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Hey everyone!
One thing that I did when I first picked up the violin a little over a year ago was set a goal. In one year, I wanted to be able to sit around a campfire and just fiddle a few tunes by starlight.
I would have been happy with squeeking out 2 or 3 songs. Well, I got a chance to do that this last weekend! It's funny how something so small can make a person so happy! I was an eventful evening to say the least!
I brought my fiddle to a Civil War Reenactment just to practice when I was asked to play for the evening Ball. Period music, Women in Ball Gowns, a group of friendly musicians and dancers in the early summer wamth? Yes please! We played a bunch of songs I knew and a bunch of songs I never heard before! I either improvised or learned the song on the fly which was so satisfying!
After the ball, a guitarist and banjo player invited me back to their camp to join them in yet another jam session! We played both period songs and even some blue grass until the wee hours of the morning! Who'd of thought?!? The songs I didn't know, I again improvised or learned! It was so much fun and relaxing!
A friend of mine captured the moment! See, anyone can be a happy fiddler! 
Thankfully, my meds, stimulator, slipper rest and comfy chair held up enough to make that night possible! ......because I still can't move now! LOL BUT, It was worth it!
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” ~Benjamin Franklin
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Way cool, Eric!!! I must say that I'm a tad jealous as I'd love to have the opportunity to do all those things, but also very happy for you. Sounds like a blast on all counts!
When the work's all done and the sun's settin' low,
I pull out my fiddle and I rosin up the bow.
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And thats the SWEETness!!!!!! > Ya worked hard to learn and now you have reaped what you have sowed.
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It was so awesome! Afterwards, I just laid back and kept thinking that I needed to do this again and soon!
I didn't care if I messed up, I just jumped with both feet and went for it!
Now......I just need to look up all those songs we played so I don't forget them! LOL
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” ~Benjamin Franklin
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That sounds so awesome!i love those reenactmets of old eras...even though i haven't gotten the chance