I know cdennyb will understand what I mean.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them. My grandfather came to America from Sweden in 1910, he played violin, two of my uncles also played and my stepfather played, In fact one of the violins I have now belonged to his grandfather. My mother also played violin and organ. When I was about 3 years I called the violin “bell bottom trousers”, I got that because my uncle would play that song ” Bell Bottom trousers Coats of Navy Blue on his violin, hence I referred to the fiddle as bell bottom trousers.
• Are you a member of any orchestra?
Nah.
• Do you ever perform publicly?
Nah to that one too.
• What do you work with?
Like I said, I’m a retired carpenter, so no work.
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
My primary violin is about 130 years old, it’s a “Caspar daSalo in Brescia 1530, copy. I have a second fiddle I bought online several years ago, $90.00 special. I have 4 bows. Mostly I use the Pernambuco bow which is original with the Caspar, violin, one glass bow, two other wood bows. I switch off and on to their different sounds.
These tricks always get some great laughs from my colleagues. Use caution when shooting the conductor though. They may not have as good a sense of humor as you do. LOL
The over tuning the E string trick won’t work if you don’t have a hard edge to put the string up against and place your violin against the edge slowly so as not to damage the string, violin or chair.
To get a good machine-gun sound keep the bow stick real close to the bridge for a faster speed and more control.
Violin Exercises without playing – Quiet practice
These exercises are quiet exercises that you can do, some with the violin and some without, when your friends or family are sleeping, or you are watching TV. Try to take advantage of all your free time to improve your skills.
Work on your vibrato, your trills and finger dexterity, bow finger flexibility as well as strengthening your left hand fingers.
Find the Varigrip here today at Fiddlershop.com
Howdy y’all! As you’ve probably guessed, I am a Texan– born and raised. I’ve just finished my first year working towards an MS in Mechanical Engineering. It’s a bit of a change considering my undergraduate background is in psychology, biology, physics, and history! (Yeah, I switched majors a few times.)
I have always enjoyed music. When I was younger, my family would take trips to see different performances with my favorite being a trip to NYC to see John Williams conduct the New York Philharmonic. We don’t really have time to travel anymore but we still try to go to the local symphony Pops concerts together on occasion. Anyway, I figured that I might enjoy learning to play an instrument since I liked listening to them so much. I picked the fiddle primarily because it is portable but also because it would give me a chance to play my great-great grandfather’s instrument. Liking folk music probably didn’t hurt either.
It’s been a bit tough practicing the last couple of months since my four roommates and I are on completely opposite schedules and they can hear me even with a mute. (We’re in a historic home with very thin walls and floors.) Actually, I loved football season since it meant I could have four or five hours of mute-free practice time every week while they were at the game.
Next semester I’ll have my own place, though, so I will once again be able to saw away to my heart’s content without waking anyone up or disrupting a study session. It’s a good thing, too, because fiddling is my primary form of stress relief. Until then, I have to sneak in a few minutes here and there when everyone is out simultaneously. Of course, then the roommates’ dog wakes up and starts howling.
Thankfully, I am home for the summer and the cat isn’t nearly as loud. He just licks my knees when I start playing. Then he jumps up on me and wraps his paws around my legs. I can only imagine what he’s saying. It’s probably something along the lines of, “For the love of Ceiling Cat, ssssstoooooooooop! My ears can’t take any more!”
Although I initially played only for myself because of extreme shyness, I’ve gotten a bit more confident thanks to the support of the forum here. Now that I’m a bit more sure of myself I’m trying to sync schedules with a friend of mine, who is also a novice violinist, so that we can play together. I guess if I have a goal then being able to play with her would be it. Until then I am working to get comfortable with three pieces: “Arran Boat Song,” “Hills of Glenorchy,” and “Minstrel Boy.”
My short-term goal is also my greatest challenge. Those three pieces put me to sleep! After about two minutes I start yawning. Then my eyes get heavy. Then I want to crawl into bed. I have to practice them when I am fully awake or I don’t get very far. On the other hand, if I need to settle down before bed it works perfectly. It’s kind of like singing myself a lullaby without the horrible sound. Not that I’m that great on the fiddle. It’s just that my singing is that bad.
Since my fiddling is more likely to improve than my singing, it looks like y’all are going to be stuck with me. I stumbled on Fiddlerman.com quite by accident while looking for free sheet music and other learning resources. I’m glad I checked out everything else on the site as well since there’s a great little community lurking on this corner of the Internet. Y’all really help me learn when I am a solid drive away from my instructor.
–F4F
“On Raglan Road” is a well-known Irish song from a poem written by Irish poet Patrick Kavanagh named after Raglan Road in Ballsbridge, Dublin. In the poem the poet, walking on a “quiet street”, recalls a love affair he had with a young woman. He knew he would risk being hurt if he initiated a relationship, but went ahead anyway. The free sheet music for this piece can be found on http://fiddlerman.com
"NoirVelours" from the "Fiddle Talk" forum
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
My real name is Brigitte Tremblay but people know me as NoirVelours (BlackVelvet). I’m a french-canadian born in Montréal, Québec (Canada) but I traveled a lot with my parents when I was a kid (Algeria,France, Germany). I have a specialized bachelor degree from the University of Montreal in anthropology (archaeology). I’m a 39 years old single mom with a wonderful son who is more patient then my cats with my violin practice, though he sometimes close the door haha.
What made you decide to play the violin? I don’t think there is a single reason, it’s one of those emotional urges you sometime feel, like you know this is for you.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I try to have a practice in the morning after my coffee, because I think it’s cruel to torture the neighbours earlier then that. That one usually go for 30-40 min max because my arm and left hand get too tired. Then I play in the evening for about the same time but lately I started playing a wee bit longer because… well I have to get my violin fix! This is so addictive.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Total n00b! I keep wincing at my bad notes and whistling bow but I’m making progress every week! I’m starting to get good at reading first position notes on a music sheet and that makes me very proud! I hope to start with slurs soon, they will be the first violin technique I learn beside playing in first position of course.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Hard one because I’m so new at this. I guess it was when I finally manage to relax and let the music vibrate in me instead of concentrating on bowing straight or my fingering. That day I lived the song I was playing even if it was far from good and started swaying to it. Then I realized I was playing better! So I’m trying to reach that relaxed zen state when I play but it’s hard, it was a fleeting moment and doesn’t come back very often, but I know what to reach for now.
What other instruments do you play?
I own a piano but it’s only looking pretty in the livingroom. I was only able to play an ok Für Elize (the easy melody part) on it after weeks of of hard work and video tutorials. I realized with a tear piano was not for me, I was simply not feeling any link or affinity with it even if I love hearing someone play piano (I guess it’s good for a violinist since they often are accomp. by piano lol). It was a gift so I’m still feeling bad about not trying harder to play it. I was also not able to read the music sheet, way too complicated! I also own an electric guitar that is gathering dust. I had a boyfriend who played the bass years ago and he wanted us to play together but… I really, REALLY dislike the sound of an electric guitar lol. Maybe one day my son will want it when he’s a teenager. So… nope, not playing another instrument. The violin was my idea for me, maybe that’s why I’m having a blast learning it.
What does music mean to you?
Emotions. Simple as that. Take away my ipod I don’t care I will sing the songs I like. Music is the last thing I hear when I go to sleep, it’s what I crave when I’m sad or when I’m happy or just feeling at peace. Playing the violin makes me happy, it brings me in a special little place where I forget about life and just enjoy the moment.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
Huh… good one. I don’t think anyone was. I never had a childhood hero or a model as a teenager and no one in my family influenced me, I’m the black sheep in fact . Someone that really opened my mind though was Barbara, my philosophy teacher in highschool. I think I was the only one in my class who wish we had more philo classes lol. She really was making us think and debate instead of memorizing stuff and I realized that it was ok to think my own way instead of trying to be like others. It opened a big door for me.
What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
My short goal would be to stop making my strings whistle :p (darn bowing!) My long goal would be to be good enough to play on my own baroque violin handmade with wood from my country *gasps* crazy I know and it will take many years before it happen but I am patient and willing to give the efforts needed to learn the techniques. Right now I’m not looking to perform for others beside my family at Christmas but one day I would love to make people dance to my violin!
What type of violin training?
There are types?
How do you warm up?
I stretch a bit my neck and shoulders then dive in my latest song! Playing it over and over is my warm up lol. I slow it down I repeat notes I’m struggling with or tricky bowing. I recently started scales even if they are boring because I really want to improve my precision, speed and dexterity.
What is your favorite type of music?
Well it’s old school gothic/batcave and dark ethereal but concerning the violin I fell in love recently with baroque and I’m really starting to make an obsession about it. I listen to it all the time even when I make my grocery rofl. I’m trying to build up a good size music library to explore what really reaches to me in baroque.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
For violin it’s Passacaglia (the guardian angel) of Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber.
Because that song is making me go through so many different emotions with different intensity. Also I love the embellishments, it can sound very different from one violinist to another. But my favorite music change with the seasons, my mood and the alignment of stars :p.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
I’m hopelessly addicted to mmorpg’s. I started with Everquest in 2000 and now playing Guild Wars 2 who is still in beta but almost ready to be released. I also am a big reader! I adore historical stuff but also I’m a huge fan of poetry, philosophy and old classics (I love how they were writting back then, so elegant), but I also dream in fantasy novels hehe. As you can see I’m not into sport or anything exciting. Reading a good book on a blanket under the shade of a tree at the lake is perfect. I’m a simple person. Soon I’ll add my violin and sing while the lake swallows dance their ballet in the air!
Do you come from a musical family?
If so please tell us about them. Unfortunatly no. My parents never touched a musical instrument. I remember asking for music lessons over and over because I was doing fine with a recorder at school but my parents always refused.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
No though I’m sure it would be a great experience. I think I would really like playing in a small strings group, quartet? Something intimate anyway.
Do you ever perform publicly? I’m not that cruel! Not yet hehe but one day I will try to join the sunday jams on Mount Royal in my city. Maybe I could learn from others there or simply have fun.
What do you work with?
My chromatic tuner! I can’t tune a violin without it but I can recognize now when it’s out of tune. I also have a music stand and a mirror to check if my wrist is straight. I bought also a webcam that I plan to use for checking how I sound and my posture. I also have my ipod I use as a metronome and a ear plug for the left ear for when even I cannot suffer my playing! I have the Suzuki book 1 method but it’s more a song compilation then anything else, I think it’s meant to be used with a teacher. I also have Fiddleworks for folk songs and a Mel Bay First Violin Lessons which I really like because of the easy fingering charts. I check youtube and Fiddlerman for tutorials (and the learning games). Those are my tools!
Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
My bow is crap, it’s an octogonal brazilian wood elephant weighting 67g which is way too heavy for my weak wrist and fingers lol. My violin is a Ricard Bunnel G2 from Kennedy Violins, assembled and ajusted at the violin shop. I love it’s oil finish and dark brown color 
and added some lace ribbons at the scroll to personnalize it. All fittings are in real ebony and the tailpiece has 4 fine tuners. I use Zyex strings with the silver G and D but might change my E string which I find too bright. I use L’Opéra Jade rosin but I plan on trying many kind until the perfect one is found. I’m loving my violin more and more each day, I often say we are dating and getting to know each others before the love story begins! Each passing day I feel more comfortable with it. I know it’s not a super quality violin and would love to play on a good one, but it will do for now with my humble budget! I called my violin “monsieur le marquis” because I think he is snobbing me most of the time.
The winner of the CVN-500 goes to “Fiddle4Fun”
After reviewing all the votes of the remaining 4 videos in the CVN-500 contest “Fiddle4Fun” is the favorite by the majority of “Fiddle Talk” members.
We look forward to seeing posts and hopefully pictures with her new violin. Stay tuned for an update with more information on our winning member, “Fiddle4Fun”.
Buy the violin here: CVN-500.
Terry Before Violin
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
My name is Terry Taylor, now 49 (where did those years go?) and will be 50 on June8, so Deb and me are celebrating by spending 2 weeks on the shores of Lake Garda in Italy, at the bottom of the Alps.
Have been living back in the UK since ’93. Prior to that, after qualifying in Engineering here in the UK and no job, I had had an offer of a job on a trial basis with Volkswagen South Africa, so off I went, 11000 miles with £100 in my pocket, a suitcase full of clothes, and a promise of a job for three months. What was I thinking of!?!
What a great few years that turned out to be. From being penniless in this miserable British climate, to living by the beach, loadsa money in my “sky rocket” (pocket), and a bunch of new immigrants like myself ready to take on the world. Well, the southern African continent anyway!!
• What made you decide to play the violin?
One way or another I have always been involved with music.
As a kid, I played bugle, fanfare trumpet, Bflat “wantap” trumpet and then snare drum in my local marching band. A few of my schoolmates lived in the surrounding streets so we would always be practicing together. The band (for a BoyScout band) was quite succesfull and we did a lot of competitions. More military style than the Pomp and Floss of American style marching bands.
Four of us were always chosen to play “Last Post” and “Reveille” in church for remembrance day service, and I’ll never forget the sound of our four bugles, spanking it in the middle of a huge church with the most amazing ecoustics I have ever come across. Brings a tear to me eye even now when I think about it.
(a shame Iphones and Vid.Cams weren’t around then, even in black and white, lol)
Oh yeah, I had a spell as a roadie for a local rock band as well in my late teens, that was a bit raucus and usually very messy, but great fun, looking back!
Since I lived in SA and living by the coast, I took up yacht racing, nothing too serious, and none of this round the world stuff (yet!!) and now back in the UK, I joined a local dinghy racing club who happen to have an off-shore/yacht section so we manage to go out a couple of times a year. Mainly Greece or UK south coast, racing around the Isle of Wight for those who know of it, but have done Ireland’s west coast, and around a few of the Scottish Isles. (most fantastic scenery, and hardly ever another boat in sight). Anyway, I digress, my sailing buddies are always carting around guitar cases when we sail, along with all our other normal sailing gear, and I couldn’t be borthered with all that.
Having sailed up the Irish Cost (from Dingle to Kenmare and area) we had some great nights moored up near little Irish villages and towns, who always seemed to have a group or live music of some description going at it. After too many pints of Guiness and the beat of the Irish music, and I knew exactly what instrument I wanted to play!!
I guessed that I’d need classical/formal lesssons first to give me a good foundation before delved into the Celtic rythmns!!
Terry After Violin
• How long have you been playing the violin?
I bought my Stentor Student II last June with some birthday money I was given, fondled it for 6 months before organising proper lessons late in December last year with Julie Doubleday, a great and inspiring teacher I was lucky to find who’s teaching style exactly matches my personality.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I try and play every day. For as long as possible.
As it has been winter (a pretty dull and dreary time of cold darkness here in the UK), its been great to have an interest in which I could immerse myself. (which I have a habit of doing whenever I am into learning something, whether languages, which I love, or martial arts, or anything really.)
Every time I put it down, I think, I need to practice this or that some more, so off I go again!
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
garbage!
Then I look back at how bad I was when I started and it gives me renewed vigour to pick it up and crack on again.
I remember some karate students who were awful, absolutely awful, when they started (including me) but to watch them progress with time, passion, application and a good teacher is a great feeling, and now I feel I am back on that same journey.
• What or who has been your greatest influence?
My late father. A real “gentleman” in the British sense of the word, with a huge thirst for knowledge and also a great artist. His influence made me the type of guy who is prepared to question everything. To find out why something happens like it does. To understand the mechanics of something, in my opinion gives you greater ability to make it your own. Attributes I think could turn me into a really good violin player. I like to think I’m a good sailor and martial artist because of this ability to look deeper and I sure hope to transfer this process to my violin, though having patience is also not one of my strong points, being a proper Gemini!!
• What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
To get good, and then to get even better.
I’m miffed that I left it so late in life to find this passion for the violin, but then, I’m glad I found it now and not in 10 or 20 years time, so in that respect I feel like I have given myself a head start.
• What type of violin training?
Formal.
Like learning languages and karate, I am used to boring repetition, and I try and use this same mind set when I practice my violin, knowing that once one becomes unconsciously competent, the whole world opens up.
• How do you warm up?
15 mile run, 200 push ups, 100 situps…..nah! just joking. Somedays I do scales and arpeggios, some days I just belt straight into it. Life is about variety.
• What is your favorite type of music?
I like all music with passion and power. Whether it be pan pipe-music from the Andes or Judas Priest at a zillion decibels. Alexei Arkhipovsky is my latest favourite thanks to Naska. I never thought a balalaika could be such an instrument!!
My CD and Iphone music collection usualy draws smiles (or ridicule!) from my friends due to its, shall we say, diversity!!
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
I have different favourites depending on my mood. I love Air on a G string and was chuffed when my teacher said I was going to learn it for my 1st to 3rd position introduction and practice. I could play it and listen to it all day, every day.
I also love “Dreamer” by Supertramp, but that is because it brings back memories of me riding around Africa on my motorcycle. I was out early one morning riding through the bush in Natal and there was a low lying mist on the road and surrounding countryside. It was just like my bike was riding through the clouds and that piece of music was coming through my earphones.
One of life’s special memories.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Cooking and Martial Arts. I love creating something that not only tastes good, but keeps you alive as well. I used to do a lot of business travel around Europe and Japan, and always tried to take my Karate gi (suit ) with me. Training was a great way to unwind, and it’s amazing how trying to beat the crap out of someone builds up such a good, long term friendshiop with them. Wierd. (When I eventually come to the USA, never been yet, I reckon me and ftutc will have to get it on!!)
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Not in the least. My brother used to play the Glockenspiel in the same marching band as me but thats it. A couple of uncles used to be singers, but I hardly ever knew them.
• Are you a member of any orchestra?
Not yet, But I hope to join one when I can if only for something to do during my retirement.
• Do you ever perform publicly?
Not since I was in the band. Oh, except some martial arts demonstrations but I’m not keen on those. Having said that, we did one for Prince Charles a few (quite a few) years ago. It was good to see the way a couple of his guards kept a close eye on us older participants.
• What do you work with?
gotta pinch Denny’s answer to this one! that was funny!
I’m in Aerospace, something to do with fuel control systems but I’m not sure how much of my job I am allowed to mention. (it beats listening to boring IT consultants talking about their job in the bar, lol!)
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
As I said, I bought a Stentor Student II (Chinese origin) with my birthday money, and since, no, even before, I fitted D’Addario Zyex strings to it, I love it, I also use a more expensive, supposedly better version that I have borrowed, but to be honest, I prefer the tone of my own. Maybe mine feels “the love” and responds accordingly, haha.
I hope when I get good enough that I will be able to go to my local Luthier, pick up one of his expensive violins and think how much better it sounds than mine. Then better still, be able to afford it!!
MANASSAS, Va. –
The violin that was stolen from Helen Ballou is not a 300-year-old Stradivarius, but it’s just as precious to her as one of those legendary instruments.
It’s not some cheap, factory-made fiddle, either. It is one of the first fine violins hand-crafted by Dennis Stone, who was something of a legend himself among Washington-area musicians.
“This is my baby because he built this for me,” Ballou said. “It’s one of those objects I would actually grab – I wouldn’t leave it in the house if my house was on fire.”
“Even though I was going through rough times, I could have probably pawned it like a lot of people do with their musical instruments,” she added as she described the challenges she’s faced. “No. I was starving, but rather than pawn my violin, I just opted to be hungry.”
This is a cold case that tugs at the heartstrings. It’s a story of unlikely connections and unforeseen consequences. It’s also a test of social networks in their broadest sense – the webs of friends and contacts developed during a lifetime long before Facebook or Twitter.
Someone reading this could provide the missing link that solves the mystery. If you share the story with everyone in your own social network who has any connection to violins, you might help find Ballou’s “baby.”
Here are the 4 videos in the finals. Please vote for one of them on the polls. Only members are able to vote. If you are not already a member please register first from the forum page. If you clear your cache or reset your IP the second vote will not count. The result showing might not reflect the true actual votes. The only votes that count are the 1st votes that come in from each registered voting member.
Unfortunately contests are very hard to keep completely fair. and my appologies go to Sadie and Blueviolinist who did a great job and deserve to be in the runnings for the final vote.
Fiddle4Fun and JausAP were a dead tie when I checked the views and therefor are both in the running. I suggest that members use their vote wisely and perhaps even ask the members questions to help you decide. Remember that you have a PM function on the forum if necessary.
Good luck to all four contestants.
Another one of the orchestras that I frequently play with discontinue operations.
Here is a press release that I took from their website:
Vincent P. Zito Founder/Artistic Director
Dear Pops Patrons
Vincent Zito, Founder and Artistic Director of the Key West Pops Orchestra, Inc., along with the Key West Pops Board of Directors, regretfully announce that they have decided to discontinue the operation of The Key West Pops Orchestra. “The Pops has given me many wonderful opportunities these past 13 years; the opportunity to explore and grow as a
conductor, the opportunity to work and make music with some
Hon. Lurana S. Snow President
of the most talented musicians currently working in show business and the opportunity to share all of that with receptive and enthusiastic audiences.” says Vincent Zito. The economic climate has made it a struggle to raise the funds necessary to put on the caliber of full orchestra performances that have been the hallmark of the Key West Pops, despite the generous support of so many in this small community. “I speak on behalf of the entire Board of Directors when I say that this was not an easy decision. We seriously considered other alternatives such
Stephanie Hellstrom Executive Director
as reducing the scale of our productions, but we felt that the quality of our programs could not be maintained in doing so.” said President Lurana Snow. The Board collectively determined that the best course of action would be to end the Pops’ 13 year run on a high note with this very successful season, with all expenses paid and resist the temptation of continuing just for the sake of continuing. “Running the Pops for the past six seasons has been an amazing experience for me and I sincerely thank Vincent and the entire Board for such a wonderful opportunity.” says Executive Director Stephanie Hellstrom. We are extremely grateful to everyone who has been a part of our organization: Performers, Board members past and present, volunteers, contributors and, of course, our audience. The Board believes that The Key West Pops has fulfilled its mission to the community by providing the highest caliber of live orchestral and vocal music to enrich and entertain by putting together well-known artists from out of town along with local musicians and by providing performance opportunities for many of our talented Key West citizens. The Key West Pops’ name and logo, trademarked to Vincent Zito, will also be retiring with the organization. Please accept our heartfelt thanks for your enthusiastic support throughout the years
The following videos are eligible for winning the CVN-500
The drawing for the CVN-500 will be on the 30th of April. Post your video by April 22nd to be eligible. Good luck to everyone.
The three videos with the most views by Friday the 27th of April will be posted again for the Fiddlerman and Violaman members to vote on their favorite.
The deadline for turning in the files to fiddlerman for the youtube project is May 15th. Please visit the following link for more details.
Record yourself using the He’s a Pirate Click track only in ear and not audible on the recording and SPREND the file to pierre@fiddlerman.com (Please do not email any files to me as they will be too big)
Please spread the word to everyone you know that plays the violin or viola. I would be sad if we had too few.
If you don’t wish to be seen just record audio. I will mix the parts first then add the video. There is a possibility that not every video will be seen but all audio from the video files will be. Sending me a video gives me all rights to use the video as I see fit for the youtube project.
"Sone" from the "Fiddle Talk"
Fiddlerman.com is proud to announce an alternative way to stay connected and learn to play violin when away from a computer.
The Fiddlerman app for iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Android! The app is designed as a companion to the Fiddlerman site, providing mobile access to:
The app is available through the iTunes App Store on your computer or mobile device. Simply search for “Fiddlerman.” The iPhone link app link: http://itunes.apple.com/app/pl…..70818?mt=8
To access the app through the Android platform, set your phone to allow apps from any source and simply scan the VR/Barcode found below.
Created by Madison, one of our very own community members, otherwise known as”Sone”.
This app provides a fluid and seamless way to experience the Fiddlerman universe in the palm of your hand.
The click track is finally available for the International He’s a Pirate Group Youtube Project. Help test it out and see if the tempo is within reason.
Visit this link for all the details as well as all the parts.
All interested violinists and violists are welcome to learn the parts arranged and available here on Fiddlerman.com. At the end of April members will record themselves individually using this He’s a Pirate Click to create a memorable international youtube video of “He’s a Pirate”. Tempo may change if too many are having problems and a new click will be uploaded.
Congratulations to Dennis and Sadie,
It was a dead tie between the both of them and two caps have been sent out last week. Thanks again for your great and interesting entries.
The competition was for a member to record a video of themselves and their pets playing and singing together. Both were required to be in the video and any instrument was acceptable. Members had nine days to submit a video to be a part of the voting poll. The voting poll was put to the members who voted even numbers to both participants. Each entry miraculously received 58 votes and Fiddlerman had to ship two Fiddlerman caps as a reward for their hard work.
Sadie posted the first video or her playing Fur Elise on the piano with her Chihuahua Pal singing along side.
Dennis posted soon after playing the violin with his best friend Duke
"Mustang" from the "Fiddle Talk" forum with her CVA-400 that she won on Violaman.com
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I’m 18 years old, I live in Minnesota and because there’s some confusion about this, I will let you know that I am a girl! LOL
I have been homeschooled my whole life, but I do take an orchestra class at the local high school. I am also in my second year of PSEO classes from Northwestern College. If you don’t know what PSEO is, it stands for Post Secondary Enrollment Options. It’s an option we have in Minnesota for high school students to take college classes for free. It’s a very nice option!
• What made you decide to play the violin?
I heard violin music on the radio once and thought it was the best thing in the world. I decided that I had to learn how to play the violin. I actually felt like God was calling me to play violin.
• How long have you been playing the violin?
The 4 year anniversary is on April 14th.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
Every day.
I usually practice 15 minutes at a time and probably spend a total of 2 hours practicing every day.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Intermediate
• Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Getting picked to be the soloist in orchestra!
• What other instruments do you play?
I can play viola… not very good though. xD
I do own a harmonica too, but I can’t play it to save my life. People say violin is hard? Try playing a harmonica!!
I also have an ocarina, but I’m as good at playing that as I am at the harmonica. I have no idea where to learn how to play ocarina. There’s no Ocarinaman!
• What does music mean to you?
Music is like, my life!
• What or who has been your greatest influence?
God, my parents, my violin teacher, FM, and SaphireRain42 and Sori1004jy on Youtube.
• What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long
I want to keep improving on my playing.
• What type of violin training?
I have been classically trained.
• How do you warm up?
I don’t usually warm up…
• What is your favorite type of music?
Classical and movie soundtracks are the best! I listen to Vivaldi and the Lord of The Rings and Kung Fu Panda soundtracks a lot. I also like Christian rock a lot!
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
I have to pick a favorite piece of music?! Can’t they all be my favorite?
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
I love to ride horses and play classical arcade games!! My favorite game is PacMan. I am a PacMan fanatic!
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
My dad’s side of the family is not musical at all. I don’t think anybody from his side of the family ever played an instrument.
My mom’s side of the family is very musical. I’m glad I took after my mom. Hahah!
My mom plays the hammered dulcimer. I have a cousin who also plays violin and another cousin who is a professional luthier.
• Are you a member of any orchestra?
A high school orchestra.
• Do you ever perform publicly?
Yeah, I do a lot of gigs at coffee shops and play in nursing homes for people and at church.
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
Um, well… if you want to know about all of them… it’ll be a long list. xD
I learned how to play on a Cremona SV-175 violin. It was a nice instrument to learn how to play on.
Then a guy named Chris Foss was very nice and traded a Lewis and Son Artisan Signature model violin to my mom. I used that violin for 2 years. It was a great violin and I got it from a great guy.
Chris Foss makes hammered dulcimers and is a friend of my mom’s. If you want to know more about him, check out his website: songbirdhd.com
Then, I found this Lewis and Son Ton Klar Dancla violin (which is the one I use now) on Ebay with a starting bid of $1. From the pictures, it looked like it was in decent condition. I didn’t think a dollar was too much to pay for it, so I bid on it! It eventual went up to $50, but I still won it!
When I got it, the sound post was out of place. I had a repair guy put it back in place and it sounds amazing now! I really love this violin! But there are some problems with it, so I’m probably going to be getting a different violin soon. 
It has a crack that would cost a ton of money to repair and it’s really heavy! I don’t think a heavier violin has been made!
Well, maybe I’m exaggerating a little, but it’s really heavy!
I also have a blue Cecilio electric violin. 8D
So, that’s all of them! I have 4 violins… violins are like potato chips, you can’t have just one! Hahah!
Feel free to print and attach Kevin’s Applique PDF, from the Fiddle Talk Forum, to your fiddle.
There is a lot of controversy as to whether or not one should use a form of tape or guides to find the right spot to place your fingers on the violin fingerboard. The important thing whether you use a guide or not is to use your ears to fine tune intonation. Always focus on your intonation and trust your hearing more than the guide. As often as possible look elsewhere than the guide and as quickly as possible get rid of it. Use the guide to learn quicker and to memorize where to place your fingers in the beginning then try to memorize the spacings rather than to stare at the fingerboard. Eventually you will be playing too fast to take the time to spot and hit the markings on the applique.
Using the guide can be compared to shifting a stick-shift car while staring at the stick.
cdennyb from fiddlerman.com's Fiddle Talk forum
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I’m 56, born and raised here in Oroville, Ca. and have lived in the same house since I was in 1st grade. I have 3 kids, the youngest boy lives in Modesto with his girlfriend and daughter. The oldest boy is about 20 miles away with his GF and my daughter (22) is living about 30 miles away working at Enloe hospital and studying to be a plastic surgeon.
• What made you decide to play the violin?
I’ve had an interest in playing for many, many years. There was an old German fiddle in the rafters of the garage/shop for decades and no-one ever really played it…separated top & bottom, lack of strings, a sound-post rolling around inside, a bridge all warped… About 10 yrs ago I bought a Chinese student model off e-bay and thought I’d give it a try. Without any kind of instruction, no internet to help, I soon lost interest and it stayed in the closet ever since. I’ve watched several you-tube videos of David Garrett and I think he was the reason I dug out the old fiddle and repaired it, and now practice on it every day. The student model seems a little jealous that I don’t play it anymore.
• How long have you been playing the violin?
Seriously practicing…. (?) only about 2 months now. Hit & Miss…. Maybe 4 months. Owned a violin… 50 years.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I usually don’t have the time or schedule to practice more than about 15-30 min at a time, but late at night (after 11pm) I can usually lose track of time and end up practicing for an hour or more. I always try to make at least 30 total minutes a day… 6 days a week avg.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
I’m a beginner…plain & simple. But… I’m progressing rapidly, mostly due to my passion to learn and play. I’m aggressive and my results show it I think. Some people say I’m moving too fast… I say… maybe they’re forgetting more than they’re learning by moving too slow.
• Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Hmmm, greatest experience would have to be the moment I realized I really learned to play a piece of music completely from start to finish on the violin!
• What other instruments do you play?
When I was in grade school, back in the late 60’s I had many, many piano lessons (I hated every one to be honest) and because of that… I suppose I didn’t learn anything else.
• What does music mean to you?
Well, music is very powerful… it moved me to repair a 90 yr old German violin that could just as easily been thrown in the trash! Now, I play just to hear the strings and I’m progressing well on wrist & finger vibrato, seemingly unheard of for a beginner before they’ve played for a year or more.
• What or who has been your greatest influence?
Hands down, it would have to the great virtuoso David Garret with his cross-over style of violin. Having a history of learning when he was 4 yrs old and now a world superstar, having played with the worlds’ finest players and orchestras, and not even 30 yrs old yet… that would have to be an influence on anyone.
• What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
Short term: Maybe memorize a dozen tunes to play well. Learn to read sheet music and stop learning to play by ear so much.
Long term: Hmmm, maybe just be able to jam with a bunch of bluegrass friends at the bar.
• What type of violin training?
You’re it man… Fiddlerman.com is really all the training I’ve had. I’ve studied over many hundreds of web sites and pages of information learning all I could, watched the instructional YouTube vids, and now… after rebuilding the old violin to perfect condition, I have no fear of playing, repairing, rebuilding, etc. and even work part time at the luthiers’ shop (who fixed the broken seams on my violin), setting bridges, installing strings, setting sound-posts, changing tailpieces, I even did a peg job, etc.
• How do you warm up?
I just start playing, maybe a few chromatic scales (10 minutes or so) then break into the standby tune “Over The Rainbow” and play it in a couple of different keys. Play some random notes working on the vibrato movements of the fingers and wrist.
• What is your favorite type of music?
The music of the great players like Milstein, Kreisler, Friedman could play music like you’d expect angles to play…If I had to choose just one, probably classical old style.
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
That would have to be the one that made me practice for hours to get it right since I had to learn it by ear… “Over The Rainbow”… I’ve always like it… especially played with a good mix of vibrato.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Scuba diving (Technical/Research Diver of 30+ yrs) and extreme long range (1000 yd) rifle competition.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Really, none of the family members play anything except the radio. LOL
• Are you a member of any orchestra?
Sorry, no.
• Do you ever perform publicly?
Nope, nada, zilch.
• What do you work with?
A bunch of morons…
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I have 4 wooden bows:
1 Old pernambuco bow that was with the old German violin, 1 Chinese bow that came with the student model, and 2 Chinese bows from e-bay for $20.
I have 1 carbon fiber bow just purchased from Pierre @ fiddlershop.com
I prefer the CF bow but the Pernambuco is a very close second.
The Old German Violin and the Chinese Student model.
As it is now, as I practice with it.
As it came out of the case in the rafters.
I would like to appologize for all the Database Errors that have been occuring the past 3-4 days. Our site has expanded quicker than I expected and I need to explore new options for the future as I am fairly certain that we will be expanding continuously.
Unfortunately because of the database errors we are getting fewer and fewer visits, down from 1200 daily to over 600. For this I am very sad though I believe it is just a temporary setback. The errors are due to a network storage issue at my current host. I am exploring options for moving Fiddlerman.com to a much quicker and more reliable host in the future but for now I must deal with the current problems.
See below the explanation from our hosts:
Pierre,
We are shifting things around on the storage network, we have a second storage network we put in place and have been balancing load between the two but it’s an ongoing process. Once we are finished we believe that reliability and network speeds in general will be much better. We expect to have that complete this week, if there are still problems with your database after that point it may simple be due to the fact that there is just too much usage on it for a shared environment in which case a dedicated/private server environment may be more suitable (which we can certainly discuss if needed).
• If you like, please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I’m Roque Valmoria, I’m 17 years old turning 18 this July 9. I was born in East Avenue Medical Center, Quezon City Metro Manila. My Father is a music lover, he’s a guitarist and karaoke singer LOL! but I really didn’t appreciate any music since I saw David Archuleta auditioning for American Idol Season 7 he really inspiring me until today. Since then I started to learn through internet specially on youtube, my first piece that I completed was ” A Thousand Miles by Vanessa Carlton” but inspired by David
• What made you decide to play the violin?
I saw Henry Lau playing while dancing the 3rd movement of Vivaldi’s “Summer” also Sue Son from BGT from youtube. And I really love listening to any sad and slow violin piece. And I thought violin was easy to play so I started dreaming my self playing a violin.
• How long have you been playing the violin?
I’ve been playing violin for 8 and a half months, and I’m proud to say that I just learned violin all by myself of course with the help of Fiddlerman.com but I also dreamed attending to a formals music class.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I play violin everyday. I don’t limit my practice session as long I’m in mood to play. But honestly my longest minute of practicing violin is between 20-30 mins lol.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
• Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Nothing yet, I should learn more.
• If any, what other instruments do you play?
Go back to the first question lol.
• What does music mean to you?
Music is the way of expressing yourself, and you’re playing music because you love it and not to impress other people.
• What are your goals for playing violin? short and long.
Of course every violinist are dreaming to be professional, but for now I’m focusing on dynamics and intonation to express music perfectly.
• What type of violin training?
No idea? lol
• How do you warm up?
Do I need to warm up? lol I’ve been playing violin for months but I just play directly to the piece.
• What is your favortie type of music?
Slow classiccal piece, OPM, and David’s songs x).
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
This question is kinda hard coz I fell in love into a lot of music, but….uhmmm…. I chose… Obito’s theme. Because it’s my new video lol.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
1.Playing games on computer especially DoTA and bRO.
2.Petting my pet cavies, they’re so cute :3
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
No, not really because only my Dad, Sister, and I can play at least one musical instrument.
• Are you a member of any orchestra?
No, but I wished too :3
• Do you ever perform publicly?
Not yet, maybe 5 years later haha.
• If you don’t mind, please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I have my new violin it’s antique styled but it’s cheap so it’s not high end like those hand crafted violin, my bow is just a basic bow nothing special on it and I shifted to Synthetic core from Steel core, I’ve been using Pirastro Tonica since Zyex is hard to find.
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
Well, my name is Erich Feldhaus, I am about to be 53 years young on April the 19th . Born in Paris Texas not far from the Oklohoma border. (Red River) Moved to Dallas to find work and have been here ever since. One very understanding wife of 30 years and Three semi understanding children.
• What made you decide to play the violin?
I have always loved the sound of the violin, to me it has always been the ultimate instrument.
• How long have you been playing the violin? I bought a violin when I was 18 at a pawn shop but couldnt make a sound , didnt know about rosin. Took it back a week later. (no enternet back then). The next time I held one was at the tender age of 49. So about 4 years.
• How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I probably play three or four times a week. Sesseons can run any where from 10 min. to 3 or 4 hours.
• In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
I play pretty damn good when no one is listning! but really I think I am about on the level of a two year player.
• Your greatest personal experience with playing?
My wifes grandfather made violins and played all his life . Well he passed on and about two weeks after I started playing, my wifes grandmother was on the phone and I played amazing grace for her. She loved it ! I cant explain the feeling I heard in her voice. I am sad every time I think about how my life was so busy that I couldn’t take the time to learn from her grandfather!
• What other instruments do you play?
None really , I have always been good with tools though.
• What does music mean to you?
I don’t know what it means, but it has always been a part of how I feel and a factor in my emotions. Its a powerful tool , as represented in movies. A sound track can make or break a movie. It has had a similar effect on the events of my life.
• What or who has been your greatest influence?
To many artist to name. My taste for music is wide and veracious . Jean Luc Ponte has to come to mind , Issac Stern, Perlman, of course Kershaw. Rock , jazz , classical, blue grass , blues , it s all great I love It!
• What are your goals for playing violin?
Short and long. I want to have fun and lot of it. Play things that will make you tap your feet and say “Play another one”. Or make you cry and say ‘Play another one”
• What type of violin training?
I took lessons from a little gal , 30 minutes every two weeks for two years. She really pushed the basics and used the Suzuki book but not the method. Then I found a older gal that I go see every chance I get . Not very often. Shes great really down to earth.
• How do you warm up? I don’t. when I get it in my head to play , I’m ready to Play! • What is your favorite type of music? Sometimes blues, sometimes folk, man it just all depends on my mood. Just like Obama nothing is off the table.!
• What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
Off the top of my head , I never get tired of Bartoks Romanian dances. Parts of that piece make my heart fly.
• What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
I am always building things , or planning to build things. Building my farm in my head.
• Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
No, my sister sings pretty well and used to do so in church. but I don’t know of any of my family that music took hold of like it did me.
• Are you a member of any orchestra?
Nope.
• Do you ever perform publicly?
Closest thing is the videos I have posted here.
• What do you work with?
Been in construction ever since I left the hay fields of East Texas.
• Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I would love to if I knew anything about it. It was given to my daughter by my wifes grandfather. He did not make it I was told. I found it in the closet after she gave it up . It had been there about 5 years. I did buy a Cecilio electric and have some fun with it occasionally .
D
ownload your very own Fiddlerman.com calendar to remind you of the fiddle and that there is a place where you can share your interests with super fun and friendly members.
Free Fiddlerman.com calender 2012 by Fiddlermans forum member, “cdennyb”
"BCShalom" from the "Fiddle Talk" forum
What made you decide to play the violin?
As a child, I was expected to play Violin, because my father did. I was sent to lessons with a tiny little fiddle and there were great expectations. However, the pain from poor shoulder rests, and the dedication were not in the little Jewish kid from Tacoma Washington, to follow in Pappa’s foot steps. Perhaps if Pappa were a resident father and leader of the family things would have been different. I attempted again to Learn the fiddle when the Pappa returned briefly to live with us. He left again and I lost interest in the fiddle . I just recently began lessons again with FM and I find that it isn’t as difficult as I remember. So with dedication and success, in ten years or so, I may be able to do more than scratch the strings and frustrate my poor dog.
How long have you been playing the violin?
Like I said, just a few months, and hopefully I can say that I can play the VIOLIN SOON!
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I have been working around the house lately so my practice sessions kind of have to come after I get the job done and have the house to myself. I have been able to practice for four hours on one thing or another at times. I think I learn more with shorter sessions however. I will just be playing it by ear.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Oh, I am a beginner. I just hope that I will soon be able to say I am an anything else!
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
When it doesn’t sound like crap and people recognize what the tune is I am trying to play! Isn’t that the hope of all violinists?
If any, what other instruments do you play?
I was trying to learn Guitar when it came to me that I wanted to finish learning to play the Violin. I still want to learn Guitar later when I can nail down the basics of the violin.
What does music mean to you?
What does music mean to me? This is an interesting question. Music is essential to civilized life as we know it. It sets the mood in nearly all forms of entertainment, it is background in personal relationships and our fondest memories. We can remember our feelings through music from decades past. A song can allow us to relive or greatest triumphs and deepest sorrows. Music is everything to me.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
My greatest influence was most likely my father. When he was home, I remember his playing. He was a great violinist, he said he won the Eastern Oregon Old Time Fiddlers contest once, and played for the Spike Jones Band of Renown. I believe that was the name of the band. So, I guess that’s the best answer I can give for this question. It doesn’t feel like it says it all, however. Oh well.
What are your goals for playing violin? short and long.
I am nearly 64 years old. I suppose my ambitions are to play the best I can play, in the number of days that I have left on this earth, and to give pleasure to those who hear my music. Beyond this, baring the possibility that I become a virtuoso…ummm.
What type of violin training?
Violin training consists of FM, and assorted self help, violin tutoring, including Violin for Dummies. How can we get along without Violin for Dummies?
How do you warm up?
I warm up with scales, Twinkle Twinkle and Mary Had a Little Lamb. (Doesn’t everyone?)
What is your favorite type of music?
Favorite type of Music? I don’t know if I have a favorite, there some genres that I don’t care for which will go unmentioned.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
My favorite piece of music, is one little obscure Israeli folk song “Streets of Gold”. Why? Because, that’s why! I guess you would have to be a Jew and a Zionist to truly appreciate it. I am both.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Attending worship services (Schul) and riding my Harley Davidson, Wide Glide.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Well, told you about my absentee Father, other than that, umm no.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
No.
Do you ever perform publicly?
I have practiced at schul. I was asked not to, the repetition was getting on people nerves.
What do you work with?
What do I work with? Work? Now you have to talk dirty? I am retired military. I presently work around the house, not enough and not exactly a domestic engineer. My poor wife. Oy Vey. I do plan on returning to the work force soon however. I will fill you in on that, as it will surely change my practice time and duration.
If you don’t mind, please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
Well I have a CVN 200 my my third violin, my wife’s now, she said she always wanted to learn how to play one too, counting the ones I had as a child. I then purchased a Lincoln G-1 from Lincoln Instruments and had an unfortunate accident, with it. As I was practicing I would pause to do some work around the house, taking a suggestion from someone on FM’s site, and I sat down to rest. Well the rest of the story is too sad to relate, in a dignified way so…. Just remember don’t leave your fiddle in the chair if your going to practice around your chores. I will now move on to my bargain CVN 500 purchased as a second for less than half the price of a first line CVN 500 out of Necessity. Did I mention the fact that I am a Jew, and we are known for being THRIFTY. Then I have a U-build it, fiddle that I wanted to use to learn the mechanics of the violin from first hand experience by building one. My bows are cheap but mostly adequate which were provided by the K&K Music and Lincoln, with the exception of the carbon fiber bow purchased from Fiddlerman dot com. If you don’t have one of those, for the price and the quality, order one from him if you are playing with the kit bow that came with your violin. With my limited experience in playing, they are all fine instruments, with the broken Lincoln, having the best tonal quality as I can determine by my limited experience with it. Hope to get that one fixed soon, if the repairs are not more than the violin it’s self.
Lot’s of great things were written about the August Kohr HC602 Violin in Strings Magazine so I decided to test it out myself. I could immediately see that this violin is set up and adjusted by skilled luthiers. The bridge is well cut without any excess wood, the sound-post is set right though it could undoubtedly move during shipping, and the pegs function properly without slipping or sticking. This violin sings already after just being played for 30 minutes. During that short time the sound improved which leads me to believe that it will be considerably better in a few months as do most fine modern instruments. Playing this fiddle is pure joy and the sound coming out of it compares to fine Italian instruments. I can easily recommend this violin to not only students but also to professionals that can’t afford to spend over tens of thousands of dollars to get a fine instrument.
Get yours at Fiddlershop.com
The AFM applauds the passage of the FAA Bill that sets a consistent national policy allowing musical instruments on airplanes
After five years and 23 short-term extensions, Congress has passed legislation reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for the next four years. Included in the bill are provisions that create a uniform national policy regarding musical instruments on airplanes. Any instrument that can be safely stored in the overhead compartment or underneath the seat may be brought on board as carry-on luggage. Additionally, the bill sets standard weight and size requirements for checked instruments, and permits musicians to purchase a seat for oversized instruments, such as cellos, that are too delicate to be checked. Existing law allowed each airline to set their own policy regarding musical instruments, and size requirements varied widely for both carry-on and checked baggage. The American Federation of Musicians (AFM) has been lobbying Congress to enact such a policy for nearly a decade.
“This is great news for professional musicians throughout the U.S. and Canada who carry the tools of our trade – our instruments – aboard commercial aircraft,” said AFM President Ray Hair. “Ending the confusion over musical instruments as carry-on baggage has been a top legislative priority for nearly a decade. I am proud of our Government Relations Director, Hal Ponder and his assistant Laura Brigandi in our Washington legislative office for seeing the effort through. Musicians can now fly in friendlier skies.”
The FAA reauthorization was passed by the House of Representatives on Friday, February 3 by a 248-169 vote. It subsequently passed the Senate on Monday, February 6, 75-20. The President is expected to sign the bill into law.
You can be the lucky winner of the CVN-500. The CVN-500 comes with everything you need to get started. It’s a beautiful instrument by Cecilio Music and has a manufactures suggested retail price of $329.99
You can be the lucky winner of the fine instrument. Read below how you can qualify to win. This violin is also available for purchase at Fiddlershop.com
Check out this review of the CVN-500
To be eligible to win this instrument you need to do three things: Make a video advertisement to promote Fiddlerman.com
Make sure your video mentions Fiddlerman.com and good reasons for visiting. Upload that video to Youtube and get as many views for your video as possible. Include links to Fiddlerman.com in your description text on Youtube. Share this post with as many friends as possible. LIKE this page. The link to like, can be found on the top of the right hand sidebar. Post your youtube video on Fiddlerman.com’s forum. Members of Fiddlerman.com and Violaman.com will vote on their favorite video out of the top three most viewed eligible videos. The drawing for the CVN-500 will be on the 30th of April. Post your video by April 22nd to be eligible. Good luck to everyone.
Buy the violin here: Cecilio CVN-500
• Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I was born on February 7th 1954 in Amityville, NY, yes that Amityville, the horror house. We grew up playing baseball all summer long. At that time I was told I was going to learn to play guitar so for a couple of years I went to lessons but at a young age the only thing on my mind was going out and having fun. While in grammar school we attended a concert. I was amazed at the sound of violins. The only problem was, at that time girls played violins. By the time I was 16 I took up SCUBA diving and kept up with it using mixed gasses until I was in my early forties. While in college I had taken horseback riding and found my second love, horses. By the end of 1995 my wife had died and 3 years later I found a wonderful woman from Pennsylvania. We married and moved to PA where we lived in a 17 room Victorian home in Scranton. My wife’s daughter had a horse that she had to sell a couple of years prior so we bought him back and gave her the horse for her birthday. Next I had to get my own horse, Rio Steel. He broke his knee and had to be put down so I searched for quite awhile for another horse. Now you may not believe but the house we lived in was haunted. There were always children laughing and lights going on by themselves, and then as I was looking on the internet for a horse I found one I liked and all through the house you could hear the clip clop of a horse. This of course meant this was the horse to buy. Now my wife was without a horse until one day we took the trailer to an auction to transport a horse for a friend. While sitting there a donkey and her foul came up for auction. The donkey had an old bullet lodged in her chest and the foul was only one day old. As the auction was on someone behind me was bidding and won the bid. With that my wife yells I won the donkey, very much to my surprise, but home they came. I took the bullet out and still have it although she passed away many years later. With all the horses and donkeys, we sold the house and bought a small farm. My wife and I built the barns and we were off. We now have over 200 chickens, 7 horses, 2 donkeys, 15 goats, 1 turkey, about 25 ducks and 10 geese along with 9 cats and 5 dogs and 5 rabbits, Thumper died just before Christmas. Now for the first violin. While at an auction, where we went to buy a Hosier and a violin came up for auction. My wife’s daughter, who from this point on we will call my daughter, played violin in school so I got her the violin. By the time I got home I noticed it was cracked. Well now I have to find out how to fix it. I learned how to do it and took the violin apart repaired it and refinished it. Now I enjoyed doing that so much that I bought another and another and another. Now I decided since my daughter didn’t want to play that I should learn to play it and in doing so found my first love, the one I wanted in grammar school.
Repairing broken violins
I have been playing since April of 2010
Some days I go on for hours on end and usually pick up my violin every chance I can
I would say I am about an advanced beginner.
That would have to be the first time I actually played a song and it sounded good, I remember it because my wife thought it was someone else playing
I can play pots and a kazoo
Music to me is life. When things are not going well or I just don’t feel well I can always play my violin and forget about any problems I have.
My wife, she is always there to encourage me.
Short term goals are to play as well as I can even if that is only well enough to please myself. My long-term goals are to play Handel’s Messiah.
Besides what I have learned here I started learning from Violin Tutor Pro with Michael Sanchez.
I know I’m supposed to say I warm up with scales but I don’t. I usually warm up by playing a piece I know well.
I can’t really say I have a favorite type. I listen to all music and enjoy all types of music.
That would be Handel’s Messiah and Ave Maria. When I listen to these pieces I am just awe struck at how beautiful and moving they are. It’s like a movie by music.
Being with my animals and riding the horses and working with my hands and mind.
My family didn’t even own a record player no less a record.
No
Just to my friends, family and Fiddlerman projects.
I work our farm and repairing and building violins to give away to school children who can’t afford one.
Right now I play a Karl Meisel and a Cecilio electric. I have one of my own waiting to be finished and about 5 others in various stages of repair. So if one which I repair is better than the one I am currently playing than that will be my new violin and the one I am playing will go to someone to learn to play.
All interested violinists and violists are welcome to learn the parts arranged and available here on Fiddlerman.com. In the end of April members will record themselves individually using this He’s a Pirate Click to create a memorable international youtube video of “He’s a Pirate”.
Download the appropriate part or all the parts and learn them as well as you can.
Record yourself using the Click-track in ear not audible on the recording and SPREND the file to pierre@fiddlerman.com (Do not email any files to me, they will be too big)
Deadline for turning in the audio or video files is May 1st. Please spread the word to everyone you know that plays the violin. Would be sad if we had too few.
If you don’t wish to be seen just record audio. I will mix the parts first then add the video. There is a possibility that not every video will be seen but all audio from the video files will be. Sending me a video gives me all rights to use the video as I see fit for the youtube project.
Demo videos soon to come for help on how to perform the parts.
He’s a Pirate was chosen by Fiddlerman’s members on the “Fiddle Talk” forum. Everyone is welcome to participate in this fun and exciting project. I encourage you to recruit players to make this event even more fun and popular.
Download any or all parts and choose the most appropriate one to record based on your capabilities.
He’s a Pirate – Score
He’s a Pirate – Violin 1
He’s a Pirate – Violin 2
He’s a Pirate – Violin 3
He’s a Pirate – Violin 4
He’s a Pirate – Violin 5
He’s a Pirate – Viola 1
He’s a Pirate – Viola 2
He’s a Pirate – Viola 3
He’s a Pirate – Viola 4
He’s a Pirate – Viola 5
“He’s a Pirate” MP3 of all five parts
He’s a Pirate – Violin 5 MP3 from midi
See what the Fiddlerman family members were able to accomplish together on the last project Christmas 2011:
Details about the last project HERE
$172,000 violin recovered by cleaning crew. The Associated Press A rare violin worth $172,000 that was mistakenly left onboard a Boston-to-Philadelphia bus by a groggy music student from Taiwan has been found and returned to its grateful owner. Megabus USA director Bryony Chamberlain said Friday that a cleaning crew recovered the instrument, which had been left in an overhead bin earlier this week. The New England Conservatory student got on a Megabus in Boston with the 176-year-old violin but got off without it late Tuesday, police said.”It could have been quite a tragedy on Christmas, but in the end we were able to trace down the violin and put it back as soon as we could,” Chamberlain said.The 19-year-old student, Muchen Hsieh, told investigators that she left the instrument in an overhead bin and only realized she had forgotten it after she had been picked up. The violin was lent to her by the Chi Mei Culture Foundation in her native Taiwan while she studies in the U.S.Hsieh said she initially called the bus company to see if the instrument had been found, but she was told it wasnt on board.
Megabus
Megabus offers low-cost express bus service to more than 70 cities in the U.S. and Canada. She also reported the loss to police, who later called the bus cleaning company and eventually the rare instrument was returned. Hsieh was so happy she hugged detectives and played her violin during a police news conference Friday afternoon.Lt. John Walker said people always hope for Christmas miracles around this time of year.”In this case,” he told The Philadelphia Inquirer, “we got one.”
via $172,000 violin recovered by cleaning crew | Sympatico.ca News.
In Classic vs. Modern Violins, Beauty Is in Ear of the Beholder
By NICHOLAS WADE
What gives a violin made by Stradivari or Guarneri del Gesù its remarkable sound? Researchers have examined the wood preservatives, varnish, even the effects of the Little Ice Age on the density of wood, for anything that might explain the instruments’ almost magical properties.
Lady Harmsworth Stradivarius Copy
Claudia Fritz, an expert on the acoustics of violins at the University of Paris, has arrived at a different explanation for the secret. Despite a widespread belief in the old violins’ superiority and the millions of dollars it now costs to buy a Stradivarius, the fiddles made by the old masters do not in fact sound better than high-quality modern instruments, according to a blindfolded play-off she and colleagues have conducted.
“I don’t think there is any secret, except in people’s minds,” she said.
Many tests have been conducted in which an audience tries, usually unsuccessfully, to guess whether a violinist behind a screen is playing a new instrument or an old master. But Dr. Fritz said that to her knowledge, no one had conducted a well-controlled study putting the same question to the real experts: violinists.
Teaming up with the violin maker Joseph Curtin and others, she corralled violinists attending an international competition in Indianapolis and had them compare three high-quality modern violins with a Guarneri and two Stradivari instruments.
People asked to rate a wine will judge it more pleasant when told it costs more. To avoid any such effect, the violinists had to wear goggles so that they could not identify the violins. In one test they were allowed to play all six violins and asked to choose which they would most like to take home. In another, they were required to compare a pair of violins, without being told that one was a classic and the other a new instrument.
Despite a general belief among violinists that Stradivari and Guarneri violins are tonally superior, the participants in Dr. Fritz’s test could not reliably distinguish such instruments from modern violins. Only 8 of the 21 subjects chose an old violin as the one they’d like to take home. In the old-to-new comparison, a Stradivarius came in last and a new violin as the most preferred.
“These results present a striking challenge to conventional wisdom,” Dr. Fritz and her colleagues reported online Monday in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Dr. Fritz’s conclusions, naturally enough, are music to the ears of modern violin makers. Violinists view them with less rapture.
The study is “highly credible,” said Sam Zygmuntowicz, a luthier who has made instruments for Isaac Stern, Yo-Yo Ma and the Emerson String Quartet. It “puts cold water on some old myths and should certainly be good news to young musicians who yearn for violins that they will never afford.”
“There isn’t any ineffable essence” about the old violins, “only a physical object that works better or worse in a variety of circumstances,” said Mr. Zygmuntowicz, who has worked with the physicist George Bissinger on a scientific documentation of old violins.
Does this mean there is no lost secret of the Cremona violin makers? “It’s impossible for us to say,” Mr. Zygmuntowicz said. Each instrument is special, but it is hard to tell what is different about them as a class. “I think new violins can capture most if not all of what makes old violins great, and even if they can’t, we shouldn’t stop trying,” he said.
A less respectful view of Dr. Fritz’s study is offered by the violinist Earl Carlyss, a longtime member of the Juilliard String Quartet. “It’s a totally inappropriate way of finding out the quality of these instruments,” he said. The auditions, he noted, took place in a hotel room, but violinists always need to assess how an instrument will project in a concert hall. He likened the test to trying to compare a Ford and a Ferrari in a Walmart parking lot.
“The modern instruments are very easy to play and sound good to your ear, but what made the old instruments great was their power in a hall,” he said.
Mr. Carlyss emphasized the very personal relationship that violinists have with their instruments — something that may be hard to emulate under the conditions of the test. A similar view was expressed by Mark Ptashne, a biologist and violinist who plays the Plowden Guarneri del Gesù — the old Italian violins all have individual names — and has also owned a Stradivarius.
“Even experienced players who have not lived with a great violin don’t realize what they are hearing or doing when they first play a great instrument,” he said. “Second, Strads and del Gesùs vary tremendously in sound characteristics and quality, so generalizations are hard to make from a few cases, in any event.”
Dr. Fritz acknowledged that her study used few violins. But it is quite difficult, she noted, to get owners to lend out their million-dollar instruments to be played by blindfolded strangers.
via: In Play-Off Between Old and New Violins, Stradivarius Lags – NYTimes.com.
Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
My name is Mary and I was born on April Fool’s Day in Walla Walla, Washington. I’ve been told that I take myself a bit too seriously Grew up in Hood River, Oregon where my Mom still lives. I now live on the Central Oregon Coast with my wooden boat building/restoring partner of 10 years, two dogs, one cat who rules our world, and six angora rabbits.
What made you decide to play the violin?
I’ve always loved the sound of the violin but never gave playing much consideration as I have many, many hobbies and I thought it would be Too Hard. Every year at the Wooden Boat Show in nearby Toledo, Oregon, Kelly Thibadeaux (a fairly local pro fiddler) gives a free fiddle workshop, which I always listened to but did not participate in until 2010 when there was a man selling fiddles and other stringed instruments to benefit a children’s music program at the show. The time seemed right to pick up the violin and Kelly promised that it was easy as pie (in his Southern drawl) and I could not resist.
How long have you been playing the violin?
1.5 years.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I pick up my fiddle several times a day, usually for about 10 minutes at a time. There are so many other chores and obligations in my life that finding time to practice for an hour or more at one time is pretty rare.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Rough advanced beginner, I guess. At this point playing the songs I really love isn’t quite within my reach, so I always feel like I’m striving, which can be frustrating.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
The first time Twinkle sounded like a real song and I realized that maybe I could learn to play after all.
What other instruments do you play?
I played flute in the band through school, but didn’t like it much, mostly because of the music selection.
What does music mean to you?
As others have said, it’s the Universal Language and becoming fluent is one of my lifetime goals. That the violin comes closest to the human voice is icing on the cake, IMO. I want to give voice to my feelings and passion through the violin in ways that I just can’t express in words.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
I took up the fiddle strictly for myself with no one cheering me on. Even the cat left the room for a couple of months after I started Lora at Red Desert Violins made my early attempts productive (this was before Fiddlerman) and encouraged me to keep going and keep growing as a fiddler. YouTube has proven to be a great inspiration – seeing all of the young, enthusiastic musicians posting videos with some awesome technique and creativity is a constant source of motivation. Watching the videos on Fiddlerman has been inspirational, too, as we have the opportunity to get to know each other and give encouragement and constructive (and non-threatening!) criticism in a totally supportive environment, which is HUGE for those of us who are a bit shy in person.
What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
Short term to get my left pinky into shape and in tune – I’m double jointed, so my fingers don’t like to cooperate for certain things and it’s been a challenge to train them into proper violin habits. Long term to play some of the songs that inspired me to take up the violin – Boccherini’s tune at the end of Master and Commander, the theme from Last of the Mohicans, Snowdon’s Jig by the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Willie Taylor from Uncle Earl, and many Old Time fiddle tunes as well as some Blues.
What type of violin training?
7 months online with Loralyn Staples of Red Desert Violin. She teaches a modified Suzuki method to adult beginners and has been a great inspiration to me. The lessons are fun, very productive and fit perfectly with my learning style.
How do you warm up?
I generally play Lightly Row before anything else, even scales, because I find that it’s already running through my head before I pick up the fiddle to practice. Then some scales, then whatever I’m working on at the time.
What is your favorite type of music?
Anything but rap, heavy metal (although there are some fabulous musicians doing covers with classical instruments that I love!) and Classic Rock.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
The theme from the Last of the Mohicans runs through my head more than any other song lately, so at least part of my brain loves it above all other songs. It’s a very haunting piece – I’ve seen the movie a couple of times and can’t help but think of certain scenes when the song goes through my mind.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
If I’m not working on something fiddle related (building, research, designing in my head, etc.) I like to read and work on my fiber arts projects. During the Summer gardening and working outside are top priorities. Can’t cut it down to just 2
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
None of my family (including myself) can carry a tune in a bucket. Luckily my fiddle stays in tune and, with the help of an electronic tuner, I can be fairly sure of playing in tune
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Not a member of any type of musical ensemble, but would like to be. I’ve recently met some local fiddlers and viola players and we hope to get together to play in the near future.
Do you ever perform publicly?
Not yet.
What do you work with?
My training is in architectural drafting, but the money is in engineering, so I’ve been drawing for civil and structural engineers for 20+ years now using AutoCAD Civil 3D. With the US economy in such bad shape, there is no new construction going on in this area, so I am pretty much out of work at the moment and looking to change careers. I would love to be able to make a living with the fiber arts (spinning, knitting, quilting, felting, weaving, sewing, etc.) but have been unable to make local connections that are profitable. A drafting gig that is related to the fiber arts would be perfect.
Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
The fiddle I play the most is the one I built from a kit last year. It’s blond and sweet, like the perfect cup of tea. I also play a Cecelio electric fiddle, which is a lot of fun. My bow was purchased from Oregon luthier Henry Strobel and is not expensive, but it is quite a bit lighter and more responsive than the bow that came with my first fiddle (which I passed on to my son) and I use a BowMaster grip to help with my double-jointed-ness.
The date for the CVA-400 give-away is now set for 1PM EST Sunday, January 8, 2012
For the moment there are very few qualified contestants. See below the requirments for eligibility. The first requirement was to share this post on facebook and with as many possible. If you shared the post please send me a PM via the violaman forum with a link in case I missed it. For right now there are 4 members that I know of who qualify to be entered in the drawing. The drawing will be shown live on Fiddlerman TV.
The CVA-400 comes with everything you need to get started. It’s a beautiful instrument and produces a great sound right out of the box and normally costs under $160. If you are starting out on the viola you probably can’t find a better sounding instrument for the same price. You can be the lucky winner of the fine instrument.
To be eligible to win this instrument you need to do three things:
More posts give you better eligibility and you may be entered more than once for a greater chance to win. Note that your posts should be pertinent to the viola, string playing or music in some way. Also the posts must contain more than just a few words to be counted.
The drawing for the CVA-400 will be the first week of January. Stay tuned for details of the exact date.
Buy this viola: CVA-400 – Viola
“Daniel” who won the CVN-300, joined fiddlerman.com in April, 2011 and lives in Dipolog City, PhilippineEarlier Daniel answered some interview questions for the “Fiddlerman Members Interviews” See what he wrote below:
If you like, please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I’m 19 years young and was born in Cebu City, where I live 3 days a week and go to school there. Etc
What made you decide to play the violin?
I wanted to learn an instrument from the 4 major instrument groups, and so far violin needed only single notes and no extra jogging
How long have you been playing the violin?
More than a year
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
Twice a week, around an hour-hour thirty.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Still a beginner, but very ambitious.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Playing a recital with a friend onstage
What other instruments do you play?
A little recorder and piano.
What does music mean to you?
It’s the universal language, and a way to connect with people; I can’t live without it.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
Anime and movies about music, mostly.
What are your goals for playing violin? short and long.
Short term?
To get my part in FiddlermanCP, 2011 right, and Long term, to master Canon Rock.
What type of violin training?
12 days of music theory and 4 months of….
How do you warm up?
With a slow piece like Ave Maria
What is your favorite type of music?
A mix of classical and modern, think Bond and Asteria, or F.U.S.E.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
I’d say, PV06 Rock Remix from the AngelBeats! Series. It reminds me of the freedom we have to express ourselves.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Modern Warfare, and Anime
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Not really, my dad plays a little by ear(Guitar and Piano), my sister’s into piano, and my older sister likes to sing.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Used to be, I played at a Baptist church before I switched.
Do you ever perform publicly?
When I get a chance, yes.
What do you work with?
People
See previous news for this giveaway below:
Fiddlerman will be raffling a Cecilio CVN-300 Violin on Saturday the 17th of December at 11AM on Fiddlerman TV. The next violin in order to be raffled will be announced and shown also at this time.
To be eligible to win you need to involve yourself in the “Fiddlerman’s Christmas Project”
Fiddlerman will be raffling a Cecilio CVN-300 Violin on Saturday the 17th of December at 11AM on Fiddlerman TV. The next violin in order to be raffled will be announced and shown also at this time.
To be eligible to win you need to involve yourself in the “Fiddlerman’s Christmas Project”
Buy this violin: CVN-300 Violin
Meet “Robyn” from Fiddlerman’s “Fiddle Talk” forum
Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
This will be boring …
I grew up in Sydney, then moved way up north to Cairns in my twenties where I had some more kids and just kept working. I’m now living a bit south of there in a mining area. I can’t wait to retire and move back to Cairns.
What made you decide to play the violin?
I love my piano, but it’s not very portable. I have a clarinet, but last year I suffered a severe lung infection with legionella, and now I can’t blow up a balloon. So I thought I’d try violin instead, mainly because of all the tutorials I found on YouTube.
How long have you been playing the violin?
About a year. ‘Playing’ may not be the appropriate word.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I work part-time, and it absolutely wears me out. So on my non-working days, I love to pick up the violin and probably play for about an hour at a time.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
‘Beginner’, evolving into ‘advanced beginner with terrible intonation’.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Being invited to play with the Fiddlerman Christmas Project. And then today finding the finished product on the website, and being able to share it with all my friends.
I don’t think words can describe the feeling this gives me, so you’ll have to use your imagination (and then triple it!).
What other instruments do you play?
I have a piano, and a clarinet (gathering dust). Many years ago I played saxophone and guitar. I’ve tried brass, but gave up in despair.
What does music mean to you?
This is a rhetorical question isn’t it? Everyone knows music is the universal language. It is emotion. It is joy. It is sadness. It is irreplaceable.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
I think it would be the shared influence of all the online tutors I have seen. I still can’t believe that so many people give their valuable time and wealth of experience for free. I’m not sure where I’d be with learning the violin if I hadn’t stumbled on Fiddlerman.com. And there are so many musical videos online for me to enjoy at any time.
What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
My short term goal has always been to play one song beautifully. I’m still working on this project. My long term goal is ditto the above. Unfortunately, I haven’t found that one song yet.
Another long term goal I have is to be still learning in my very old age, because I think that will keep me alive and not just breathing.
What type of violin training?
I have a copy of Suzuki, and started at page 1. Since then I’ve bought several other instructional books, some of which are a total waste of money. The town I live in is geared toward mining and industry, not the arts, so finding a teacher to help me along has proven so far impossible. So Youtube is probably my most influential teacher.
How do you warm up?
Every morning I go for a long walk around a nearby lake. Then I do a short session with light weights, and some stretches, after which I feel strong enough to tackle some scales and etudes.
What is your favorite type of music?
All of it, except for the cr*p. As far as playing music, I love to try classical pieces, jazz, and old-time favourites. I’d love to get into blues some more, and I’m following the fiddlerman tutorials.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
I don’t have a favourite. I just love all music. I’m currently trying to decide on something suitable for my wedding. This is proving to be a difficult chore, all other decisions have been very simple.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
I love to play my piano, I’m still classed as a beginner there as well. My favourite weekend treat is a trip to the beach, whether it’s an afternoon swim followed by (sharing) a bottle of wine as night falls, or our ritual Sunday breakfast picnic. Stinger season is now upon us, so there’ll be no swimming till next year.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Short answer … NO. I honestly can’t remember anyone in my family ever playing anything other than my Grandma’s pianola, and that was only when the old fellers had had enough to drink that they fought over who would start it up in auto mode.
My family were always battlers, I never even had a bike to ride to school, we walked. So there was no music either. When my kids were at school I made a point of ensuring all of them were enrolled in the free school music program, and encouraged them to choose their own instrument. Not one of them now plays, but I know that the exposure they’ve had will be a vital reference for them in coming years. I know they will continue their interest at some stage.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Yes … Fiddlerman’s Christmas Project … ROFL … they’re the BEST !!
Do you ever perform publicly?
Not on your life !!!
What do you work with?
I work with dying people. That may sound sad and depressing, but believe me, it’s not always that way. It’s probably the most fulfilling thing I can think of doing, to help someone die with dignity and without pain.
Would you please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I originally bought a blue Ashton student violin, thinking that if I failed at that one I’d only wasted $200. After a couple of months I felt it was inadequate (in my professional opinion and with my wealth of knowledge on the subject, of course). I then bought a Francesco Cervini, probably also a student model, but I fell in love with it immediately, and noted the different shaped fingerboard which I felt was easier to play. I can no longer play the Ashton due to increasing arthritis in my fingers and the stiff tuning pegs and fine tuners. Even the nut on the bow is very stiff to turn. I’m still looking at electric (silent) violins, but I don’t think that will happen any time soon.
I’m enjoying the journey.
Players from around the world ranging from beginners of two weeks to players that have been playing for most of their lives, combine to make a Youtube video.
For two months we have been working on 4 parts ranging from easy to intermediate, and discussing how to play them on the forum. Quite a few brave players have posted their progress to be reviewed and constructively criticized by members making the project a great learning experience for many as well.
The audio of this video is a collaboration of 19 players with a total of 24 tracks, since a few players recorded two parts. 12 players included video and 7 players sent exclusively audio files to be anonymous.
Listen to: Ben Warner, Candice – Chinny, Gerry – gStretch, Gitel, Keith – HeadCheese, IggyZuk, Kevin, Kristopher, Lauren, Naska – Mad_Wed, Robyn, SaraO
In order to synchronize the recordings I made a click track available on fiddlerman.com, and players simply played the click track in ear while performing the parts for the recording.
How did I make the video?
First I imported all the videos from a free file sending site called sprend since many files were over 100 Megs, and saved them to my harddisk
Next I opened them with a free video converter program called MPEG Streamclip to export the audio.
I then imported the audio to a multi track recording program called Digital Performer and worked intensely to time the beginning of each and every track as well as possible.
Lastly I imported the videos and sound to iMovie to make the video. Originally I wanted to combine 2 – 4 – 8 videos in a screen but found that iMovie was too slow for working on that many videos at once so I settled with one video at a time.
You too can participate in the next project. Join the forum and stay informed of what is going on at Fiddlerman.com
Please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
My name is Sara and I’m 36 years old. I’ve lived my entire life in southwest Michigan. I’ve been married to a wonderful man for 13 years and have three beautiful and entertaining children.
What made you decide to play the violin?
When I was in second grade, my school began a string program. I remember bringing the letter home from school and showing it to my mom. I seem to remember being interested in playing the cello, but not wanting to have to carry a larger instrument around.
How long have you been playing the violin?
Well, I’ve owned or rented a violin since I was seven years old, but my instrument sat in a closet for most of the last eighteen to nineteen years. I’ve actually been playing for about nine or ten years total, but I only started playing again in August of this year, so I’m still pretty rough around the edges. See, I bet you thought that was a simple question.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I play about six days a week. I like to play for about an hour, but often play for only a half hour, or whatever time I can spare while dinner is cooking, or daddy is reading a bedtime story to the kids.
In your opinion, what's your proficiency on the violin?
Rough-intermediate. That’s a real term, right?
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
When I was in high school, the youth orchestra I played with put on a side-by-side concert with our local professional orchestra. I was able to play the first violin part of Beethoven’s Egmont Overture along with the professionals. It was really a thrill. If you’re not familiar with the piece, I suggest checking it out on youtube. It’s really a fun piece.
If any, what other instruments do you play?
I studied music education in college for a time, so I dabbled with lots of instruments. My main instrument was voice (soprano), but music ed majors also had to play some piano and learn the basics on classroom and band instruments. So I played ukulele, auto harp, recorder, guitar, flute, and cello.
What does music mean to you?
Music is simply a part of me. I used to think all people were like this. For example, I was in a public restroom with two of the kids today, and the six year old started tapping on the hand dryer. Something inside the dryer was resonating. My four year old said it sounded like a guitar string. Anyway, I asked the six year old to keep tapping on the dryer while we sang Little Drummer Boy. This is normal, right? Don’t worry, there was no one else in the bathroom.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
Probably my Dad.
What are your goals for playing violin? short and long.
I’m not sure. Besides staying one step ahead of my violin student, I’m not sure what my goals are.
What type of violin training?
I started with group violin class in elementary school using Suzuki books, but not necessarily Suzuki method. I also had several years of private lessons, although I hardly practiced. Sorry, Mom and Dad.
How do you warm up?
Scales and etudes.
What is your favorite type of music?
I honestly enjoy most types of music. As long as there are no offensive lyrics, I’ll give it a try.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
My favorite piece is probably Schumann’s Widmung. A dear friend sang it at my wedding.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
I love to knit and read.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
My Dad is a very musical person. He plays piano by ear, and he is particularly fond of big band music. He is also a barbershop singer.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Nope.
Do you ever perform publicly?
Not in recent years.
What do you work with?
My husband and I own and manage a small house that we rent out for vacation rentals. We live in a quiet beach community about 90 minutes from Chicago. It keeps us quite busy in the summer.
I also work part time in my husband’s office filing, doing payroll, and other basic office work.
In addition to the paying gigs, I homeschool the children. We zig zag around the community assuring they have a well-rounded education.
If you don't mind, please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I own the same violin that my parents bought for me when I was twelve or thirteen. It is a simple German student instrument. The maker is Seidel, I believe.
A month or so ago I bought a great carbon fiber bow to replace my old one. I got it on ebay from a shop in China.
I actually just bought a new (to me) violin a few days ago off of ebay. I’m anxiously awaiting its arrival. It is made by Gotz. I’m hoping it will have a better sound than my old violin. If not, I’ll pass it along to someone else.
Please begin by telling us anything you would like about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
My name is Naska.
I was born and still live here in Kazan (Russian Federation, Tatarstan republic =) Yep, try to find that place on the map LOL!) I was born on 12/11/1982 so I’m almost 30 years old =) I was actually a present to my mama on her birthday (she was also born on the 11th of December =)). OMG! I was not the best present in her life LOL!
What made you decide to play the violin?
The sound of the violin and great opportunity of this instrument made me decide to play it – definitely =) I wanted to play violin all my life. I guess since I first heard its sound when I was 2 or 3 years old..
How long have you been playing the violin?
I bought my acoustic violin at the end of summer in 2008. But can’t say that I really learned to play it.. My parents refused to listen to my off notes and horrrrrible bowing XD….Unfortunately no mutes to be found in our stores =/ … Then I got an e-violin in February of 2010.. and with this violin I developed lots of bad habits and no useful skills for playing it =(. When I met my teacher, she told me that we not only have to start from 0 but from backwards, LOL. She says that I’ve been playing since April of 2011.. and who am I to argue? =)
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I play every free second that I have! My job schedule is to work 4 days and off for 2 – so I play 2/4 =) Sometimes if i have a free minute before or after work – I use that time as well =) My practice sessions on a working day never last more than an hour but on a day off I never play less than 3 hours.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Beginner (I’m not planning to be a beginner for a long time LOL =))
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Playing duets with my teacher – that feeling is so great! I always feel like …. hmmm, I can’t even find words to describe it… There are not that many great things to compare it to.. It’s like a Sunrise.
If any, what other instruments do you play?
I play the synthesizer and bass guitar. None professionally. I played the acoustic guitar a long time ago so maybe I can remember a few chords =))
What does music mean to you?
Music is a magnificent world of imagination… It’s like a thought, so gentle, that if you try to express it with words it becames stupid and narrow.. Like an itch on your back that you can’t reach with your hands because they’re too short =) And only the expression of music can scratch it and make you happy. Well this is what I mean, LOL - you see, I’m trying to explain my feelings about music with words =) LOL again…..
What or who has been your greatest influence?
All the music that I’ve heard in my life, from granny’s lullabies, the “Grendel” band, “Libido air bag”, black metal, native folk songs to Vivaldi. I don’t like being influenced by any one particular person…
What are your goals for playing violin? short and long.
Short: Christmas Project violin 1 part, Ave Maria, Por una cabeza, Bile the cabbage down.
Long: Being able to play by ear, note reading and music composition.
What type of violin training?
I have a teacher – so mostly I do what she tells me to =) So: G, D, F, C Scales, A Major 4 octaves, positions and shifting. And between you and I: Double stops, Shuffles, Playing Pieces from my sort goals list =) I am working a lot on dynamics – that’s my weakness =)
How do you warm up?
Exercises before playing:
Tune the violin =), play open strings and scales.
What is your favortie type of music?
It’s easier to count types that I don’t like… But even among those there are exceptions.. I can tell, I definitely like cyber grind core and classic =)
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
I don’t have just one particular favorite piece.. I like Vivaldi -” Winter”, Handel – “Passacaglia”, Pachelbel – “Canon in D”, Weena Morloch – “Girl”, Panzer AG – “Battlefield” … these are only pieces that I can name off the top of my head, but if i look at my music collection I can list another hundred pieces and all of them my favorites =)
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Painting and jumping (I don’t know what it’s called when you jump off of a 14 floor building with a cord attached to you – I suppose that this sport exists all over the world =)
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Not really. My mama played violin (!) when she was in 3rd grade, but they had to sell the violin… So she never returned to music..
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Nope =) But if you can count a duet as an orchestra, then my friend (she learns to play harmonica) and I…
Do you ever perform publicly?
Yep. I played bass guitar in 2005 in a night club.
What do you work with?
I’m a technical support operator for our local internet provider.
If you don’t mind, please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I have 2 violins: An acoustic Prada (it does not have any sticker inside-so i don’t know the model) which cost me about $100 and a Brahner EV-503 e-violin. The bows and rosin are those included with the violins =)
Congratulations to “Daniel” from “Fiddle Talk” for winning the CVN300
“Daniel” joined fiddlerman.com in April, 2011 and lives in Dipolog City, Philippines
Earlier Daniel answered some interview questions for the “Fiddlerman Members Interviews” See what he wrote below:
If you like, please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I’m 19 years young and was born in Cebu City, where I live 3 days a week and go to school there. Etc
What made you decide to play the violin?
I wanted to learn an instrument from the 4 major instrument groups, and so far violin needed only single notes and no extra jogging
How long have you been playing the violin?
More than a year
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
Twice a week, around an hour-hour thirty.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Still a beginner, but very ambitious.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Playing a recital with a friend onstage
What other instruments do you play?
A little recorder and piano.
What does music mean to you?
It’s the universal language, and a way to connect with people; I can’t live without it.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
Anime and movies about music, mostly.
What are your goals for playing violin? short and long.
Short term?
To get my part in FiddlermanCP, 2011 right, and Long term, to master Canon Rock.
What type of violin training?
12 days of music theory and 4 months of….
How do you warm up?
With a slow piece like Ave Maria
What is your favorite type of music?
A mix of classical and modern, think Bond and Asteria, or F.U.S.E.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
I’d say, PV06 Rock Remix from the AngelBeats! Series. It reminds me of the freedom we have to express ourselves.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Modern Warfare, and Anime
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
Not really, my dad plays a little by ear(Guitar and Piano), my sister’s into piano, and my older sister likes to sing.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Used to be, I played at a Baptist church before I switched.
Do you ever perform publicly?
When I get a chance, yes.
What do you work with?
People
See previous news for this giveaway below:
Fiddlerman will be raffling a Cecilio CVN-300 Violin on Saturday the 17th of December at 11AM on Fiddlerman TV. The next violin in order to be raffled will be announced and shown also at this time.
To be eligible to win you need to involve yourself in the “Fiddlerman’s Christmas Project”
Fiddlerman will be raffling a Cecilio CVN-300 Violin on Saturday the 17th of December at 11AM on Fiddlerman TV. The next violin in order to be raffled will be announced and shown also at this time.
To be eligible to win you need to involve yourself in the “Fiddlerman’s Christmas Project”
Buy this violin: CVN-300
Meet Keith Fink (HeadCheese) from Fiddlermans Fiddle Talk Forum
If you like, please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
The hardest part about questions like this is not so much what to tell as much as what to leave out. I’ll try to just hit the highlight reel.
I was born on December 8, 1968 in Gretna, Louisiana. Spending my early years on the West Bank of the Mississippi in the shadow of New Orleans, I cut my teeth on the dichotomy of gentility amidst the seedier booze-fueled reputation for which the Crescent City is famous. We later moved to North Texas, where the culture-shock of slow-paced country life as well as the do-for-yourself, self-sufficient mentality charmed and challenged us. Though the city eventually caught back up with us, we never looked back and have been here ever since.
My near-fatal dance with dural and transverse sigmoid thrombosis in 1998 (another story for another day) was the impetus to finally get started on a family after dragging my feet and making an endless litany of excuses to my wife for the first ten years of our marriage. We now have two boys, aged 13 and 11.
I have always had an insatiable desire to know how things work, how things are done, and more importantly, how to do them myself. Consequently, my list of hobbies and interests is as long as the stacks at the library (and now internet) and my funds will allow. I won’t list them all here; but if it was ever in a Foxfire book or could be ordered from a Mother Earth News catalog, chances are I’ve done it. (But for a single example, there are six gallons of wheat beer on my kitchen table, almost ready to bottle. Believe me when I say my long-suffering wife will be glad when this latest batch is finished.)
Professionally-speaking, I’ve earned my keep as a Juggler, Voice-over talent, Actor, Writer – and for the last 25 years – Graphic Designer and Art Director. According to my boys, my second job – albeit a non-paying one – is as one of the senior students at North Texas Aikido, where I’ve trained for the last 21 years and currently hold the rank of Sandan (3rd degree black belt). If I’m not at home, work, or asleep, that’s where you’ll likely find me.
What made you decide to play the violin?
If you’ll forgive me for pointing it out, you misspelled VIOLA. V-I-O-L-A.
My oldest son decided he wanted to join the orchestra last year, and despite my attempts to influence his decision in favor of the Cello, chose Viola as his instrument of choice. After a year of “coaching from the sidelines” to encourage him to practice, I decided that perhaps the best way to get him focused on his own improvement – other than his private tutor – was for him to have to teach it to someone else. I know that I learn best by sharing what I know, and hoped he would have the same results with me. The jury is still out on this one, and I’m usually the more eager to play of the two of us.
How long have you been playing the violin?
Violin? Approximately 20 minutes total, after replacing the broken strings on Son #2′s hand-me-down violin earlier today. I scratched my way through a few scales on that tiny little fingerboard…
If you’re willing to expand the question to Viola, I’ve been working on learning how to play for about a month, now. My adventures in getting my own Viola to play are well-documented somewhere deep in the forums here at Fiddlerman.com
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I try to practice every day, even if only for a few minutes. When my schedule allows me to indulge myself, I’ll literally lose hours in playing the same scale or tune over and over again until I ache, trying to make it sound more like music than a goose being tortured. It is, however, still goose-in-distress-like enough to make my wife find some errand that needs running outside the home.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Honestly, none at this point. Proficiency implies consistent, predictable (and desirable) results. I’m still all over the place with regards to intonation at this early stage in my training. I can play a few scales and simple tunes that are recognizable, if not entirely cringe-inducingly off-key. Hope springs eternal, however, and I have after all just started this journey.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
The first time my son and I played through “O Little Town of Bethlehem” together, I had such a welling-up of pride and pleasure- the sort that perhaps only another parent could understand. It truly transcended any actual playing ability between us and became simply an intimate bonding experience between father and son. It was intoxicating. My goofy grin lasted all night.
What other instruments do you play?
I was a product of the school band program and played drums and percussion throughout my educational career. I’ve played and sung in any number of high-ambition, low-talent garage and semi-professional bands over the years in genres ranging from progressive jazz to heavy-metal. My first love, however, was guitar, and I have had a closet-full of acoustics and electrics that rotate in and out of favor with me. I also play or play at playing keyboards, bass, recorder, bamboo flute (occidental) and a stack of eastern and south-american hand percussion.
What does music mean to you?
Music has been an unrequited love for me in some ways, full of longing and desire, but rarely achieving the level of mature relationship I crave. This is due in large part to my relative inability to read music, I think. However, I turn to music as a form of catharsis, pouring out those things I can’t adequately express verbally. The syncopation of drums let me express order and control juxtaposed against the gritty rawness of pent-up rage. But it’s the melodic instruments that let me explore more complex emotions and exorcise them, lest they crash over and consume me. Everything I do, at every moment, has a soundtrack in my head; and music – be it internal or external – is the adhesive that binds my memories to me.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
As a Christian, my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ serves as a constant reminder to live a life in service to God and my fellow man. It is conversely both my highest calling and my greatest failing. I don’t take credit for any of my abilities, any more than a clay pot takes credit for its design. I am alive today because of His grace, for a purpose I do not, and may never know.
What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
I’ll quote from my answer to much the same question on Violaman.com:
Music is so emotionally evocative to me that I simply want to be competent enough to adequately express my emotion through the instrument.
My joy, my sorrow, my triumph or dismay – I want to be able to let it flow through my instrument in a way that draws the same response from the listener. The music is merely a pathway to that goal.
This is a tall order in light of how late I’m getting started and difficult the instrument is to play, much less master. But given a chance to make a wish with my viola, that is what I’d wish for.
In the short-term, I’d like to be able to play the same note twice in a row. I have at least managed to get my G (fourth finger on the C string) to match the tuning of the open G string about 80% of the time, when playing up to it. Going straight to the note … Not so much.
What type of violin training?
We have a few beginner books here at the house: Essential Elements 2000, Orchestra Essentials, and a Suzuki Method book or two, but for the most part, I’ve relied on the videos at Fiddlerman.com and Violaman.com to give me the mechanics of how to play. My son’s teaching style consists mostly of pointing out when I’m doing something wrong.
How do you warm up?
Sometimes I start with scales and sometimes I just jump into the music first and then go back to the scales as more of a cool-down. Now that Pierre has put up videos of all the major scales for viola, I find myself with my iPad on the music stand next to the sheet music, so I can play along to work on the intonation.
What is your favorite type of music?
This is as difficult a question as asking which is my favorite child.
Truth to tell, the only music I don’t prefer to listen to is “gangster rap.” Just about anything else will find a niche in my listening repertoire.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
In terms of Viola music, I absolutely love Bach’s Prelude No.1 in G Major. Oh, how I would love to play that with the confidence and competence it deserves.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
I love training in and sharing Aikido with others. Being alone with my thoughts on a long motorcycle ride ranks pretty highly with me, as well. It’s usually when I come up with most of my ideas for stories or designs for work.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
My mother was a singer with the Sweet Adelines of New Orleans for years and has a lovely voice. She loved to sing to and for us as kids. My earliest memories are of her singing me to sleep in french.
My father makes up for his tone-deafness with enthusiasm and volume. Lots of volume…
Keith Fink playing his viola in the woods
Are you a member of any orchestra?
None that would have me.
Do you ever perform publicly?
I’ve been a performer in some way or another most of my life. However, with regards to my viola, it will be some time before it makes any sort of debut publicly. I have enough difficulty posting videos of my current progress as it is.
What do you work with?
(I’d love to see this question get clarified, unless it is deliberately left ambiguous like an ink-blot test.)
I work with words, mostly. Sometimes I string them together in short stories or prose, other times I illustrate them visually for clients looking to evoke a particular feel or emotion in an ad or printed piece. My medium is communication. Words are my paint on the canvas of the human mind.
If you don’t mind, please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I have what I think is a non-standard Cecilio 16″ CVA-400 Viola. I say “non-standard,” because, unlike the official specifications for the instrument as being a matte oil finish, mine has a high-gloss varnish. Nevertheless, it has a label inside listing it as a CVA-400. I think it’s really quite lovely for the price and as a beginner’s instrument. When I develop the skills to be able to appreciate and take advantage of the difference, I intend to replace the strings with some of a higher quality.
My bow is the bow that came with the viola and is not notable for anything in particular, other than its serviceability and lack of expense.
Take a piece of paper and lay it on the top of the violin where the bridge goes. Place the bridge on the violin in its place and using a pencil, I use a carpenter pencil with the end flat, scribe a line on both sides of the feet. This will give you the angle you need for the bridge feet. Slowly cut the feet down to this line making the feet slightly thicker than 1/16 inch. When finished, place the bridge on top of the violin, at the proper angle, ninety degrees at the back. Check the fit by shining a light under the feet. If no light, then it is fit and ready for the next step. If light is seen you can take some fine sandpaper with the grit side up and slowly move the bridge across the sandpaper in one direction only, to avoid rocking the bridge. Check it often for a fit with the light. When fitted it stand on its own.
Using a yard stick cut down to 12 3/4 inches or 325 mm, at 10.5 inches glue a 1 inch piece of 1/8 dowel. On the other side glue a 1 inch piece of 3/16 inch dowel. The 1/8inch side will be for the E string and the 3/16 inch side will be for the G String.
I taped lead from a mechanical pencil to the stick because I could not hold the stick the bridge and make a pencil mark while taking a picture. You can use a rubber band to hold the stick in place while making a mark.
Holding the yard stick at the G string slot on the nut and the 3/16 inch dowel at the end of the fingerboard where the G string would be, stand the bridge up in its place and draw a mark on the bridge under the yardstick where it touches the bridge.
Make a curve template by using a compass or a piece of card stock and a tack, drawing an arch with a 42 mm or 1 11/16 inch radius or use your old bridge as a template.
Holding the template so it is on both marks drawn on the bridge, draw the curve onto the bridge.
Using a knife trim the bridges’ feet down to the mark, always cutting from the center to the edge. If you try to cut across the top of the bridge there is a great risk of chipping off the top of the bridge.
Now you have to thin out the bridge at the top and make it the same thickness all along the edge, 3/32 of an inch or slightly less than 1/16 of an inch. This can be done with a knife or sandpaper but be careful not to round it. You want to end up with straight looking lines. Only take wood away from the side of the bridge that faces the fingerboard. Leave the side with the label toward the tailpiece straight and flat.
The last step is to cut the string slots. Since this is usually done with string files a small V shaped notch will do just fine.
The proper string spacing is 15/32 or 12 mm. On the template you just made make four marks spaced 15/32 or 12 mm apart. Make a line between the two middle lines. Now on your bridge make a line in the middle of the bridge. Line up the bridge middle line with the template middle line and mark your string positions on the bridge. Now cut your string slots, lubricate them with a pencil and you’re done.
The bridge can be tuned by removing wood here and there but for the most part this will do just fine.
I can’t string up the violin and show it to you finished because the neck is only held on with rubber bands and the finger board with two drops of hot glue. The neck was broken off this violin so I am repairing the neck notch and replacing the neck from a violin with a completely destroyed body.
by: Kevin M. Healy
If you like, please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I’m 17 years old. I was born in a little town called Henderson Texas and am currently living there. I’ve been homeschooled since…well…pre-k you could say. I have two great parents (a lot of people seem to have two parents….) who have always been there for me. I’ve grown up an only child but I have two older brothers, one of whom is married and has four kids. (yep, I’m an uncle…four times! Haha ) that’s about it
What made you decide to play the violin?
I was looking for a portable instrument and considered several: the recorder, harmonica, and flute. Then I found Fiddlerman’s “Cheap Violin Review”. I noticed he was giving away another violin, so I went for it. And what happened? I actually won. I’ve been given an incredible opportunity…and it’s a portable instrument
How long have you been playing the violin?
I’ve had the CVN200 for almost a month. That’s not very long at all.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I try to practice for at least 30 minutes once a day, but sometimes its every other day or so.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Ummm, listening to other’s play the violin. 
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
Realizing I was making progress and without tape . after playing notes over and over on the first string my first finger went down in a pretty good spot
What other instruments do you play?
The piano is my main instrument. I play the recorder (my mom probably wishes I didn’t have that one) and the flute a little. I recently got a pan flute and a kena (vertical flute, supposedly from the Incas in Peru) and am starting to pick up the guitar a little bit again.
What does music mean to you?
Music is a way to express any emotion possible. It’s a way to praise God and connect with others.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
probably my piano teacher. She’s taught me how to be musical in my playing and not just play notes like some teachers. That carries over to all instruments, not just the piano.
my faith has also influenced the kind of music I play and listen to.
What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
Short term: violin 4 of the Christmas Project
Long term: be able to play anything I want.
What type of violin training?
Mainly Fiddlerman’s tutorials. Sometimes I watch some other videos from youtube but not very often.
How do you warm up?
Well, I really don’t. I just start playing notes and scales with the chromatic tuner and audio files that I made with Audacity.
What is your favorite type of music?
That’s a tough one. Classical music has most anything, but I like pop/hip-hop too.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
I’ll probably have to say Liebestraum by Franz Liszt.
Love Dream or Dream Of Love is the translation. To me it describes feeling of love a person has for another. It can also be taken in a Religious sense to describe the great love God has for us.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
I’m gonna change the question a little bit, “what are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing music?”
They would have to be going to Mass (Church)/praying and hanging out with family and friends.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
My dad was in a Church group that would go to people’s houses and sing for their birthdays. They might’ve sang for special occasions too, not sure though. He plays guitar a little, not very often though. His parents used to play guitar too.
My mom played the flute in highschool and was first chair for a while. Her dad used to sing really well too.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Nope. Talked about starting a group with a friend who plays the saxophone but haven’t done anything yet.
Do you ever perform publicly?
The violin, no, and not for a while
I play piano recitals and local competitions. I also play for Christmas and Easter caroling with the homeschool group I’m in.
What do you work with?
Not sure what this one means. I work with my schoolwork, and the teacher and principal XD
If you don’t mind, please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I have a CVN 200 and all the equipment it came with. The review’s Fiddlerman made on it can probably tell you more than I can. About the bows, I’ve only used one of the two. I can kind of tell its cheap but hey, it gets the job done. If you want a good violin and don’t want to spend boocoodles for a good one, get the CVN 200.
If you like, please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
Hi everyone, I’m Candice (aka Chinny) I’m 19, was born in Singapore but moved to Australia when I was 5. I still visit Singapore every year because of relatives. I’m currently studying a double degree at the University of Western Australia.
What made you decide to play the violin?
There’s a funny story behind this one actually. When I was like 8 (possibly younger) I only knew of a few instruments, one being the violin. When mum was using the bathroom I went up to her and asked if I could learn the violin because I wanted to play concerts for her, in the bathroom. I don’t know what I was thinking but mum ended up getting me violin lessons through the school. I swear I must have been out of my mind back then but just to clarify things, I never played a solo violin concert in the bathroom for my mum and I don’t want to do it anymore either!
How long have you been playing the violin?
I played for 4 years starting in 2000. Picked up the violin for another 2 years in 2005. Picked up the violin again this year. It’s been a bumpy road but all up I’ve been playing for a grand total of roughly 7ish years now.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I play when I’m bored and want to procrastinate. I stop practising whenever I feel like it. (On average I tend to practise for about an hour I think)
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
High Beginner/ Low Intermediate level. I only ever finished grade 3 books.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
When you can have jam sessions with other people with all sorts of instruments.
What other instruments do you play?
I’m trying to learn the ukulele. I just bought one this year.
What does music mean to you?
It’s a great stress relief but it also eats up a lot of time.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
My siblings. Them yelling at me telling me I suck contributed a lot to why I quit the violin twice. They don’t tell me that anymore though. Maybe it’s because I use a silent electric violin most of the time now.
What are your goals for playing violin? Short and long.
Short term goal: FiddlerMan Christmas project!
Long term goal: Learn more so that improvising at impulse jam sessions are easier.
What type of violin training?
The first time I picked up the violin I learnt Dr Suzuki method. Second time I picked up the violin I learnt AMEB method. Third time, I’m just winging it and playing for enjoyment.
How do you warm up?
I don’t… does taking my violin off the wall/bookshelf count as a warm up?
What is your favorite type of music?
I don’t actually know. I enjoy a large variety actually, ranging from mild dubstep to trance to pop to game soundtracks to 90′s etc.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
Lemon tree by Fools Garden. I grew up listening to that. I also grew up listening to What becomes of the broken hearted (but I don’t know who that’s by), Cats and Phantom of the Opera both by Andrew Lloyd Webber.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
1) Eating midnight snacks
2) Chatting with my friends
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
My brother and sister completed grade 8 piano, both played the recorder when they were little, both play a bit of self taught guitar. My sister also played self taught flute which she seemed to have really enjoyed. My dad likes to sing oldies to me, typically songs I’ve never heard of.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Not anymore. I use to be part of my school orchestra when I was younger though.
Do you ever perform publicly?
No. Even if I tried busking, I think people would only give me money to get rid of me haha!
What do you work with?
I don’t work. I’m still living off my parents, but I’m studying Engineering
If you don’t mind, please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I have two violins, both of which I love very dearly:
1) Acoustic Hofner violin, 4 strings (GDAE). Bought it in 2005 for $1.6k AUD. It was made in 2003. The model is 66 full sized. I like to use my Kun shoulder rest for this violin. I bought my wooden ‘Jubilee’ bow with my violin for $200 AUD.
2) Electric violin. Full sized Yamaha Silent Violin SV-255, 5 strings (CGDAE). Bought it mid 2011 for $2.5k SGD. I use my wolf shoulder rest for this violin. The bow was bought at the same time, it’s carbon fibre and cost me $500 SGD.
Hilary Hahn launches competition to write the last piece for her encores project. Hilary Hahn has launched an online contest to choose the 27th piece for her new project, In 27 Pieces: The Hilary Hahn Encores. Twenty-six composers, including Krzysztof Penderecki, Mark-Anthony Turnage, Edgar Meyer and Nico Muhly, have already written encores for her. She will select the final work from blind submissions to her website.Hahn will include the chosen encore in her recitals during the 2012–13 season, along with 13 other encores composed for the project. The winning piece will also be recorded for release in the 2013–14 season.Submissions must be original pieces for acoustic violin and piano, of between one-and-a-half and five minutes in length. Composers have until 15 March 2012 to send Hahn a PDF and a MIDI file of their encores.
via The Strad – Violinist’s challenge to composers – 30 October 2011.
2011 Annual Convention: November 3-5
The convention will be held in Timonium, Maryland, in the Baltimore area, from November 3-5, 2011. Friday and Saturday will feature individual critiques and small group discussions on topics such as string selection, set-up, varnish, and arching. Bow discussions include wood selection, modeling, camber, and more. The addition of an acoustics demonstration and discussion will introduce makers to the importance of acoustics as it relates to making. The study exhibit at the 2010 convention was so successful that we have again planned an exhibit of fine instruments and bows for the 2011 convention. To round out the convention there will be a presentation on making a copy of the 1704 Betts Stradivari, currently in the collection of the Library of Congress. A CD of photos and measurements will be offered for sale to attendees only.
This convention will be a great opportunity to talk with makers about the “tools they use and the wood they choose.” Our vendors will, once again, be on hand selling the latest tools and supplies. This event is still early in the planning stages and may include more programming. Surely, you will not want to miss this highly interactive convention.
via Next Convention.
If you like, please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I was born in St. Louis Park, Minnesota Dec. 5th 1963 and raised in Bloomington, MN. I was kind of a trouble maker. Always looking for trouble as a kid. I liked adventures including camping, fishing, hunting and sneaking out at nights to explore. I went to summer camps in the boundary waters on the MN – Canada border from about age 8 to 15. I always loved music. My grandfather played violin in a professional jazz band. He is on many records that I would jam to on drums to practice to and I started writing lyrics and writing songs at about 8yo. I was in school bands playing 1st chair trumpet until they kicked me out for skipping school. I then started playing guitar writing original music and organized after school concerts with a band we put together. I was also taking piano lessons and later started taking saxophone lessons. My mom said the music will keep me out of trouble. I played and still do as a lead guitar player – song writer in original bands and cover bands. I moved to California about 11 years ago to keep playing music.
What made you decide to play the violin?
I have always loved the violin by listening to my grandfathers old albums. It took me many years to actually start fiddling until I was 47 yo.
How long have you been playing the violin?
I’ve only been playing violin for about 4 months now.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I practice violin everyday. I can play for many hours but take a lot of short breaks.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
Beginner all the way but I feel I’m learning pretty quick.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
That my wife says I’m doing great and my cats (one being half bobcat) seem to like the sound of the violin as much as I do.
What other instruments do you play?
I play guitar, piano, sax, trumpet, dulcimer and harmonica.
What does music mean to you?
Music means the world to me. I still love to camp and fish but there is nothing better than music to me.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
My Grandfather, many of my cousins that play, my wife, The Rolling Stones and The Beatles.
What are your goals for playing violin? short and long.
To bring it on! Make some original music.
What type of violin training?
Fiddlerman.com and some books that I bought.
How do you warm up?
Scales.
What is your favortie type of music?
Good old rock n roll and Irish music.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
The song Frankenstein because I have always been a fan of scary movies and I hear a version for violin in my head for that song.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Sex and fishing.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
I have many family members that play music but choose to be discreet about it.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
Nope.
Do you ever perform publicly?
All the time but not with the violin but will as soon I can.
What do you work with?
This would take writing an essay. I own tons of equipment.
Please share information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
I own a black metallic Cecilio, CVN 500, Mendini 650, Cecilio e-violin and a Silver Creek electric/acoustic and have many low cost bows. I really like the Cecilio bows but I’m still exploring to know what will work best for me. I also own a couple violins that were built in the late 1800s that are not playable at this time.
I often get asked about which type of string is best and which strings I prefer. One of the problems with steel core strings is that they are not as flexible as synthetic or gut core strings and because of this they are sensitive to hard and strong playing. When you draw the bow over strings you are pulling the string thus adding tension to the string resulting with the pitch rising which makes it much more difficult to play in tune.
Another characteristic of the common steel core strings is that the sound is not warm and with some instruments can sound metallic.
I recommend choosing perlon or high quality gut core strings over steel core. The lower the string the more it is affected by bow pressure pitch changes. E strings are too thin to be made of anything else and not much affected by bow pressure since the pressure on those strings is high to begin with. Steel “A” strings also work well for the same reason. D, G and C strings need to be more flexible. Great gut core strings are very expensive and not necessarily good for your instrument. Many instruments crave the added tension from certain perlon strings for producing a strong sound.
If you like, please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
I was born in Northern Illinois on a farm on Oct 21st 1963. I grew up in a time when you could walk down the road with a shotgun over your shoulder and the local police would just wave as they drove by or maybe ask if you did any good on your hunt. My family of Irish decent has lived in the hills of eastern Kentucky since the early 1700's, I was the first born out of Kentucky in some time . I always knew the south was my home and moved to Tennessee. Ive been here for 20 years.
What made you decide to play the violin?
Ive always been attracted to fiddle music and 3 years ago I took the plunge.
How long have you been playing the violin?
3 years
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
I try to play everyday but like those of you who also have lives and bills it dont always happen. As for length, any where from a half hour to all night sessions depending on mood and time.
In your opinion, what's your proficiency on the violin?
Beginner, but working on it.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
One night while playing it seemed like someone else took hold of my fiddle and played it like a pro, gotta love those moments.
What other instruments do you play?
I play or have played guitar, bass, drums, harmonica, piano, fiddle and Im planning to get a bodhran for Christmas.
What does music mean to you?
Music is the heart beat of life, it can convey any emotion and even change your emotions. A single song can bring back a memory and return you to another time. You can walk out and look over some beautiful landscape, then bring your violin to your shoulder and play and watch the landscape come to life. Vivaldi seen this beauty with his four seasons.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
Too many to list because of my love of so many genres. But I guess Id have to give the nod to Credence Clearwater Revival for getting me started on guitar . Long live Rock-n-Roll !!
What are your goals for playing violin? short and long.
Not sure I really have a “goal” I want to play well and continue to learn but not sure what if anything I plan to do. Maybe someday hook up with a guitarist and do some busking and small clubs playing Irish music would be cool.
What type of violin training?
Completely self taught, by way of books, internet and youtube.
How do you warm up?
Run through the two octave G scale a couple times then play some tunes I know before tackling any lesson.
What is your favortie type of music?
Irish Traditional
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
I love “swallow tail jig “ its just cool, I can get lost playing that tune and just play it on and on…lol
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Exercise (boxing, running, weight lifting, biking, swimming, etc) and fishing.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
I hear that my Kentucky ancestors did some jamming My wife is learning to play violin and my second oldest son plays guitar.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
No, Ive entertained the idea but considering I like to choke up my bow like a lot of fiddlers and play it my way I just wouldnt fit in and hey,thats just fine by me.
Do you ever perform publicly?
1985-1986 I made my living playing and singing in a band. Ive played and sang in a few clubs and songwriters nights here in Nashville also. As for will I again, Im sure I will in some form.
What do you work with?
Not much I havent done, but currently I remodel homes and do landscaping.
If you don't mind, please share with us information about your violin and bow and if you have several please tell us about them as well.
My violin is a German made strad copy, built in 2008 by the Otto Jos Klier company, I use helicore heavies with a wound E string. my main bow is a round stick brazilwood ,ebony frog and silver winding, nothing fancy but it works for me.
PS. Thats my wife LeeAnn and one of our chickens checkin out my fiddle in the picture. A friend once said, only in Tennessee would you see a person texting, a fiddle and a chicken all in the same photo.”
You can be the lucky winner of the Cecilio CVN-300 in December, 2011 (date to be announced soon).
To be eligible to win you need to involve yourself in the “Fiddlerman’s Christmas Project”
Buy this violin: CVN-300
China now makes 70% of the world’s violins. And the quality at the top-end is quite good. In fact, it’s making Italian violin makers nervous. The World’s, Mary Kay Magistad checks out China’s violins.
Everyone’s got to start somewhere. This town near Beijing, Donggaocun started, about 20 years ago, to make violins for export. Zhang Qiu Yan is the town’s economic management director:
Zhang: “There were some young entrepreneurs who wanted to start their own businesses. Some state-owned musical instrument enterprises went bankrupt, so it gave them the opportunity.”
Violin Factory in China
Magistad: Zhang admits that the initial quality of the violins made here was marginal. But she says it has improved quickly, and now the town of Donggaocun alone – population 30,00 — provides one-third of the world’s new violins. That’s about 300,000 a year.
There are a couple dozen violin factories here in Donggaocun, but one monster – Huadong. It makes most of Donggaocun’s violins, and markets them globally under the brand Huayun.
Magistad: In the factory’s assembly room, workers take parts that were each honed by specialists, and piece them together, into new violins and cellos. Ninety percent of these instruments will be exported – to the United States, Germany, South Korea – even Italy, home of premium violin making. Italy’s craftsmen can’t compete on price with the lower to medium quality violins, because Italian craftsmen won’t work for what Chinese violin-makers will gladly take. A competent Chinese craftsman or woman in this factory earns perhaps $800 a month – a good middle-class salary here, especially since many of these violin-makers are former farmers. Huadong’s General Secretary is Geng Zhan Hua:
Geng: “I think the quality and also the skills of our workers are improving fast, and I think the quality of the violins we make here will be better and better.
Magistad: Geng says the factory regularly invites in master craftsmen, and holds competitions among the factory’s violin-makers. She says each is trained for up to a year, to become competent at making one violin part. The different parts are then assembled here at the factory. That system works well for low to mid-quality violins – and China’s violin industry now dominates the market in that range.
But even at the upper end of the market, quality is coming up fast. Violin-making in factories like Huadong’s may be mostly about technical competence. But among China’s master violin-makers, it’s an art. The most renowned among those masters is Zheng Quan. He studied for five years in Italy’s violin-making center of Cremona, and has won international violin-making competitions. Now, in his early 60s, he has a dream — to nurture a new generation of world-class Chinese master violin-makers. He’s doing it through a program he runs at the Chinese Conservatory of Music:
Zheng Quan Chinese Violin Maker
Zheng: We have eleven years for education, very long. And after that I think they will become very good violin makers. “
Magistad: “Eleven years of education for learning how to make a violin?”
Zheng: “Yes. It is a lot. In high school we have three or four years for preparing, in university we have four years. After that, we have the Master, three years’ course. “
Magistad: Zheng Quan says, he’s impressed with what he’s seeing so far.
Zheng: “So the new generation not only talented for using the hand, they have more knowledge for the science, the physical, for material, for wood, for a lot of things, so I think this is different from the traditional violin making education.”
Magistad: Zheng Quan is referring to the old style of education where a student worked with a master, and learned his craft through oral tradition from that one person. Now, he says, there’s a wealth of information and many technical advances to draw from. But the old style, of learning from the master, is clearly still alive between Zheng Quan and his students. One comes in while we’re talking, to ask for help with her cello. It’s sounding off.
Magistad: Zheng listens, takes the instrument and makes a swift adjustment to the wood, tapping lightly with a tool. Then he listens again – much better. Zheng Quan himself has been playing violin since he was 5 – except for the years, during the Cultural Revolution, when his family was punished for being bourgeois, because his father had owned a factory.
Zheng: “So everything was taken away, even my violin was taken away. No more violins. So everything stopped and I went to the countryside work like a peasant.”
Magistad: Which was a bit ironic since Mao Zedong used to call the violin a revolutionary instrument – one that was used to play the 8 revolutionary operas – the only ones allowed to be performed during the Cultural Revolution. Many kids learned to play the violin, to avoid being sent to work in the countryside – as Zheng Quan was.
Zheng: “But I think five years after, maybe, one of my friends gave me a violin so I started to play.”
Magistad: And eventually, he met a master violin-maker, and set the course of his life. Now, as a professor at the Chinese Conservatory of Music, Zheng Quan says he makes sure his violin-making students also learn how to play.
Zheng: “Minimum, they must understand the music. And they must understand the color and feeling of the music. After that they can have the idea, what is the good sound, or start to design their violin, personal violin.”
Magistad: At the high school attached to the Chinese Conservatory of Music, a select group of teenagers are learning to do just that. It is the only high school in China that teaches the fundamentals of violin-making – so the students have a good base of knowledge when they move on to study at the Conservatory under Zheng Quan.
The students saw and shave and sculpt spruce for the front of the violin, maple for the back, and sheep’s gut for the strings. It takes them about a year to make their first violin. A lanky 18-year-old in black jeans and a pop star haircut, Chen Kemeng, is now starting his fourth.
Chen Kemeng
Magistad: He says he hopes in the future to be both a concert violinist and a master violin-maker When I ask what happened to the other violins he’s made, he pulls out one that he crafted, start to finish, cradles it under his chin, and draws the bow. It’s a moment so poignant it stops time, a glimpse of the passion and potential of China’s next generation of master violin-makers.
For The World, I’m Mary Kay Magistad in Beijing.
Today I made some big changes to the “START HERE” page. You will now find detailed illustrations and instructions on holding the violin and bow. Also many of the violin learning basics such as the open strings.
Links to the tuner and some early learning games.
Links to beginners etudes and music.
Finally on the bottom some of the most basic beginner video’s are embedded too.
I plan on adding a lot of learning studies and scales very soon. Stay tuned!!!
After brain surgery,
Mr. Frisch, has resumed his position as Associate Concertmaster with the Minnesota Orchestra and graciously consented to speak to String Visions about his experience since then.
Frisch continues to enjoy a long, successful career with the Minnesota Orchestra after first studying with his father Wilbert Frisch, Associate Concertmaster with the Pittsburgh Symphony, and then completing a master’s degree with Joseph Gingold. Happily, Mr. Frisch’s violinistic skills are quite intact. He was able to play in a full-length sextet performance a mere three weeks following his brain surgery, and resumed performing with the orchestra after about four weeks. Now, he says the tremor is “nonexistent.”
Roger Frisch of Plymouth, Minn., lay on the operating table with his hands clutching his violin to his chin. While surgeons operated on Frisch’s brain, Frisch began to play the chords he’s known for more than 30 years.
It seemed like a scene from a science fiction movie. But every note he played told the surgeons whether the electronic pulses they were sending to his brain worked to ease his body’s tremors.
In June 2009, doctors diagnosed Frisch with essential tremors, a condition that occurs when sections of the brain that control movement start sending abnormal signals.
Nearly 10 million Americans suffer from essential tremors, according to the International Essential Tremor Foundation.
The condition most often affects hand movements, and simple tasks such as drinking a glass of water or eating become difficult. But for Frisch, a concert master with the Minnesota Orchestra, his right hand shook uncontrollably only when he held his bow up to his violin.
Frisch hid his tremors for two years, he said. However, the shaking became apparent when he held out long notes in concerts.
“I was playing these solos and could no longer draw a straight movement with the bow,” said Frisch. “This was potentially the end of my career.”
While it is not known what causes essential tremors, many experts believe it arises from abnormal signals in the brain. According to Dr. Michele Tagliati, division chief of movement disorders at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, brain scans such as magnetic resonance imaging, or MRIs, and CAT scans cannot detect these types of tremors.
“It’s a clinical diagnosis that we detect when we ask the patient to conduct a certain movement that will bring about the tremor,” said Tagliati.
When other medical therapies did not work for Frisch, Dr. Kendall Lee, director of the Mayo Clinic Neural Engineering Laboratory, turned to deep brain stimulation — a surgical treatment that implants an electrode to send electrical pulses to the specific parts of the brain signaling erroneously.
Lee and his team of surgeons found the area of Frisch’s brain sending abnormal signals and implanted two electrodes. That allowed tiny electronic pulses to be sent from a pacemaker-like device into the brain.
“We can place a recording device in the brain and hear the tremors,” said Lee.
While it is not known exactly how DBS works, many doctors believe that it stops the abnormal brain activity, which stops the tremors.
“Just touching the brain at the right location oftentimes improves the tremors dramatically,” said Lee.
Deep brain stimulation is a well-established treatment for essential tremors, but most patients are treated with beta blockers and other medications and don’t require surgery, according to Tagliati.
“The percentage of success when the device is properly implanted is incredibly high. It’s a dramatic improvement that lasts for years,” said Tagliati.
Since the brain does not contain pain receptors, patients can be awake during surgery and do not feel pain. The device is normally implanted while patients are under local anesthesia, but Frisch also underwent the surgery while playing his violin to let the surgeons pinpoint the exact spot to target in his brain with the pulses.
“As I was lying on the operating table, they put the violin under my chin and as soon as they put the second lead in, I played,” said Frisch.
via Cutting Edge: Treating Tremors Through Deep Brain Stimulation – ABC News.
Here is an e-mail from “gStretch” after winning the violin.
My name is Ramon Gerardo Lopez, Jr., but I’ve been called Gerry forever. I am 17 years old and have lived in East Texas all my life. I’ve been homeschooled since kindergarden and will hopefully graduate 2012. My dad exposed me to classical music at an early age by public radio and cd’s. I remember going over to his keyboard and clicking the demo button that played the William Tell Overture. I started out playing piano at about 8 or 9 years old and have been playing pretty much ever since, minus a year or so. I enjoy playing music, especially classical. Music means alot to me, it has been an outlet for many emotions over the years. My faith has also played a part in my music, such as what i listen to and what I play. Since I’ve been taking piano lessons and have learned so much, I think I should use music some how in my life, and I am considering how to do that, perhaps something along the lines of what Fiddlerman does with free music lessons.
In my search for other instruments to learn, I found fiddlerman’s youtube videos and eventually the forum. I am very grateful for winning the CVN 200 and I look forward to learning the violin with the Fiddlerman family.
sincerely,
gStretch (Gerry Lopez)
Congratulations on winning the free CVN-200 violin drawing on Fiddlerman TV today. The exciting thing about gStretch winning is that he has been super enthusiastic about learning to play the violin since day one and has never had the fortune to be able to get one. I went back and checked some of gStretch’s posts and came to realize that he has an extra strong will to learn and I am happy that he will finally be able to start his new journey. We forum members feel as though we have gotten to know gStretch quite well from all his posts and all of them made with a sincere desire and yearning to learn.
I will be sending the violin to gStretch on Monday and updating this post soon with more information on gStretch and hopefully a picture when he receives it.
I am dealing with new students not shifting well to positions and felt the need for a simple exercise exclusively for practicing and learning third position shifts.
Practice shifting from first to third position slowly at first. Slide on each finger from first to first, second to second, and third to third and steadily increase tempo for best results.
Try to memorize the feeling of where your hand ends up, either by feeling a guide when reaching the position or by memorizing the feeling in your left elbow when bent the proper amount. Remember to rely strongly on your hearing both in anticipation and arrival to the note.
Third Posistion Smears by Fiddlerman
For more help watch the third position video below:
Ham & High readers pledge to buy Highgate boy his own cello
The show will go on for Jahleel Weisser of Holy Lodge Mansions on the Holly Lodge Estate in Highgate, after readers pledged more than £500 towards getting him the new stringed instrument.
It comes after this newspaper published his appeal to raise the much needed funds to buy his own cello after Archway Children’s Centre cuts his free music lessons and instrument loan.
Delighted Tamatha Weisser, Jahleel’s mum, said she was “overwhelmed” by the response.
“I can’t believe it, this is amazing,” she said. “The speed of the response and the level of generosity is just unbelievable.
“It will just take the pressure off me trying to find some form of funding. It felt like I kept hitting a brick wall because of his age.
“I really felt this year was the window of opportunity to devote himself to the cello before he goes to school. And now he will get to do that.”
The four-year-old first picked up the stringed instrument last year at the children’s centre, where he so impressed the two cellists who ran the class that they agreed to give him free lessons and loan him a cello.
But they have been forced to withdraw the loan after Islington Council ruled that no child outside the borough’s borders could go to one of its centres – even if it is their nearest one.
Jahleel had to hand back his cello last Saturday (September 24).
Single mother Ms Weisser said: “He is going to get so much pleasure from this. You don’t know if he going to take it to the highest levels, but it is enriching in and of itself. It is amazing for him to experience.”
One of the donors, who wanted to remain anonymous, said: “No child should have to do without music once they have developed a passion for it.
“I am pleased Jahleel has found such a love for this instrument, and wanted to do what I could to help him continue with this.”
via Ham&High readers pledge to buy Highgate boy his own cello – News – Hampstead and Highgate Express.
Fiddlerman will be raffling a Cecilio CVN-200 Violin on Saturday the 8th of October at 11AM on Fiddlerman TV. The winner will be chosen from Fiddlerman.com’s top 25 forum posters. Also, the next violin to be raffled will be announced and shown at this time.
For more details about the give-away and this fiddle, visit THIS link.
Buy this violin: CVN-200
Pierre Holstein celebrates fiddlerman.com's one year anniversary.
Fiddlerman.com is very happy to announce that the site has been online for one year today October 1st, 2011.
I first decided I wanted to devote time to an online violin learning site about six months before actually doing it. It occurred to me that if done correctly I could help so many more violinists with each lesson than giving private lessons. I’ve always felt like everyone who wants to learn should be able to do so whether or not they are fortunate enough to be able to afford it. Internet is world wide as opposed to local and I love the idea of connecting to the entire world. Another thing that enticed me is knowing that whatever I produce now can theoretically remain indefinitely. It’s obvious that internet will continue to expand at great speeds. One of the first things I did after deciding to start a site was to read a book about SEO (search engine optimization), not having ever done anything like this before I wanted to know what I would be getting myself into and what I needed to do to get traffic to such a site.
I began by writing down ideas and future projects. There are no shortages of ideas and my list of things to do is extensive. The biggest problem is finding the time to do it all while also playing to make a living. Fortunately revenue from adsense, Skype lessons and donations are on the rise giving me hopes for a sustainable future income to support my costs and time. One thing that came as an unexpected but positive surprise is that I have developed friendships with so many members and feel as though they are family. One of our upcoming projects are to make a Christmas video of Fiddlerman’s members playing a combination of “Carol Of The Bells” and “What Child Is This” which were voted on by our members on this forum thread. This video will be posted on Youtube and shows that we can work together even though we live so far apart. Some members are posting their progress and asking for constructive criticism on the forum. This in essence is a close equivalent to a master class or private lesson though we do it with the greatest respect and appreciation towards each other and learn from others mistakes. I am very proud of how our members treat each other both with love and respect.
The famous “Cheap ViolinTest” started something special for fiddlerman.com. It meant that a person could actually start learning the violin and not necessarily have to spend a lot of money. Theoretically one could buy a violin for $99 and get lessons for free online at fiddlerman.com or other helpful sites and youtube. As a result of my test, Cecilio caught wind of my review and offered to send me instruments provided they could use the videos as they see fit. I of course said yes but made it completely clear that I would be 100% honest about the result, good or bad. This gave me an opportunity to give away more instruments to my visitors. It also allowed me to see what quality instruments are available for the low budget beginner. So far I have given away two violins and am giving away a different violin every other month for at least 5 more violins. Next giveaway will be on Saturday the 8th of October and aired live as usual on Fiddlerman TV at 11AM ECT. Hopefully another similar opportunity will come along enabling me to give away even more instruments. All giveaways and information on how to win have been posted in the news section of Fiddlerman.com.
As of today, Fiddlerman.com gets between 400 and 600 unique visitors from around the globe every single day and the numbers are climbing fast. I, Pierre Holstein (Fiddlerman), thank everyone from the bottom of my heart, for all the support that you have given me and the site. Happy Fiddlerman Day!!!
If you like, please begin by telling us anything you would like to about yourself. Age, place of birth, residence, etc.
70+. Born Newark, N.J. Reside in Fuquay Varina, NC.
What made you decide to play the violin?
Curiosity.
How long have you been playing the violin?
Owned violins about 6 years. Actually played about 4 years.
How often do you play? How long are your practice sessions?
Daily. Probably average 1/2 hour each day depending on objectives, mood, etc. Sometimes I go for hours.
In your opinion, what’s your proficiency on the violin?
About the level of 2nd violin community orchestra.
Your greatest personal experience with playing?
An audience in a good mood.
What other instruments do you play?
In the past……trumpet, clarinet, accordion, keyboard
What does music mean to you?
Recreation.
What or who has been your greatest influence?
Zino Francescatti
What are your goals for playing violin? short and long.
Long or short there is nothing I feel “must happen”.
What type of violin training?
One summer of lessons.
How do you warm up?
Scales.
What is your favorite type of music?
Mountain, if I must choose one.
What is your favorite piece of music? Why?
Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd playing Desafinado. Pure musical genius then and now.
What are your 2 favorite things to do other than playing violin?
Listen to good local music on public TV and servicing my string instruments.
Do you come from a musical family? If so please tell us about them.
My Mother’s Father was a street musician in Budapest (violin) probably around World War 1 and his wife played zither at home. I’ve always wondered if there were Gypsy connections? My brother’s grand daughter is something of a celebrity in Philadelphia Youth Orchestra circles on the violin but that seems pretty remote.
Are you a member of any orchestra?
No.
Do you ever perform publicly?
Frequently in church before I moved to NC from Ct.
What do you work with?
Assuming this means “work” work …… I’m retired from Electrical Engineering with a lot of involvement in Plasma Physics.
TAIPEI — More than 4,600 Taiwanese schoolchildren came together for a mass violin-playing session, breaking a world record that had stood for 86 years.
An official from Guinness World Records witnessed Sunday’s event that brought together 4,645 children aged under 18 at a stadium in central Changhua county, the county government said.
The performance was 30 seconds longer than the required minimum of five minutes, it said.
“Creating a world record is not our goal. The event is to review a music education promotion programme for schoolchildren launched seven years ago,” Chang Chueh-fen, a county official, told AFP.
The previous world record was set in 1925 in London when 4,000 violinists performed.
Learn to easily your positions right away without having to search for them. The best way to learn to find a position is to have a guideline. Playing a position with your hand between the scroll and body of the instrument makes it difficult to insure you are right until you actually hear the notes and can readjust. Having a guideline will give you confidence even before playing your first note. Practice scales in all positions to reinforce the feeling of being in the correct position.
Begin these shifts with slow slides and have patience. Once you feel comfortable with the positions begin to shift quicker with less slide. Every time you find the correct note try to take a snapshot of the feeling and save it in your brain for future use. Practice reaching up and grabbing the correct note immediately without a slide as well. The more often you can begin in the desired position without fault the more confident you will become starting without test notes.
Lastly, memorize your fingering patterns in all the separate positions for reading purposes. Practice easy works that you know well in different positions regardless of which position works the best, for position practice purposes.
All interested members can record themselves individually using a click-track to create a memorable and new yearly Christmas tradition for the Fiddlerman family. Download the appropriate part or all the parts and learn them as well as you can. If you wish, upload your progress and embed on the forum to receive constructive criticism for improving your performance. Record the finished project and send it to Fiddlerman (details on that as well as timelines to come) Watch the demo videos for help on how to perform the parts. Fiddlerman will mix all the parts and post the result on youtube and here sometime in November.
The pieces being played are a combination of “Carol Of The Bells” and “What Child Is This” and were voted on by Fiddlerman’s members on this forum thread.
Everyone is welcome to participate in this fun and exciting project.
Download any or all parts and choose the most appropriate one to record based on your capabilities.
Lindsey Stirling is a young and unique hip hop violinist that not only plays fun original music on the fiddle but also finds a way to control her bow while dancing, jumping, and performing impressive gymnastic moves. Besides being a fantastic entertainer Lindsey also strives to help others.
I’ve really enjoyed watching you perform and for me it is obvious that you are on your way to great things. Can you tell us a little about yourself, your age, where you grew up and where you live? I grew up in Gilbert AZ, and I am now a 24 years old college student. I now live in Utah and I am in my senior year at BYU. I am studying to be a recreational therapist and I want to work with troubled teenage girls. I currently work at a residential treatment center helping teenage girls go through recovery and love it. It is such a rewarding job because I get to be a small part of helping someone rediscover the healthy side of themselves. I have found that music and finding passion in life is very helpful for this.
What gave you the idea of combining intensive dance and playing the violin? When I was a senior in high school I did several talent competitions in order to earn money for college and I got sick of being the boring act. Singers would sing upbeat show tunes, dancers would bring the house down with energetic, pop routines and I felt like I put everyone to sleep. I didn’t want to just impress my audience, I wanted them to have fun with me. So I started to write to beats and I began to choreograph my routines. They started extremely simple but as I have practiced… (a ton!) They’ve evolved.
What came first, dancing or fiddling? I have always loved dance but my parents couldn’t afford both dance lessons and violin lessons. So my mom told me when I was six years old that I had to chose either dance or violin. I chose violin but I think it’s pretty funny that i went ahead and did both… I’ve actually never had a dance lesson. I learned how to moonwalk, and glide and c walk through looking up tutorials on Youtube, and other than that I just use to go to a lot of dance parties so… that’s where I learned my little moves.
How long have you been playing? I’ve played the violin for over 18 years
Which style of dancing do you prefer? I guess all I know is Lindsey Style. Ha ha, I don’t know I only know your basic moves you would use at a dance party but if I could learn any type of dance I would love to learn contemporary.
In your videos it is very obvious that you are extremely flexible and limber. What do you do to be able to bend like that or are you just naturally that way? I’m kinda a naturally flexible person. I don’t stretch at all but the more I do those moves as I practice and perform, the better they’ve gotten.
Most violinists struggle to keep their bow movements controlled with very little or no body movement. How do you keep bow control while jumping? It’s all muscle memory. I just practice the songs really slowly as I put the choreography with it and my bow arm learns what parts of the song it needs to use more pressure and it learns where it can lighten up.
Do you try to time bow changes and accents with your dance movements? I time my dance moves to the beat of the actual song so no, a lot of times my violin is on the off beats which makes it even more of a challenge to put the two together. That’s why I always master the violin part, then I make and learn the dance, only then do i put the two together.
Can you tell us a little about your violin studies, teachers? My parents used to play a lot of classical music in our home on an old record player (that was our only source of music). I can still hear the scratchy sound of the record playing as my sisters and I danced around the couch to Scheherazade. My parents would also take my sisters and I to all the free orchestra concerts in LA. as result, I begged my mom to let me play the violin. My parents couldn’t afford lessons but finally my mom found a young college student that was willing to give me 15 minute lessons. (No one else would do it because they felt that a child couldn’t learn at that rate) I started taking private lessons when I was 6 and took them until i was 18. When I was 17 I began taking lessons from a very uptight teacher that came highly recommended and he only accepted “the best” students. He had a huge ego and one week I came to my lesson and for the second time in a row, I hadn’t practiced as much as he thought I should have. He hit my music off the stand, and told me “get in your little white car, go home and never come back. you’re not worth my time” That was the last private lesson I ever took but since then I have gone in my own direction and I think he’d be surprised to see where his failure of a student is today. I also played in the high school orchestra and did regionals and allstate multiple times.
Do you write your own arrangements, any original compositions? I was writing my own arrangements to hymns since I was a kid and now I continue to write all my own arrangements. I have three original songs that are up on itunes and 3 more that will be coming out within the next month. I am going to release a full album by the end of this year.
Your movements appear to me as very original, do you do your own choreography? I do because I can only use my lower body so I have to accentuate those moves. Twice, dancers have choreographed a routine to my music and then I adapted their dance to fit what I can do.
What is your favorite genre to play? I love hip hop and trans music just because I can really dance to it
Fiddlerman‘s members are always interested for great etudes and studies. What do you recommend to those members who are interested in following in your footsteps? Yes yes. The only reason I can do what I do is because I had 12 years of strictly classical training. I always tell people that if you can get a strong classical foundation, you can play anything. You gotta practice the boring stuff in order to do the fun stuff.
Dancing and playing is pretty fantastic and it leads me to wonder if you ever sing or would like to sing while performing as well? I sing in the bands I play with but only as a backup vocalist. I do not have powerful enough voice to want to sing lead. On some of my songs I am starting to do really light background vocals.
Do you have any fiddling or dancing idols? I loved Bond as a kid and hearing them was what made me realize that the violin could be fun and crazy. It didn’t have to be so ridged. I also loved Mark o Connor, and Vanessa Mae. All these artists helped me discover my own unique style.
What kind of projects do you have lined up for us all to enjoy in the future? I will have a cd done by december and for the last month or so I’ve been producing a youtube video every other week. These include fun little videos, live performances and they also include music videos to my original songs. I will continue to do these for sure.
Lindsey Stirling Fiddlerman.com interview picture
You seem well on your way to stardom. What are your goals and dreams and where can you see yourself in the future of entertainment? I have decided that my violin is going to pay may way around the world. I want to travel to amazing places and do it as a performer. I would love to be a featured violinist on shows such as Glee, the Ellen show, and such, and I absolutely love to perform so it would be awesome to link up with another artist and tour.
Find out more about Lindsey by visiting her website, www.lindseystirlingviolin.com
Isn’t it hard for us to accept criticism, even so called “constructive criticism”? We tend to take our playing too personally as though it was a part of us.
In previous positions as concertmaster and section leader, I had to give great professional musicians criticism and witnessed how hard it was for some to take it.
Because of how critical we are, sharing our progress with others can be very difficult knowing that we could be judged the same way. We often know what we are doing wrong but must accept our imperfections to continue playing and performing.
Allthough we are in awe of great soloists we can still find flaws in their performances. Even they are not perfect. We enjoy their performances in part by choosing to hear the greatness and not focusing on the faults.
One way to accept criticism is to realize that no one is without fault and every one of us can improve.
The musicians that I have had the most respect for in my life are the ones that don’t appear to be negatively affected by criticism and actually try to do what is suggested.
I remember being impressed by opera star Dilber who was a soloist at a concert I played in Sweden a few years ago. She is extremely self critical, and spent time during the rehearsal asking orchestra musicians sitting close to her if a particular note was too high or too low, etc. She seemed sincerely concerned with doing the best job she possibly could, even though she is successful and well known.
Professional orchestra musicians are more used to divas who love to give instructions and very few that would accept advice. It’s true that big name soloists have earned the right to be pompous and that is understandable.
One of my life time goals is to become great at accepting criticism. The better we are at doing this, the more secure we are as individuals.
Whenever I can accept critique without feeling bad, I am very proud of myself for doing so. We can all learn faster if we are open to advice.
Violinist accuses period specialists of pushing Bach into a ghetto
Violin soloist, Nigel Kennedy
Nigel Kennedy has accused fellow performers of ghettoising Bach’s music with soulless, ‘so-called authentic’ interpretations, reports the Guardian. In programme notes for his recent evening performance at the BBC Proms, he said he wanted to ‘keep Bach in the mainstream and present his music with, rather than without, its emotional core’.
Kennedy also attacked violinists of the Galamian school, whom he said ‘lacked rhythmic ingenuity, dynamic sophistication and architectural awareness’. And he accused contemporary Russian performers of making Bach’s philosophical masterpieces sound like ‘shallow showpieces’.
For Kennedy, the ideal Bach interpreter was his former teacher, Yehudi Menuhin. ‘Bach speaks through Menuhin’s violin,’ he wrote, adding that ‘four melodic notes from Yehudi are worth more than a thousand from any of our living violinists’.
via The Strad – Nigel Kennedy attacks ‘authentic’ Bach – 16 August 2011.
By Anne Midgette, Published: August 12
Which offends? Her short dress or critic’s narrow view?
Pianist Yuja Wang’s dress at a concert this month at the Hollywood Bowl has given rise to considerable attention.
Should critics review the dress? Should we comment on how classical stars look?
On the one hand, appearance has no bearing on how an artist sounds.
On the other hand, appearance sends a message. Christoph Eschenbach’s Nehru-style jackets are a deliberate step away from the tradition-bound formality of a conductor’s tails, and lots of younger conductors have followed suit, and it’s certainly fair to comment on that when it seems warranted.
And plenty of classical artists are now playing around, more and more deliberately, with the way they look.
There’s a third factor at play, though, when it comes to talking about women’s clothes in this field. Men have a uniform: They either don formal wear or daringly (sarcasm intended) eschew it.
Women do not have a comparable uniform, in part because women’s fashions are more varied and in part because women didn’t play a major role in classical performance in the years when these traditions were being codified. Yes, there were a handful of soloists. But for years, there were few women (if any) in major symphony orchestras, and virtually no female conductors. Female orchestra members and conductors still have to contend with the issue of what they should be wearing on a regular basis.
The criticism of women’s clothing onstage has been a red flag for me ever since Eve Queler said that when she started conducting in the late 1960s, her clothing so dominated her reviews that one critic complained that a zipper glinting on the back of her evening gown was distracting. This is obvious sexism. Unfortunately, the tenor of the discussion of women’s attire in this field has retained more than a hint of this sexist tone ever since.
What “should” women wear on the concert stage? What is “appropriate”? A general rule of thumb appears to be that if it’s sexy, it’s probably not good — indeed, it almost automatically falls into the realm of cheesy pop-style classical crossover. And if it’s revealing, it’s worthy of a lot of comment.
My particular beef is with Mark Swed in the Los Angeles Times, who was evidently shocked, or titillated, by the dress Wang wore for her Hollywood Bowl appearance Aug. 3.
“Her dress Tuesday was so short and tight,” he wrote, “that had there been any less of it, the Bowl might have been forced to restrict admission to any music lover under 18 not accompanied by an adult. Had her heels been any higher, walking, to say nothing of her sensitive pedaling, would have been unfeasible.”
This review and the dress that inspired it have prompted several responses, including a post on the blog Life’s a Pitch that questions whether Wang should wear such a dress and equates her attire with the fashion choices of Lady Gaga and Madonna.
Let’s have a reality check for a minute. Yes, the dress is short, tight and revealing. But in the real world — the world outside classical music’s bubble — this is not unusual attire for a young rising starlet in the public eye.
For the sake of comparison — or education — go to the blog Tom and Lorenzo to observe what other young women about Yuja Wang’s age wore at a Hollywood event that took place a few days after Wang’s concert. You can criticize these women for their fashion choices. You can like or dislike what they’re wearing. But these dresses and shoes are not inherently shocking — let alone a cause for restricting admission for those younger than 18. (Some of the women might be younger than 18 themselves.)
Yuja Wang is simply working with designers, the way that other attractive stars her age do — and the way that plenty of opera divas always have, from Renee Fleming’s specially designed gowns by John Galliano, Christian Lacroix and Karl Lagerfeld for her Metropolitan Opera opening in 2008 to Anna Netrebko’s sometimes more unfortunate but often equally revealing options. This field should at least recognize this, rather than drawing up our skirts in horror as if she’s doing something patently unusual.
To Swed’s credit, his review went on to praise Wang’s playing. But he, and all of us, should understand that, rather than shutting the doors to the under-18 set, Wang’s manner (she’s a refreshingly normal, down-to-earth young woman) and attire — as well as her remarkable talent — represent some of the best chances we have of getting those under-18-year-olds into the concert hall to begin with.
This article originally appeared on Anne Midgette’s blog The Classical Beat, www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/
classical-beat, The Washington Post’s one-stop online source for classical music news, reviews and opinions.
via Which offends? Her short dress or critic’s narrow view? – The Washington Post.
Congratulations goes to Bindy on winning the Cecilio Black Metallic Silent Violin.
I received this email from Bindy(Pikachu) shortly after the drawing:
Hi Pierre!
Thank you for the opportunity and your wonderful site. The community you’re building is fantastic. I learn something new on every visit. I’m super excited to have won the violin! I usually have such bad luck with these things.
I’ve been playing violin since this March and picked it up because I needed a creative outlet. I’m really bad, so I’ll be using the junk out of my headphones so I can practice without waking people up. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, but couldn’t due to financial constraints and studies. Now that I’m out of school I can finally pursue it! I’m going to try and learn Spring on it first, simply because I got hooked after seeing someone play it with an electric violin on a J-drama. Then I can rock out with BURNING PASSION!
Bindy S.
On August 6th we had our drawing and chose from 20 eligible members and 8 that were voted on by our regulars. This is Pikachu’s first post.
I really enjoy playing violin. When I started working, I needed something for a mental break, and eventually I came across the online lessons here! If I were to receive the electric violin, I’d let my little sister use the one I currently have for her middle school and we’d be able to doodle happily together. I’d use the headphones options so as to not subject my family to my horrible playing, and to be able to practice at night without waking people up. (I currently have little time to practice during waking hours.) Perhaps I would also use it for mischief by hiding our wireless computer speakers in random places for violambushes. Moreover, after leveling up my discoordination to normal awkwardness, I would hide in my room and pretend to be a rock star, jamming out secretly in my pajamas, for the violin is quite flashy and deserves some imagination and starpower. That’s right, I would play Twinkle Twinkle so hard core.
I never had the chance to learn growing up. It’s one of the things I promised myself that I’d be able to do when I got older. Since I lived in a poor rural area with little in the way of musical instruction. I told myself that there would be plenty of opportunities in college and waited it out. Then in college the expense and the amount of time I needed for study made me push it back a little more. While I was “studying” one night I found a really cool J-drama about an orchestra that re-ignited my passion for music. One episode introduces a really cool violin player rocking out on an electric violin, which got me hooked on the sound. When I finally finished school, moved, and got a steady income, I saved for about 8 months and birthday splurged a violin. I’ve been playing horribly for almost 4 months now.
Horribly with BURNING PASSION!
(A/N I highly recommend doing more homework than I did. The people at my local music store are very nice, but at the end of the day they’re not the best deal around. My violin was around $200 (lowest price they had) and I had to order it out of a catalog without the shopkeepers even knowing what the quality was like. It’s pretty and sounds okay, but from the Cecilio reviews so far, I would have been fine with a pretty colored one to doodle on.)
Buy this violin. Electric Violins
Orchestra performs Wagner in Bayreuth
The Israel Chamber Orchestra has broken a longstanding taboo by performing music by Hitler’s favourite composer. The orchestra included Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll in its concert in Bayreuth yesterday, as part of the fringe festival linked to the town’s annual Wagner opera festival. It was the first time an Israeli orchestra has played Wagner in Germany.
An unofficial ban on playing Wagner’s music was instituted by the Palestine Orchestra (now the Israel Philharmonic) in 1938 after Nazi attacks on German Jews, and remained in place after the founding of Israel ten years later. When Daniel Barenboim broke the tradition in 2001 by conducting the Berlin Staatskapelle in music from Tristan und Isolde in Jerusalem, dozens of audience members walked out in protest.
Tuesday’s concert in Bayreuth went ahead despite protests from Zionist groups in Israel and the American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors and their Descendants. The conductor of the Israel Chamber Orchestra, Roberto Paternostro, declared ahead of the concert that his intention was to separate Wagner’s ideology from his music.
via The Strad – Israeli orchestra breaks taboo – 26 July 2011.
Catherine Cho and Joseph Lin added to Juilliard's faculty
The Juilliard School has appointed Catherine Cho and Joseph Lin to its violin and chamber music faculty for the start of the 2011–12 academic year. Cho has been an assistant faculty member to Itzhak Perlman since 1999 and has taught in the school’s pre-college division since 1996. Joseph Lin joined the Juilliard Quartet this year as its new first violinist.
In another new Juilliard appointment, violinist-turned-performance psychologist Noa Kageyama joins the Graduate Studies faculty. Kageyama has been a presenter at the biannual Starling-DeLay Symposium on Violin Studies, and is the performance psychology coach for the New World Symphony in Miami.
via The Strad – Juilliard adds two violin teachers – 14 July 2011.
California violin maker puts faith in substitute for propolis
A California luthier’s two-year quest to perfect his varnish formula coincided with a spiritual self-examination, reports SantaCruz.com. David Morse, who has made instruments for players in the San Francisco Symphony, and a violin for the orchestra’s conductor laureate Herbert Blomstedt, hit upon a new formula involving burnt sugar after two years of intensive experimentation. Working with a guru in the same period apparently unlocked a kind of spiritual energy that helped him make his breakthrough.
Morse had previously used propolis as an ingredient, but was frustrated with the time that his varnish took to apply and fully dry. By dissolving sugar and pigment in water, then combining it with the oil varnish base, he found that the varnish could be applied more easily and quickly.
via The Strad – Luthier’s burnt sugar inspiration – 14 July 2011.
Competition offers UK under-16s the chance to try a violin by Stradivari
Children in the UK are being given the chance to swap their student violin for a Stradivari in a new competition from the ABRSM and PureSolo. The music exam board and the online recording platform have teamed up with Cremona-based restorer and maker Eric Blot to offer one lucky student aged under 16 the opportunity to play on a Stradivari and make a recording in a professional studio.
The competition marks the launch of the ABRSM’s new violin syllabus and a new ABRSM PureSolo website that enables musicians to record their own versions of music from the syllabus over professionally produced backing tracks. Competition entrants can choose to record one of three pieces from the new syllabus: Edward Huws Jones’s The Boat to Inverie (from Grade 1); Michael Zev Gordon’s Joshi’s Dance (from Grade 3); and Handel’s Allegro from Sonata in A (from Grade 5). The closing date is 1 September.
via The Strad – Kids compete to play a Strad – 11 July 2011.
Cecilio offers two higher priced quality violins called the CVN-600 and CVN-700. The CVN600 goes for $399 whereas the CVN700 costs $499. I find both instruments well worth the price. This CVN700 has a sweeter sound and quicker reaction time to quick notes. Both fiddles can be played extremely high without any problems. This CVN600 has a more powerful overall tone though the E-string dominates slightly over the other strings. In my opinion they would benefit greatly if more precision was taken when fitting the sound-posts. I am able to see space under the foot of one of the sound posts. Keep posted for details on how you can win one of these fiddles and which will be the next on the raffle schedule.
Gidon Kremer takes Putin to task for imprisonment of Mikhail Khodorkovsky
Violinist Gidon Kremer has issued a spirited attack via CNN against Russian authorities over the treatment of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev. Khodorkovsky, once Russia’s richest man, and Lebedev, his close associate, have been in prison since 2003 on charges of fraud and tax evasion respectively. They were recently convicted on new charges of theft and money laundering, a decision that led Amnesty International to declare the two businessmen prisoners of conscience.
Kremer, who was in Strasbourg on 5 July to perform at a charity concert for human rights in Russia, labelled the charges against Khodorkovsky as ‘ridiculous’. He accused the Russian leadership of willful ignorance of the law and said: ‘Without legal guarantees, everybody in the state could find themselves unlawfully charged with crimes they didn’t commit.’
Khodorkovsky, said Kremer, was a ‘very talented and thoughtful man’ who wanted to use his wealth to improve society, and who ‘became a threat to a system that’s always been known for totalitarianism and violence’. The violinist added that artists have a duty to ‘raise our voices in a chorus of opposition to drown out those who seek to humiliate and punish men like Khodorkovsky’.
via The Strad – Violinist blasts Russian leadership – 06 July 2011.
I will be raffling the Cecilio Silent Electric Violin on the 6th of August at 11AM on Fiddlerman TV. The eligible contestants will be chosen from the most deserving entries found under THIS forum topic. With help from my members I will be choosing around 10 deserving entries and let faith determine a winner from a drawing.
For your chance to win this fiddle, visit THIS link and follow the instructions carefully.
Buy this violin: CEVN-1
Cecilio offers two similarly priced violins called the CVN-200 and CVN-300. The CVN200 goes for $99 whereas the CVN300 costs $129. Both instruments bare great value for the dollar though with these two examples, the less expensive CVN-200 has fewer faults, a better sound, and a great look with the Rosewood fittings and solid back. Its sound-post is however too short and would probably improve if a new one was fitted though I heard no evidence of this during my test.
For some reason the CVN300 is heavier than most violins though I suspect they differ from fiddle to fiddle. The end-pin sticks out too much from improper fitting. I had to shorten the tailpiece loop by about half an inch and adjust the sound post to get the violin to vibrate. The sound post was too loose and too far inwards from the optimal position adjacent to the right bridge foot. Sound-posts can easily move during shipping and it is a good idea to show your instrument to a luthier if you have that opportunity. Keep posted for details on how you can win one of these fiddles and which will be the next on the raffle schedule.
Violinist cancels appearance with Orquestra Sinfônica Brasileira in Rio
Joshua Bell is the latest high-profile soloist to boycott the Brazilian orchestra that sacked nearly half its musicians in a dispute over reauditions. The violinist was due to perform with the Orquestra Sinfônica Brasileira (OSB) and its conductor Roberto Minczuk on 27 August, but has cancelled his appearance, according to Brazilian newspaper O Globo. Bell joins pianists Nelson Freire and Cristina Ortiz in deciding not to play with the orchestra. His Brazilian concerts in August will now only include appearances in Minas Gerais and São Paulo.
via The Strad – Joshua Bell joins Brazil boycott – 26 June 2011.
Stradivarius violin sold for £9.8m – $15 m at charity auction
1721-Lady-Blunt-Stradivarius-Violin
A well-preserved Stradivarius violin has been sold in an online auction for £9.8m ($15 m) to raise money for disaster relief in Japan.
The violin was made in 1721 and is known as the Lady Blunt after Lord Byron’s granddaughter Lady Anne Blunt who owned it for 30 years.
It was sold by a music foundation in Japan for victims of the earthquake and tsunami in March. The price is more than four times the previous record for a Stradivarius.
Proceeds will go to the Nippon Foundation’s Northeastern Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund.
The violin was offered for sale by the Nippon Music Foundation, owner of some of the world’s finest Stradivari and Guarneri instruments.
Foundation president Kazuko Shiomi said: “While this violin was very important to our collection, the needs of our fellow Japanese people after the March 11th tragedy have proven that we all need to help, in any way we can.
“The donation will be put to immediate use on the ground in Japan.”
London auction house Tarisio, who organised the sale, described the foundation’s decision to sell “what is considered the finest violin of their collection” as a “gesture of profound generosity”. The violin is one about 600 instruments made by Italian Antonio Stradivari still in existence.
It has also been owned by several well-known collectors and experts including WE Hill & Son, Jean Baptiste Vuillaume, the Baron Johann Knoop and Sam Bloomfield.
The identity of its new owner has not been revealed.
The Lady Blunt fetched a then-record £84,000 when it was last auctioned at Sotheby’s in 1971.
via BBC News – Stradivarius violin sold for £9.8m at charity auction.
I played on the MV650 today and was not entirely happy with it. First of all, I had trouble getting a sound out of it so I checked inside to see the condition of the sound-post. It was SUPER crooked and had almost fallen down plus the top of the sound-post was not under the right foot of the bridge so I had to straighten that out, which improved the sound greatly. This is not Cecilio’s fault. Impossible to send out an instrument and guarantee that it will arrive the same way.
When I moved the sound-post to the correct position the post appears to be too tight. This is not strange or necessarily wrong since violins change with time and the posts need to be replaced after a period depending on how dry or what kind of wood is being used. The post actually causes the top to rise slightly in that spot. The counter pressure of the bridge should keep it from forming too much but not entirely. Having the sound-post too tight will actually dampen vibrations causing problems in achieving the optimal sound. Moving the post more towards the middle to lessen pressure would put this post too far from the bridge foot. To add to this dilemma Cecilio uses steel strings on these instruments which gives more pressure and a brighter sound. With time I am convinced that this post will fit perfectly but not now with steel strings.
When playing the Mendini I am forced to press too hard to get a good sound but this could easily be rectified by changing strings, sound-post, or waiting till the violin shapes, and will surely differ from violin to violin.
Having said that, the instrument has an extremely good look for being new and almost resembles an old antique violin. The back is made from one piece and the flames are very attractive. The pegs, tailpiece and end-pin are of good quality and condition especially for the money.
All in all you get an extremely great value at $200
Since the CVN-500 is very close to the same price I decided to make a comparison. This violin is in my opinion more attractive than the Mendini, however, I asked a few people in my family that felt the Mendini was more attractive. This is obviously a question of taste.
The case that comes with the Mendini is slightly more attractive but seems to be the exact same quality. I prefer the blue interior of the Mendini’s case and the light color of the CVN500 is bound to get dirty over time.
I was very happy with the sound that came from the CVN-500 right from the start. Easy to play and very open. Surely differs from violin to violin but this particular instrument was a hit for $20 less than the Mendini.
Bare in mind that changes made to the violin such as high quality perlon strings will affect the sound tremendously and may even put the sound of the Mendini over the CVN-500 but this would require an investment of 40-50 dollars. Also, a better fitted sound-post and bridge could affect both instruments tremendously but could easily run you over $100.
Of these two similarly priced violins I would recommend the CVN-500.
Buy this violin: CVN-500
To qualify for the next free violin drawing, you must do the following:
• Tell us HERE why you should be the one to win this fiddle and what you would do with it if you were to win.
• Make at least 10 sincere posts anywhere on Fiddlermans forum.
• The qualifying posts must be made on 5 separate days.
• The posts should be relevant to the discussions.
• You may also create new relevant topics.
• The posts should be longer that just a few words
More details about the jury and winning date soon to come.
This solid body electric violin has a base sound comparable with my Zeta Jazz Fusion violin which cost me 30 times more money 10 years ago. It is easy to play and all the parts are in good working condition. Nice Ebony pegs and tailpiece with mother of pearl inlay. The violin is attractive and gives the impression of a fiddle that costs much more money. The violin includes features that you wouldn’t expect to find on such a low priced instrument. The case looks really nice but the cloth lining ripped easily when I separated the velcro neck holder.
Buy this violin: CEVN Electric Violin
Winner of Fiddlermans black cecilio test violin
This was Fiddlermans first give-away and completely self sponsored. As a result of the 99 dollar violin review Cecilio has sponsored Fiddlerman.com with 6 regular violins plus an electric fiddle that will be reviewed and posted in the near future. I will be raffling off at least 6 of them and use one to finance shipping costs. No deals have been made with Cecilio except that they may use the videos as they see fit.
The next instrument to be raffled off will be the Cecilio Full Sized Black Metallic Electric Silent Violin . Stay tuned for details soon to come.
Buy this violin: Cecilio Colored Violin
It can be tempting to neglect your instrument and do something more enjoyable for the moment such as watching a movie, hanging out on Facebook, playing online games, or perhaps taking an unnecessary nap. Here are a few tips to help you stay motivated.
Electric Violin Shop announces the release of an innovative new violin MIDI software called eLektra Performance System™, which is available for the purchase price of $299 exclusively through http://www.electricviolinshop.com.
eLektra Performance System™ will analyze the analog output signal of any electric violin or acoustic violin with pickup and convert it to MIDI data. Unlike previous violin MIDI solutions eLektra Performance System™ is entirely software based and is designed to host virtual instrument and effect (VSTi and VST, respectively) plugins. This allows users to build their own unique libraries of preferred effects and synthesized instruments from the literally thousands available to musicians either for sale or free download. Not only are a wider range of sounds available through eLektra Performance System™ than traditional rack or stompbox effects systems, but the bulk and expense of running effects is vastly reduced as well.
The greatest advancement eLektra Performance System™ offers over previous generation violin MIDI solutions is a tremendous decrease in latency—the delay between input and output during signal processing. While most earlier MIDI systems for bowed strings were temperamental and slow to respond, eLektra Performance System™ can be easily optimized for fast pitch recognition and minimal latency, making it an ideal effects and MIDI solution for performance.
eLektra Performance System™ recognizes the normal range of a violin down to C a fifth below the open G string. This makes it a viable MIDI solution for violists as well as 5-string violinists. The only equipment necessary to run eLektra Performance System™ with an instrument is a USB audio interface and a Windows computer. Windows XP, Vista or 7 is necessary to run eLektra software, while Mac operating systems are currently unsupported.
Signal from eLektra can easily be output through either headphones, computer speakers or during performance through a traditional amplifier or PA system.
eLektra Performance System™ was developed by John Silzel, Ph.D., a professor of Physics in California. Dr. Silzel is an expert signal analyst by trade and a performing electric violinist by avocation. Silzel explains, “I’d been longing to have a MIDI violin system but was put off by the cost of the equipment and the need for a special violin…That was how eLektra got started: a crazy idea that wasn’t supposed to be possible. It took a couple of years, but turned out well enough that I had to share it with other players.” Frustrated by the difficulties and expense of previous generation MIDI violin options, Silzel employed his technical skills to translate the bowed string waveform into digital language resulting in the marketable performance software that is eLektra Performance System™.
Electric Violin Shop is the leading specialty retailer in amplified bowed strings. Founded by Blaise Kielar in Carrboro, North Carolina in 1999, Electric Violin Shop still serves the ‘Research Triangle’ area with a storefront in nearby Durham but has expanded its service to string players the world over through its reputable and informative e-commerce website.
If you would like more information about this topic or to schedule an interview with Blaise Kielar of Electric Violin Shop or eLektra Performance System™ developer John Silzel of Silzel Research, please contact Duncan Monserud.
Daniel Hope launches new show on German TV channel
Daniel Hope hosts a new talk show called "with Hope"
Violinist Daniel Hope is presenting a new music talk show on German TV tonight. The Hamburg-based British musician’s 50-minute show, called simply …with Hope!, is being broadcast on ZDFkultur. Hope’s guests for the first programme are Sting and pianist Hélène Grimaud.
The new show follows Hope’s stints earlier this year as presenter and performer on the Arte TV channel’s Arte Lounge programme, where his guests included Steven Isserlis, Gautier Capuçon and the Cuarteto Casals.
via The Strad – British violinist hosts talk show – 19 May 2011.
Version of “Wish You Were Here” featuring violinist among rarities on album reissues
Stephane Grappelli
Grappelli became involved in the sessions because he and Yehudi Menuhin were recording at London’s Abbey Road Studios at the same time as Pink Floyd. The band’s drummer, Nick Mason, told Reuters: ‘They came to say hello, which was delightful. Someone plucked up the courage to ask them both if they’d like to play something on the record. Stéphane absolutely was up for it and I think Yehudi would have liked to, but he’s not an improviser and I think he just felt he couldn’t do it.’
A five-disc edition of Wish You Were Here will be released alongside multidisc sets of The Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall as part of a project by Pink Floyd and EMI to reissue digitally remastered versions of the band’s 14 studio albums, starting in September.
via The Strad – Pink Floyd to unveil Grappelli solo – 19 May 2011.
Britain’s Got Talent violinist apologises for playing along to track by Bond
Alexandra Parker violinist
Chater said: ‘People often send clips of themselves covering one of our tracks and it’s very touching. What I take exception to is a commercial TV show playing our recording, with a musician playing along (not even playing the tune) at a level quieter than our CD. Still, we’re glad Bond has got through to the next round of BGT without ever having to appear on it.’
Parker tweeted an apology, saying, ‘I’m really sorry, I didn’t know what I was doing was wrong – I did play live on BGT and was told it was ok to do this x’.
via The Strad – Violinist sorry for TV show overdub – 10 May 2011.
Brazilian Symphony Orchestra
Here’s a cautious statement, just in, from the Musicians’ Union:
LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC SUPPORTS RIO COLLEAGUES
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra (RLPO) musicians have expressed their solidarity with colleagues from the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra (OSB) by expressing concern at the dismissal of several OSB musicians to Roberto Minczuk, who is guest conducting with the RLPO for concerts in Preston on Wednesday 11 May 2011, and in the Philharmonic Hall in Liverpool on Thursday 12 May and Sunday 15 May.
Mr Minczuk is, in part, responsible for the summary dismissal of a large number of full time musicians from the OSB. The OSB, under Roberto Minczuk’s guidance is holding auditions in New York and London to replace the musicians sacked from the orchestra.The Musicians’ Union (MU) has joined with other unions around the world in condemning the actions of the OSB and calling for members to boycott the auditions. The International Federation of Musicians (FIM) has also put out a statement.
RLPO musicians will hand Minczuk a letter urging him and the OSB to enter into proper dialogue with the Rio Union to find a mutually satisfactory conclusion. They also intend towrite to their colleagues in Rio, expressing solidarity.
Morris Stemp, MU North of England Organiser says: “Classical musicians from around the world have roundly condemned the action taken by OSB management, and the support our members have shown for their counterparts in Rio de Janeiro is to be applauded. Our members, through us, call upon the OSB to rethink their position and come back to the table for face to face talks with the Rio Musicians’ Union (SINDMUSI). The attitudes taken by the OSB Board and Mr Minczuk demonstrate that they do not understand how a modern orchestra functions.
The failure to pursue a mutually acceptable outcome could have a profoundly detrimental effect on classical music provision in Brazil, and could also affectRoberto Minczuk’s ability to work with our colleagues across the world. It is imperative that conductors have the support and co-operation of the musicians around them at any given time. Without this, conductors wave their arms in silence.
via News just in: Liverpool musicians submit protest to embattled Minczuk.
Vienna showcases violin heritage
Exhibition at Kunsthistorisches Museum explores 19th-century string tradition
Heaven is full of violins
A new exhibition at Vienna’s Kunsthistoriches Museum explores the flourishing of violin playing, teaching and making in the Austrian capital during the 19th century. The exhibition, ‘Heaven is Full of Violins: The Violin in the Biedermeier and Romantic Periods’, runs at the Neue Burg in Heldenplatz until 25 September 2011.
The Cremonese influence on Viennese violin making is examined – Viennese luthier Nikolaus von Zawicki was one of the caretakers of Paganini’s ‘Cannon’ Guarneri ‘del Gesù’ and replaced its fingerboard. Other sections of the exhibition look at the development of salon concerts and musical soirees, and the importance of the Society of the Friends of Music (Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde), and its conservatoire where teachers established the Vienna string school.
via The Strad – Vienna showcases violin heritage – 26 April 2011.
Fiddlerman will be giving away the 99 dollar test violin on Saturday the 11th of June at 1PM. The drawing will be aired live on Fiddlerman TV
Many of Fiddlermans guests and members have written emails asking where they might find an affordable instrument to begin learning to play violin. This is the first of hopefully many tests to try to help potential violinists make good decisions.
The violin was bought to test if the unbelievably inexpensive instruments could produce any acceptable sound whatsoever. To my great surprise, the violin ending up being way better than I could ever imagine plus it included items that were not even necessary such as a chromatic tuner, and extra bow, extra strings and an extra bridge for which reason I will never understand.
You could be the winner of this violin
Musicians in Norfolk, UK, will join forces with players from Serbia and Germany
Norfolk County Council has won a €200,000 grant from the European Union Education, Audiovisual and Culture fund to set up a new international youth orchestra, according to BBC News. The ensemble will comprise musicians from Serbia and Germany as well as players from the existing Norfolk County Youth Orchestra. The orchestra, which will launch this July, is set to perform concerts in Norfolk, Novi Sad and Koblenz over the next two years.
via The Strad – EU funds new youth orchestra – 21 April 2011.
Fiddlerman gets 99 dollar violin
What kind of violin can 99 dollars buy you?
I was curious when I saw an ad from one of my own sponsors for a 99 dollar violin. From time to time I get emails from Fiddlerman.com visitors who want to learn to play the violin but do not know where to find one or how much to spend on a violin. Not only did the violin cost $99 but the package includes everything you need in order to play. I decided to order one and test it for my visitors.
First surprise came when I ordered the fiddle. The shipping was free Next surprise was how quickly I received the violin. I ordered the violin on Monday and it arrived at my door Thursday evening. So far so good. I wanted to video the whole experience so that everyone interested could see exactly what I was seeing for the first time. The case is very attractive and has a built-in music pouch on the outside. Upon opening the violin I was pleasantly surprised to see TWO bows instead of one, although if I had read the ad properly I would have known what was to be included in the package. Also found a small box within the box with a free tuner and metronome that seems to work extremely well so far. The bows did not look like real wood at first but after more careful examination proved to be brazilwood after all. Not great bows but they work fine for a beginner and didn’t create any problems for me in any way whatsoever. The bows are not pre-rosined so I had to work for a good 10 to 15 minutes to get that brand new shiny clear rosin to rub off enough on the bow hair to start making sound.
The violin has a unique kind of metallic black spray paint that still has a slight smell to it. Not bad enough to be bothersome in any way in my opinion and I am fairly certain that the smell will disappear after some airing out. Both the chin-rest and the shoulder-rest are very much usable and of much better quality than I ever imagined.
The violin is slightly heavier and thicker than a fine violin but supposedly made of real maple and spruce just as any other fine violin though most probably not of equal quality.
I had to back off the fine adjusting tuner screws right away to allow some play for raising the pitch since the strings appear to be steel core and therefor need fine tuners. Also I had to move the bridge back about a quarter inch to get it in the right position.
I proceeded to play the strings one by one and was pleasantly surprised that they are remarkably even between themselves. The volume of this violin is quite a bit lower than my own violin but there are very few instruments that can match my violins sound. Also, a new Jan Larsson, Sweden would cost you around $20.000 as apposed to $99. I didn’t test the violin with any of my good bows since the complete beginner will most likely be using the bow that is included with the violin though I am sure that I would have had much more control with one of my other bows. Non-the-less, I am able to play just about any type of bow stroke with plenty of control with the included bow that costs a very small fraction of what my bows cost.
All in all, I can honestly recommend this outfit for a person who wants to learn to play violin and does not know where to begin. I even recommend these fiddles for folk and country musicians and professionals looking for a cheap practice or outdoor violin. I am certain that if I spent money at the Luthiers to make some adjustments with the post and bridge, I would get this violin to sound even better. The $10 strings that are included on the violin might not be the absolute best choice for optimal sound.
I will be raffling off this violin in the beginning of June to one of Fiddlermans visitors. For your chance to win this fiddle simply visit this link to like Fiddlermans “Learn to play Violin” facebook page.
To double your chances, register, login and make at least one comment on Fiddlermans “Fiddle Talk” forum. Any of the topics will qualify you and it does not have to be on the “99 dollar violin test” topic as most seem to be doing.
Sydney Opera House concert breaks YouTube record for most-watched concert. The finale concert of the YouTube Symphony Orchestra on 20 March clocked up 33m views on the video-sharing website. The event at Sydney Opera House drew more than three times the audience for U2s YouTube concert. There were 11.1m live streams of the orchestras performance, which featured music by composers including Bach, Britten, Ginastera, Nigel Westlake and Mason Bates. The orchestra
via The Strad – YouTube orchestra racks up 33m hits – 28 March 2011.
Wallace Henry Hartley - Band leader of the Titanics 8 musicians
via New Book Claims Titanic Band Leaders Violin Survived and May Be Sold ::Titanic News ::antiMusic.com.
Cremonese lutherie and Neapolitan pizza battle for place on cultural heritage list
Violin making in Cremona and the pizzas of Naples head up Italy’s shortlist of candidates for Unesco’s ‘intangible’ cultural heritage list, according to a report in the Guardian. After Italy secured Unesco status for the Mediterranean diet last year (jointly with Spain, Greece and Morocco), the country is debating which two candidates it will submit to Unesco for inclusion in 2011. Other candidates include Sienna’s Palio horse race and Viareggio’s carnival.
via The Strad – Violins fight for Unesco protection – 29 March 2011.
Ann-Sophie Mutter
Read more via Preserving the heavenly sound of Stradivarius violins – CNN.com.
PASCAGOULA, MS WLOX - They have never performed beyond the walls of their school. And they have only been playing for about six months. On Tuesday, members of the Gautier Elementary Gator Strings Class showcased their musical talents before the Pascagoula Kiwanis Club.”These kids have really, really worked hard. And some of these kids have never seen a violin, or viola, or cello, or bass, much less be able to play one,” said their teacher Russell Sample.Sample had dreamed of starting a strings program at the school. Last year, a parent donated the first violin.Then came news that was music to his ears. The principal used a $15,000 federal grant to purchase 20 more instruments, along with music stands and books. That allowed all 120 students from the second through fifth grades to take a strings class once a week.”Ive seen the miracle happen,” said Sample. “You take kids that are troubled and cant study good and have problems focusing, and this focuses them. Ive only been doing this, not only a year yet, we have seen their grades go up.”"It soothes me and its fun,” said fourth grader Blessteva Johnson.When asked why she enjoys the class, Blessteva said: “Because it would be really exciting to learn how to play something that youve wanted to play for a long time.”"I like it. It is very fun, entertaining for people who are listening and for people who are playing,” said third grader Nicholas Jensen.Not every student will hit all the right notes, but for many, this rare opportunity is pitch perfect.”Some of these kids are going to go to college on scholarship with music. I can tell already,” said Sample.Next year, the program may be limited to students who keep up their grades and have good behavior.
ROME (Reuters) – To music lovers, listening to violin and cello virtuosi play one Stradivarius or one Guarneri instrument would be a touch of heaven by itself but hearing a dozen at the same time is something to die for.
That is precisely what delighted an audience in Rome on Tuesday night when Italian violin master Uto Ughi, Russia’s Yuri Bashmet and others performed Mozart, Paganini and Tchaikovsky on instruments from the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.
The 13 precious instruments — 7 violins, three violas and two cellos – were borrowed from behind the glass of Moscow’s Glinka State Central Museum of Musical Culture and brought to life.
“It has always been a dream of mine to bring these instruments back home to be played in the country where they were born,” Bashmet told the audience.
Indeed, just the sight of the rare instruments transfixed some in the audience at the Conciliazione Auditorium almost as if they were beholding a holy vision.
The instruments included five made by the Stradivari family, two by the Guarneri family, one by the Amati family and others by individual craftsmen.
Most were crafted in the northern Italian city of Cremona, whose name is synonymous with perfect violins and cellos.
“Bringing these instruments to Italy from Russia was a wonderful initiative,” said Ughi.
Ughi, 67, and Bashmet, 58, played as soloists along with the 24-member Moscow Soloists Chamber Orchestra, which Bashmet founded in 1992 and which he directs.
“We have heard the beauty of the sound these instruments create. They have never been surpassed,” he said. “Despite all the progress of technology no-one has managed to re-create the quality and sound of these instruments.”
One theory is that the Stradavari and Guarneri, who were both students of Amati, stored their wood in a salty solution rich with minerals before drying it out.
There have also been suggestions that the members of Cremona’s violin-making families later deliberately faked treatises on violin-making techniques to mislead potential copycats and preserve their secrets.
“There is something profoundly mysterious about this,” Ughi said.
Less mysterious is the value of some of the instruments. Some can be worth millions of dollars each, meaning the total value on the stage perhaps went into the tens of millions.
Tuesday night’s concert, sponsored by the Russian gas giant Gazprom, was billed as a “pre-premiere” for a world tour the Moscow Soloists plan to embark on next year.
For now, the million-dollar babies will go back behind the glass of the museum in Moscow.
via Rare violins return to Italy from Russia with love – Yahoo!7.
Jan Larsson violin
Not long ago, Peter Ohring realized he had become second fiddle.
“He’s much more talented than I am,” Ohring, a New Fairfield resident, said of his son, Isaac, 16, who has been playing violin since he was in third grade. “He surpassed me several years ago.”
The elder Ohring picked up the instrument 20 years ago, when he was in his early 30s. A few years later, he watched Isaac become immersed in music.
“From an early age, he showed a passion for listening to music,” said Ohring, who teaches new media at Purchase College . “We knew he would love music. He actually started playing piano before violin.”
“Initially, I was hesitant to get him involved with the violin,” Ohring said. “I thought it might be too much. It can be a difficult instrument. But, he took to it pretty quickly.”
Ohring noted the common belief that there is the right instrument for every person — they just have to find it. “I think the violin is that instrument for him.”
The proof is in Isaac’s playing.
This high-functioning autistic teen, a 10-grader at New Fairfield High School , serves as first violin with the Danbury Community Orchestra , with which has been playing since he was in eighth grade. He also performs with his father in the Not Ready for Prime Time Klezmer band. He plays piano, composes music and sings with his school’s chorus.
READ MORE via Violin | Teen Violinist To Underscore Effects Of Music On Autism.
Brazil furore – latest verdicts
The Brazil Symphony Orchestra has been officially cleared by the labor court to ‘evaluate’ its musicians by means of re-audition, a process that has already led to several musicians being suspended or dismissed. It is unlikely that this process will win anyone a gold medal for excellence in human relations
READ MORE via Brazil furore – latest verdicts – Slipped disc.
From time to time I get asked how to jam on the violin. Jamming in itself is easy, however it is difficult to jam or improvise at an advanced level with complicated rhythms and pattern. Point is you can jam right away and work at getting better over time.
To be able to improvise and jam, you should first familiarize yourself with the most common keys and scales both going up and down. Identify the appropriate key while jamming. Most music consist greatly of scales and arpeggios even if all the notes are not being used. Practice finger patterns corresponding with interesting licks in as many different keys as you can. Some of the most common keys are G, D, F, C, A, E, Bb, Eb.
Also extremely beneficial to learn and master minor dorian scales.
You are jamming even if you are only playing the base note of a piece in any given key and some kind of rhythm (hopefully creative and interesting). Rhythm is just as important and interesting as note patterns. If you add one note, such as a fifth to a base note and keep the rhythm you are already doing much better. Eventually add scales or arpeggios and play them with the interesting rhythms. Chromatic scales work well too, provided you begin on and shoot for the appropriate notes. It is often a safe bet to keep the base note and fifth in mind at all times.
See my Jazz improvisation for violin video.
Dylana Jenson violin soloist
The mystique that surrounds the violin largely can be traced to two instrument makers in 18th-century Cremona, Italy, whose towering artistry continues to haunt the music world. Violins — and, to lesser extent, violas and cellos — by Antonio Stradivari and Giuseppe Guarneri remain the gold standard by which all stringed instruments are measured. Canadian director Francois Girard addressed the issue in his 1998 film, “The Red Violin,” the fictitious tale of a supreme instruments odyssey over three centuries. Few people have a better grasp of the sublimity of instruments on the order of Strads and Guarneris and the precarious business of these astronomically priced violins than Dylana Jenson, who will be in town this week to play the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with CityMusic Cleveland. The story of the former child prodigy from Los Angeles is one of uncompromising standards, pain and survival — and a cautionary tale for anyone in search of the instrument that best reflects his or her artistic soul.
At 17, soon after winning a silver medal at the 1978 Tchaikovsky competition in Moscow, Jenson was lent a 1743 Guarneri del Gesu from a Los Angeles philanthropist.
The instrument helped propel the violinist — who had been praised as a youngster by no less a figure than George Szell — to the top of the international music scene. In 1981, her glistening recording of the Sibelius Violin Concerto with Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra received a slew of accolades, including a New York Times review that said, “Miss Jenson plays with irresistible assurance, verve and warmth.”
A year later, Jenson informed Richard Colburn, the philanthropist, that she was about to marry British conductor David Lockington, who later would serve as music director of the Ohio Chamber Orchestra in Cleveland.
Colburn demanded the immediate return of the Guarneri because, as Jenson recalls him telling her, “you’re obviously uncommitted to your career.” (The late Colburn, who funded many Los Angeles arts institutions, evidently believed in double standards: He married nine times.)
The withdrawal of the del Gesu sent Jenson into an artistic and emotional tailspin from which she wouldn’t begin to emerge for more than a decade. Without a suitable violin that allowed her to make music on the level she demanded, her recording life disappeared, her management walked away and her schedule of important concerts plunged.
“It can be very destructive to desire what you cannot have,” Jenson, 49, said last week from Grand Rapids, Mich., where Lockington, her husband of 28 years, is music director of the Grand Rapids Symphony.
“For the first few years, I was in shock. The experience was one of total frustration. I thought, ‘This isn’t going to continue. Someone’s going to loan me an instrument.’ I tried everything. One year, I performed on 23 instruments.”
They included more than a few that couldn’t be heard beyond the first few rows. One that did project, a Strad on loan from the Stradivari Society in Chicago, had to be returned after a six-week Australian tour.
Black Violin plays to sold out audiences
With all the hand clapping, arm waving and hollering going on Sunday night at Science Hill High School, Black Violin put on a performance with energy rarely seen during a strings concert. Combining classical training and hip hop beats, the musicians known as Black Violin produce their own blend of music that caught the attention of artists such as Alicia Keys, Jay Z and Kanye West.“This isn’t a concert. It’s a party,” said violinist Kev Marcus at the beginning of the show. Marcus and his counterpart, Wil B, encouraged the audience to get up and dance during the performance. Hosted by Umoja and CenturyLink, the concert Sunday was a fundraiser for both Umoja and the Johnson City Schools Orchestra. “I just thought it would be a fantastic opportunity for Johnson City, especially for our youth,” said Ralph Davis, chairperson of the Umoja Unity Committee.Davis and other members of Umoja worked for nearly two years to bring Black Violin to Johnson City after Davis heard the band perform on TV. “I just thought it would motivate a lot of our students to see that music is fun, and it can be exciting,” said Davis. In addition to raising money for the annual Umoja Festival taking place Aug. 12-13 this year in downtown Johnson City, the concert also helped fund the spring competition trip to Orlando, Fla., for the Johnson City Schools Orchestra. The two members of the group, violist Wil B and violinist Kev Marcus, visited Indian Trail Middle School Saturday to speak with about 75 music students. During the hour-long workshop, Wil and Kev told students how they started out playing music in their own school orchestras. “Basically they told the kids there’s no limit,” said Susan Lambert, orchestra director for Johnson City Schools. “You can do whatever you want as long as you work hard and stay focused on what you’re doing.” Lambert said both musicians ended up playing strings at a young age against their will. Kev was urged by his mother to play the violin, and Wil began when the school band ran out of saxophones and instead handed him a viola. “They started out by saying, ‘we didn’t want to play these instruments,’ then they just fell in love with it, and it’s just a part of them,” said Lambert.Lambert said she hopes Black Violin will return to Johnson City to spend more time with her students. The sold out show packed the Science Hill auditorium. Although the numbers had not yet been calculated, Lambert said the fundraiser was a significant help toward defraying the costs of the spring trip where the students in grades eight through 12 will perform at Walt Disney World. Additionally, it was a memorable experience for her students, who were able to see how timeless classical music can influence contemporary self-expression.
Facebook protest prompts orchestral blackout
Brazilian Symphony Orchestra
A row over re-audition procedures at the Brazil Symphony Orchestra has prompted many local musicians and overseas colleagues to black out their facebook photos in protest.
The points at issue are laid out in a letter (below) from the former Chicago Symphony oboist Alex Klein to the music director, Roberto Minczuk. They are mostly internal and occupational, of no wider interest beyond the working conditions of musicians in Brazil – although some comments on my facebook page from musicians in other countries indicate levels of intense solidarity and condemnation of the re-auditioning process.
But the fact that the musicians are using facebook as their medium of protest gives the matter wider attention and ensures that the orchestra management cannot ride roughshod over the dissenters. It could signal a new phase in musical negotiation.
For blacked faces check, e.g., home pages of Juliana Bravim, Victor Astorga and more.
via Facebook protest prompts orchestral blackout – Slipped disc.
Read the Open letter to the Music Director of the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra, Roberto Minczuk.
Violin making drama seeks funding
Writer-director appeals for backers for new film F-HOLE
A UK filmmaker has launched an appeal via campaigns website IndieGoGo for funding for his next project, a film about a reclusive young man with a passion for violin making. Writer-director Dan Smyth from Manchester has secured financing from the UK Film Council, but needs to part-match it to the tune of £1,100.
The film, entitled F-HOLE, follows unemployed Gary, who shuts himself off from his aggressive family and secretly studies violin making in his flat. Smyth’s previous short, The Mess Hall of an Online Warrior, about a gaming addict and his single mother, won recognition at film festivals in Austin, Cannes and Buxton.
via The Strad – Violin making drama seeks funding – 04 February 2011.
Judy Kang is Lady Gaga's Canadian violinist
At four, she was playing the violin; at nine, she was performing publicly; in 2006, she began to play a Stradivari violin; and now Canadian Judy Kang is playing with Lady Gaga.
The classically trained violinist, who studied in Philadelphia and at the prestigious Juilliard School of Music in New York, was in Toronto Thursday with Lady Gaga’s Monster Ball Tour.
Edmonton-raised Kang has been touring for a year with the Born This Way singer after being chosen by Lady Gaga for her backup band.
“A friend of mine … just kind of mentioned that she was looking for musicians and violinists. And for me it was like literally like two days later that the audition was going to be,” she recalled in an interview with CBC News.
She went to the audition undecided whether she want the gig and played Speechless and Bad Romance for members of Gaga’s team. She was called back to play for Gaga herself and three weeks later she was on tour.
Kang, 31, is a professional musician, now based in New York, who plays regularly with a classical trio and won the 2006 competition to play the 1689 Baumgartner Stradivarius from the Canada Council’s Musical Instrument Bank.
But she’s also a Lady Gaga fan and has experimented with different musical styles — everything from klezmer to pop — throughout her music career.
A lot of classical musicians like to stick to their comfort zone, she says, but she enjoys the challenge of improvising.
“Every time I play a piece I discover new things. I play it differently each time,” Kang said.
“I feel like music heals and I think that as I play I want to, not just be someone who’s entertaining, but I want to be an instrument to … bring something to people that are there,” she added.
For the Lady Gaga tour, she had to learn to play an electric violin, a new experience as the size and “feel” of the instrument is different. Unlike her usual violin, it has foot pedals to adjust the sound and tone.
Kang said she had to learn about life on the road from the musicians on tour with her, adding that they are like “a family.”
She’s loved to perform ever since she was a child and being in front of 20,000 people is a rush, she says.
“But I like to believe that people go away from these shows changed, and more encouraged and feeling their self worth and, yeah, just really uplifted,” Kang said.
“Her audiences [Lady Gaga's] consist of a lot of people that are just lonely, misfits that just I guess need love and I just get that sense so I feel like as an artist that’s sort of how I like to look at it.”
via Lady Gaga’s Canadian violinist enjoys tour – Arts & Entertainment – CBC News.
A gang of thieves who stole a £1.2 million Stradivarius violin from an internationally acclaimed musician tried to sell it for just £100, a court heard yesterday.
Min-Jin Kym, South Korean born soloist
The South Korean-born Min-Jin Kym, 32, began playing the violin at the age of six.
Irish traveller John Maughan snatched the 313-year-old instrument from South Korean-born violinist Min-Jin Kym as she stopped to buy a sandwich at London’s Euston railway station.
Despite researching the violin online, Maughan, 40, and his two teenage accomplices were so ignorant of its value that they offered it to a stranger in an internet café for just £100.
But the man turned down the offer claiming that his daughter already owned a recorder, Blackfriars Crown Court was told.
Maughan and the two accomplices, aged 14 and 16, were arrested four weeks later following an appeal on Crimewatch and yesterday admitted a single charge of theft.
However, the violin – one of only 450 in the world – has never been found and insurers are offering a £15,000 reward for its return.
By Murray Wardrop 6:55AM GMT 03 Mar 2011
via Thieves offered to sell £1.2 million Stradivarius violin for £100, court told – Telegraph.
Thomas D. Moore had battled kidney cancer for more than a year
BY JAMES H. BURNETT III
JBURNETT@MIAMIHERALD.COM
World-renowned Barry University music teacher Thomas D. Moore dies
Thomas D. Moore, a world-renowned violin teacher and Barry University music professor, died Tuesday evening at his Miami home, following a year-long battle with kidney cancer.
The Miami Herald published a profile of Moore on New Year’s Eve, after dozens of his former students, some of them now well-known classical musicians in their own right, returned to South Florida on just a few days notice to perform a final concert for Moore.
The tribute, dubbed the “Thomas Moore Celebratory Concert,” and Moore’s almost familial relationship with his students drew comparisons to the 1995 film Mr. Holland’s Opus, about a music teacher who dedicated his life to his students over a 30-year span.
Moore, 72, taught music for more than 50 years.
In an interview on his birthday – the day of the tribute concert – he estimated that he had taught up to 2,000 students in his lifetime.
Among his many academic positions, Moore established the Bergonzi String Quartet-in-residence at the University of Miami, was professor emeritus at UM, was professor of violin and chamber music at the New World School of the Arts, and was a professor of violin and chamber music at the University of Wisconsin.
Moore also performed as a soloist and concert master across Europe, the former Soviet Union, Canada, South America, and the U.S. He was concert master for the Nico Malan Opera House in Capetown, South Africa, where he established that country’s first multi-racial stringed music program.
Most of us have had at least one bad, negative or embarrassing incident while playing in an orchestra. Here are three of mine. Please share yours.
I like to spin my instrument around and have a great technique for it so that I can’t possibly drop it. My stand partner asked me, during a longer rest, if I could spin it in the other direction. Without hesitation I spun it in the opposite direction but my thumb ended up on the outside of the violin and it took off flying through the air, spinning wildly and rolled on the stage floor. Everyone turned around as I picked up my fiddle and I am sure that my face was pure red. The conductor said, “Oyyyyy”, and I proceeded to tune while everyone listened. I acted as though nothing had happened and said, “I’m ready”. Miraculously, the violin was almost in perfect condition except for a broken peg tip and fine tuner on the E.
We were playing a piece that required us to put on the mute within a 2 second break. I was one of those people, still am kind of, who always had to play everything on the page. I’ll learn the hardest, what others call unplayable, passages in contemporary music even though no one will ever hear it with all the noise going on and the conductor could even say, don’t worry about the notes here because that passage was intended as an effect. I had normally gotten the mute on without missing any music but was too careless and knocked over the bridge. It was so loud that everyone turned around and stopped playing.
I was the concert master during a tour with Robert Wells, and to top it off we were doing a live recording. Robert made some changes including taking out a repeat and was very clear about it. That repeat was an accented FFF note way up high on the E string. I of course prepared myself for the greatest accent of all times and nailed the note but unfortunately, all by myself since the next part began with some rests. After we played that piece Robert asked the audience if they would mind us repeating the piece since it was a live recording. He added ”you all understand why”.
NY Phil archive goes live
Orchestra puts online thousands of documents, scores and sound files from the Bernstein era
The New York Philharmonic Orchestra has launched the first phase of an ongoing digital archive project. The International Era 1943–1970 is the first tranche of the orchestra’s extensive archives to go online, and thousands of documents are now available to view. These include conducting scores marked by Leonard Bernstein, André Kostelanetz and Dimitri Mitropoulos; more than 3,200 printed programmes; and business records, including Bernstein’s programming proposals and correspondence. There is also extensive video and audio content available.
Files of interest include Bernstein’s annotations, made in crayon, on the score of Barber’s Cello Concerto and the fallout from a telegram sent to chairman Carlos Moseley in the late 60s urging him to engage a ‘very fine young black violinist’ named Earl Alexander as a measure to ‘refute charges of [racial] discrimination’ at the orchestra.
The orchestra has announced that 1.3 million pages will be online by 2012.
Subsequent digitisation projects include The Founding Era, 1842–1908; The Modern Era, 1909–1943; and nearly 7,000 hours of video and audio material.
Delve into the archives at http://archives.nyphil.org
via The Strad – NY Phil archive goes live – 10 February 2011.
After reading various blogs about orchestra etiquette I decided to compile ideas collected from many different professional as well as amateur players. If you come up with suggestions to add or change, please contribute below.
Orchestra Rules
For women
The following, while it may be good advice, are not my recommendations:
Despite China, US violin-makers second fiddle.
Violin-maker Christophe Landon sands the wood body of a violin in his shop in New York. Even with US interest in classical music slipping, and some orchestras folding in harsh economic times, support for the artisans’ business is such that hundreds of individual American violin-makers are thriving.
Violins are seen in the workshop of violin-maker Christophe Landon in New York. Whether China can mount a serious threat to the high end of the craft –known as lutherie — is in dispute; some believe it will take several decades before Chinese instruments, which now dominate the student market, come close to rivaling the best violins of Europe and the United States.
Various wood-working tools along with photographs (L) used by a violin maker. The Asian giant has squashed European low-end makers and now manufactures the bulk of student instruments — so many that it has dramatically brought down entry-level costs for violinists and allowed dealers to set up broad rental networks.
via Despite China, US violin-makers second fiddle … – Yahoo! News Photos.
The Tarisio Matching Grant Program
Tarisio is launching a new program to aid young musicians at the start of their careers. In the current economic climate it is harder than ever for young musicians to afford fine instruments and bows. To help these players, from March 2011 Tarisio will award up to $10,000 (£6,000) of matching funds to one winning applicant for each Tarisio auction of fine instruments and bows. Currently there are four fine auctions per year, two in London (March and October) and two in New York (April and October).
To apply you must be currently enrolled in or have graduated from a music performance degree program, and be under the age of 30 as of the application deadline.
Applications open five months before each auction starts and the deadline will be approximately two weeks before the auction ends. A winner will be chosen at random and notified promptly after the application deadline.
Tarisio will award up to $10,000 of matching funds towards the hammer price of any instrument or bow bought by the winner in the auction.
Peter Oundjian, Music director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra is to pick up his instrument again
Toronto Symphony conductor set for one-off concert with Perlman
Peter Oundjian, the Toronto Symphony music director whose career as a violinist was cut short in 1995 by focal dystonia, is to pick up his instrument again, reports the Globe and Mail. In April 2012 he will partner his former teacher Itzhak Perlman in a one-off performance of Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins. Oundjian was first violinist of the Tokyo Quartet for 14 years until illness forced him to make the switch from bow to baton.
via The Strad – Peter Oundjian to pick up violin again – 27 January 2011.
Paras Mani Choudhary sets
He achieved this feat at a public performance and in the process beat the previous record of 32 hours.
His feat has been acknowledged in Limca Book of Records. Before this, Paras had entered the Limca Book of Records after playing sitar for 92 hours, two years ago.
For the current record, Paras had started playing violin on January 14 at Manav Mangal Public School in Prahladpur and stopped after completing 50 hours on Sunday afternoon. The audience at the recital included eight jury members from Limca Book of Records.
“Music is in my soul. I can play music for hours and I love it. It’s like meditation for me. By doing this, I want to send across a message of peace. There were many people who came and enjoyed while I was setting a record. I hope more and more people get encouraged and start associating with music,” said Paras.
Born in Bhagalpur, Bihar, Paras started showing interest in music at the age of 13. Being from a family which had an inclination towards music, learning was never a problem for young Paras.
His first tutor was his mother, Heera Devi, from whom he learned the basics of music. But his real training began when he landed in Delhi in the year 1999. With a dream to be the best, he approached A S Gill Maharaj to fulfill his dreams and joined his music academy in Faridabad.
After spending seven years at the academy, Paras approached Pandit Debu Chaudhari to learn sitar in 2008. A year’s training with his guru filled him with so much confidence that he decided to set a world record by playing it for 92 hours and 35 minutes.
Ninety-seven musicians from more than 30 countries will perform in Sydney
YouTube has selected the musicians for its next symphony orchestra project, which takes place in Sydney this March. Ninety-seven players from more than 30 countries were chosen after submitting video auditions to the site. The musicians, ranging in age from 14 to 49, will spend a week in Australia working with conductor Michael Tilson Thomas before giving a live performance in Sydney Opera House. Four players, including a violinist and an electric double bassist, will get to perform an improvisation to a piece specially written for the orchestra by Mason Bates.
via The Strad – YouTube chooses next orchestra – 12 January 2011.
John D. Kendall was a leader in bringing the Suzuki Method to the United States.
John D Kendall teaching a young violin student
In 1955 he was presented with a grant to travel to Japan to meet Shinichi Suzuki and translate his ideas and teachings into a philosophy and pedagogy for violin teachers around the U.S.
An internationally acclaimed string pedagogue, Mr. Kendall has taught violin at the college level more than 50 years and is largely responsible for bringing the Suzuki Method to the United States. Mr. Kendall received his undergraduate degree from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in 1939, and earned a master’s degree from Columbia Teacher’s College.
In 1959, he spent three months in Japan observing Dr. Suzuki and his students, and returned for further study in 1962. Mr. Kendall planned the first US Suzuki conference in 1963, and organized the first Suzuki tour of the US. Dr. Suzuki and 10 students toured 19 cities in 21 days. This tour captured the attention of audiences everywhere and introduced the Suzuki Method to the US. A 1997 news article quoted Carol Smith, a colleague of John Kendall, as saying “It took someone with incredible energy, charisma, and communication skills to spread the word about the Suzuki method. That someone was John Kendall.”
Currently, it is estimated that more than 350,000 children are learning according to Suzuki principles on violin, viola, cello, piano, guitar, flute, recorder, harp and bass. There is a Suzuki preschool, and the body of literature for Suzuki Parent Education continues to grow.
John Kendall directed the SIUE program until his retirement in 1994.
After much discussion on the web and many misconceptions about how frequently strings should be changed, I decided that a more detailed summary is necessary.
Let’s start by mentioning that there are several factors that affect the life of your strings, not just playing time:
1. Age of strings and how they are stored
2. Length of time under stress (tuned)
3. Hours of playing – type of playing and fingers (acidic, sweaty, dry)
4. Materials
If you are not a professional and don’t have a special performance or audition coming up, I suggest that you change your strings when they loose strength, unravel or can’t play perfect fifths.
Full time professional violinists typically play between 30 to 60 hours a week. Most orchestras have approximately a 30 hour on stage week and its members are expected to practice on their own time. Most musicians accept gigs in their free time adding to this time. Obviously the hourly playing of professionals varies tremendously but if a violinist plays an average of 30 hrs/week (120 hrs/month), they can generally play on the same strings for at least 3 months with good results.
I regularly change my dominant strings after 6 weeks to avoid dealing with bad, flat, weak sounding, or unwrapping strings. I change them before problems arise and I have very acidic fingers. Most of my colleagues play for 3 to 6 months before changing.
Those who change their strings most often usually change after approximately 180 hours of playing, and those who pushes the limit plays 720 hours before changing their strings.
Provided the strings are fresh to begin with and you play frequently, you can expect between 180-720 hours out of your strings.
I read an amateur violinist blog where the users mentioned that strings last approximately 120 hours. One violinist mentioned that the string makers themselves refer to this figure. String makers would obviously have you think that you need to change your strings after 120 hours to sell more strings. This could be true if a violinist plays an average of 20 minutes a day, (120 hours a year). Then they may need to change their strings after a year due to the fact that the strings also have been under stress.
I have tested instruments that were newly strung years ago but have not been used for many years. If a string has been under pressure for a very long time and not used at all, it may need to be changed as well. Strings can be bad without ever having been played on.
Combine multiple factors into the equation and you will get completely different results.
Finally, all strings are not equal. From my experience steel core strings seem to last the longest but can have a harsh sound. Synthetic core strings last longer than gut strings and have a similar warmth in sound but are not suitable for all instruments.
I use Obligato, which is a synthetic core string, and am completely satisfied with the sound and life span.
by: Fiddlerman
If you don’t already, DO IT.
Thomas Moore violinist and instructor
Concert to honor Barry music professor with weeks left to live
Thomas Moore, center, a Barry University music professor, has Stage IV kidney cancer, and is expected to live just a few weeks. Moore will be honored Thursday with a concert. He is pictured here with Michael Andrews, left, and Cilo Fodere. ALEXIA FODERE / FREELANCE
BY JAMES BURNETT III
JBURNETT@MIAMIHERALD.COM
Longtime music teacher and Barry University adjunct violin professor Thomas Moore will be honored Thursday afternoon, on his birthday, in what some are billing the last concert of his life.
Moore, who has taught music — specifically violin, for more than 50 years, has Stage IV kidney cancer, and is expected to live just a few weeks.
Moore says he has taught between 1,500 and 2,000 students over the years.
Perhaps most unique about the concert, dubbed the “Thomas Moore Celebratory Concert,” is that the performers will be former students of Moore’s, who have either become professional musicians themselves, or who credit Moore with helping them achieve other professional success.
The concert will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church of Miami, 609 Brickell Ave.
About 250 guests are expected, including Charles Castleman, of the prestigious Eastman School of Music.
If Moore, who also holds appointments as Professor of Violin and Chamber Music at the New World School of the Arts, and Professor Emeritus of the University of Miami School of Music, has the strength Thursday, he will perform along with classical pianist Gary Hammond.
Birmingham Contemporary Music Group to lose local council funding. One of Britains leading new music ensembles, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group BCMG, is one of the big-name casualties of local authority arts cuts that are hitting some parts of the country. From 2012 Birmingham City Council is withdrawing all the funding it provides to the ensemble, amounting to nearly £72,000 a year.BCMGs artistic director Stephen Newbould said the Councils decision would have a critical impact on the ensembles performance and education programme, and composer Oliver Knussen, BCMGs artist in association, described the cut as devastating.Just days after the cuts were confirmed, the award-winning ensemble received another prize for its work, with Stephen Newbould and general manager Jackie Newbould winning the Royal Philharmonic Societys Leslie Boosey Award for their contribution to contemporary classical music.
via The Strad – Birmingham ensemble hit by cuts – 22 December 2010.
Julia Fischer up for a Grammy
Julia Fischer up for a grammy
German violinist one of several string stars vying for awards
Julia Fischer is one of the bigger string luminaries to feature in the nominations for the 53rd Grammy Awards, which will be presented in Los Angeles on 13 February. The violinist is nominated in the Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (without orchestra) category for her Decca recording of Paganini’s 24 Caprices.
String players occupy four of the five nominations in the Best Chamber Music category. Isabelle Faust gets a nod for her disc of the complete Beethoven violin sonatas on Harmonia Mundi, as does the Parker Quartet for its recording of Ligeti’s String Quartets nos.1 & 2 (Naxos). Joining them are the Fred Sherry Quartet with Schoenberg’s Third and Fourth quartets (Naxos), and Eliesha Nelson for her disc of Quincy Porter viola works (Dorian Sono Luminus).
In the orchestral arena, the Metropole Orchestra from the Netherlands received three nominations, among them for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album and Best Instrumental Arrangement. The Metropole Orchestra is one of three Dutch orchestras under threat of closure because of government plans to cut arts funding.
via The Strad – Julia Fischer up for a Grammy – 03 December 2010.
Pop-up orchestras highlight cuts
Bassist organises flashmob-style performances to protest against UK cuts to music education
Pop-up orchestras are expected to give simultaneous renditions of Lalo Schifrin’s Mission Impossible theme in cities across the UK today (Friday 10 December). The orchestras are due to take to the streets and shopping centres of London, Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Cardiff and Liverpool at 6pm for impromptu performances in protest against proposed government cuts to arts funding and music education.
Manchester-based double bassist Heather Bird came up with the idea for the protest, dubbed the Guerilla Orchestra, after watching a flashmob performance at The Hague central station by musicians protesting against Dutch government plans to scrap a major music centre.
The UK coalition government is proposing to cut the teaching funding for conservatoire- and university-level music education, which would substantially increase the debt burden for young musicians when they graduate.
via The Strad – Pop-up orchestras highlight cuts – 10 December 2010.
By: Sarah Jacobsson Purewal
A $1.9 million violin was stolen at a sandwich shop in Londons Euston station in late November while its owner was playing with her iPhone.
Renowned classical violinist Min-Jin Kym
via A $1.9 Million Stolen Violin? Theres No App for That – PCWorld.
Russian favorite wins Sibelius Violin Competition
Petteri Iivonen finishes second
Russian violinist Nikita Boriso-Glebski was the winner of the Jean Sibelius Violin Competition, which concluded in Helsinki’s Finlandia Hall on Thursday evening.
In addition to the EUR 20,000 in prize money, he got another EUR 2,000 for the best interpretation of the Sibelius Violin Concerto.
The 25-year-old Boriso-Glebski is no stranger to success in music competitions; a short time earlier, he won the Kreisler competition in Vienna.
Boriso-Glebski is a son of chemists who started to play violin at the age of seven.
“When I was ten I once cried that I didn’t want to go to school. My mother threatened to stop my violin lessons, so I went to school, because I don’t want to live without my violin.”
His next performance in Germany already on Saturday, but he promised to return for a the traditional concert of the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, where the winner of the competition plays as a soloist.
The mainly Finnish audience was pleased to learn that Petteri Iivonen reached second place, and took home EUR 15,000. While he was pleased with his victory, Boriso-Glebski said that he was surprised that Iivonen did not win the prize for the best Sibelius interpretation.
Coming in third was 16-year-old American Esther Yoo, who got EUR 10,000. She said that she would give a tenth of the prize money to her church in Belgium, and part of it to her parents. The other finalists got EUR 2,000 each.
Getting the prize for the best interpretation of Kaija Saariaho’s Tocar was 17-year-old Texan Nancy Zhou, who charmed the audience. The prize was worth EUR 1,500.
Opinions were sharply divided Zhou’s extreme interpretation of the Sibelius Violin Concerto, but her performance got resounding applause from the audience.
The EUR 1,000 prize for young talent went to 20-year-old Emma Steele of the United States.
via Helsingin Sanomat – International Edition – Home.
Playing in an orchestra
Keeping the fire burning for music is extremely important for self preservation. Playing in an orchestra to earn a living, we play music that we don’t necessarily want to? Having played in Scandinavian orchestras for over 20 years, which are funded by the government, I have played a fair share of contemporary music both great and terrible. The government supports the native composers and therefor sponsor a certain amount of work for contemporary composers. I am not saying that I don’t like contemporary music, though I usually don’t enjoy the work involved in preparing for the difficult works. I am one of those people that feel obliged to play every single note and rhythm, even in the cases where the conductor thinks that the notes are not important, rather the effect. Being stubborn about playing every note means that I must spend countless hours on music that I may not like and probably will never play again in my life. I often put off the preparation for a later date even though the music in our case was usually available up to 3 weeks in advance. I’ll feel guilty about not looking at it and have to cram it all in at the last moment even if it means no sleep the night before. The strange thing is that I will enjoy myself enormously when the piece is extremely difficult and I am nailing it. The truth is that I often learn to enjoy the music no matter how bad it seems from the beginning. There are also contemporary works that feel good right from the start as well.
Since playing full time in an orchestra devours a great deal of our practice time, we don’t find the time to play what we REALLY want and love to play. We often come home sick of playing and needing a break. In my later years of full time orchestra work I forced myself to practice solo works and chamber music, which is what drove me to play the violin from the start. Doing so gives me extra energy and makes practicing orchestra repertoire more enjoyable and I strongly recommend it to all full time symphony musicians. Set aside time for playing what you love, whether it be solos, etudes, scales, pop, country, rock….. Whatever it may be. Don’t let the fire burn out.
Sisters hooked on violin, karate
For sisters Kenya and Sabae Barrow, it is all about playing the violin and taking part in karate. They have been playing the violin for more than half their lives and there is no stopping them now. According to the sisters from St John, playing the violin was one way of keeping them “active”. While they have been involved in karate for just about a year, the sisters said they were very happy and they enjoyed it “just as much as playing the violin”.
They have played at a number of events, including concerts and school functions. Kenya also had the opportunity of playing the National Anthem in the presence of Prime Minister David Thompson.
Kenya, who is 11 years old, said whenever she played the musical instrument it made her feel good. But the violin is not all that she plays.
“I like playing the violin. I do it because it is fun and I do karate because it can help me with getting a scholarship and help me defend myself. I also play netball. I am the goalkeeper for my team,” said Kenya, who will be attending the Christ Church Foundation School.Sabae is ten years old and attends the Hindsbury Primary School. She, like her sister, has been playing the violin for seven years now.
“I like violin because it can get me a career. I just love playing the violin. If not violin it is karate. It is all about playing the violin and doing karate,” said the soon-to-be Class 4 student, who described herself as shy.
Sabae said she occasionally “hangs with her friends” and played games with them. Her favourite dish is “gran gran’s cou cou and flying fish”. She hopes to become a singer.
Kenya said she hopes to become an actress or a professional netball player. She admires actress Selena Gomez.
“I am also considering doing athletics. My motivation is the fact that I can get better at what I do and reach the highest. I am hoping to play the violin in the international arena,” said Kenya enthusiastically.
Their mother Dawn Barrow said she got her girls involved in playing the violin because she always admired those who played and she saw it as an extra activity for them.
“I am extremely proud of my daughters. I get so overjoyed when I see them taking part. The feeling is hard to describe. I feel completely fulfilled. Sometimes there are challenging moments but I would think about all the opportunities they have and how they step up and accept a challenge head-on,” said Dawn.
She said the “tiniest” moments were the best for her and she and their dad Errol gave all the support they could.
“As long as they are happy and working towards a goal I am happy. I will do all I can to make sure they have all that they want to achieve their goals,” she said, noting that nothing came easily.
Already, Kenya has completed four exams in violin while Sabae has completed two. Kenya plays with the Barbados National Youth Symphony Orchestra and they both do classes with Suzuki Music Barbados.
Their violin teacher Katrina Forde said they were exceptional students. In fact, she said they had played well over the years and had “progressed nicely”. She was the one who suggested they take up karate.
via Sisters hooked on violin, karate — NationNews Barbados — Local, Regional and International News — nationnews.com.
Vibrato is one of the violinists greatest expression tool when used correctly. Many argue as to how much and how often one should vibrate. Basically we should vibrate more when playing romantic music and tighter when playing classical music. When playing baroque music it is a great idea not to vibrate at all. Many believe this to be boring while I think it adds imagination to expressing ourselves in other ways. We’re forced to do more with the right hand when we can’t take advantage of vibrato as an expression tool. We must do more with phrasing and dynamics instead. This can make playing baroque music much more interesting and creative and even educational.
Basic rules:
Try to vary your vibrato as much as possible and save the most intensive vibrato for the most expressive phrases to avoid being boring.
by: Fiddlerman
Playing the violin as an extra-curricular activity could help improve childrens reading levels, it has been suggested.Christina Patterson, writing for The Independent, said that not only does playing a musical instrument help to broaden a childs mind, it can also improve their performance in the classroom.She explained some 84 per cent of school children who took up the violin prior to a recent assessment saw their reading levels rise by two levels.Similarly, 75 per cent of pupils saw their abilities in the field of mathematics improve.Ms Patterson said: “Its so obvious that children can do anything if we teach them how to do it that it almost doesnt seem worth saying.”She added how she was moved by a recent performance by Lambeth schoolchildren at London’s Royal Festival Hall, where they “beautifully” recited musical variations of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star and other such school classics.Londons Music Education Fund has recently been launched by Mayor Boris Johnson, with the initiative aimed at providing encouragement to more youngsters to pick up musical instruments
via Violin playing improves childrens reading levels | News at Gear4Music.com.
Why do we play scales?
One reason is to warm up. Playing scales nice and slow, even painfully so, to the point where getting a good sound is next to impossible, is great practice and warm up.
We need to warm up both the right and left hand. Play scales at the frog of the bow, not using more than 5-6 inches for smooth bow changes. Also, play long full strokes to get used to using the whole bow. Play scales both separate and slurred. Slur eighth notes, triplets, sixteenths and using different articulations. Practice the most difficult strokes while still maintaining concentration on intonation and sound production for each and every tone.
Another reason to play scales is to establish finger patterns for every key signature so that the fingers come down in the right place for the right key automatically. Playing scales in every key signature helps us play in all keys with little thought. Music consists mostly of scales and arpeggios. Try to perfect your scales as much as possible and to memorize what your hand feels like with the position of each and every finger on all four strings. Eventually these finger patterns will come by themselves though the work towards perfection is forever. Use your warm up time for relaxed enjoyable and calm playing. Don’t be in a hurry to speed up tempos. The opportunity to play fast will come and also perfection after having devoted quality time to your scales.
The question of whether to vibrate above the pitch, or only up to, is a controversial discussion that I have had with some of the most talented professionals throughout the world. Some musicians believe that the center of the wave, or vibrated tone, is the tone that is registered by the ear. However, most believe that the ear registers the highest tone reached, which is what I firmly believe, play, and teach.
What do you think?
There is no question that the best way to warm up is to start with long steady slow notes drawn over the strings as evenly as possible. The question is how much time can we devote to warming up and what should we be doing at the same time? Should we just concentrate on tone production, intonation, volume and smoothness or should we even incorporate vibrato? I think that all of the above are productive. Begin with long, smooth, very soft or strong, even and clean scales and arpeggios; then add vibrato. Vibrating is among other things good for stretching and loosening the left hand fingers. Step up the speed progressively and increase vibrato speed and width as you begin to feel warm and loose. Take you precious warming up time seriously and enjoy a relaxed start. Make sure to start early to give yourself the time necessary for this important beginning.
Musicians having to learn and prepare a new program every week, often feel guilty about the time that they don’t spend preparing adequately.
What is the best way to prepare for a new program? After 10 years of playing in a full time orchestra you have probably played most of the classical repertoire, a great deal of the contemporary, and a portion of the modern. However, it often feels as though we are learning the part for the first time. For the most part, difficult parts need to be relearned. I found ways to save enormous preparation time and it has become even easier with internet and streaming. The greatest for me is Naxos which has almost any classical work imaginable available for streaming at a reasonable cost. http://www.naxos.com/ The biggest drawback is that you can’t save the file.
Listening to as many varying recordings, and as early as possible for the given program, while still doing other things, cuts the learning time at least by half for me. It also helps me enjoy the works more during rehearsal week as well. The feeling of not only being prepared technically but also musically makes the whole experience many times fuller than imaginable.
Listen to the works while still being productive, doing chores, traveling, working or eating. Begin as early as possible, at least 2 weeks in order to give yourself a good week before the first rehearsal to practice your parts. Many of us read well enough that we could get away with not practicing but there is no doubt that you will do a much better job and enjoy it more if you prepare properly. Good luck and love the music.
People often ask me how long they should practice.
My answer is that it depends on what your goals are. Ask yourself
what you want to accomplish and what you would like to be able to do
with your instrument and set goals from there. Practicing a little bit at a time several times a day is better than playing too long once every day.
In other words, if you usually play one hour in the day but feel like
it was a chore and it became non-productive towards the end, try playing for just 30 or 15 minutes but don’t put the violin away. Leave it out so that you see it all day. Decide to play again in the afternoon for just a little while then again in the evening. Divide the hour into 3 sessions instead.
This gives your brain and body a fresh start every time and teaches you
to play better quicker instead of needing to warm up as much.
Tip: If you love to practice but have a hard time getting started tell yourself
that you are only going to play for 5 minutes. See what happens, you probably won’t be able to stop
A serious student spends much more time working on their own in a practice room then they do with a teacher or coach.
Be your own teacher, learn to analyze your playing, listen very carefully to the sound that you are producing. Every single note is important no matter how fast the passage is. Music is not just notes and scales. It is expression and emotion. Learn to play phrases in the same way that you speak sentences to be expressive. Take advantage of the assets available to you such as dynamics, note lengths and vibrato in order to express yourself. Be extremely conscientious of your intonation. Spend 90% of your practice time on the things that don’t sound great, slowly and analytically, and 10% putting it all together so that it sounds simple.
Pierre Holstein
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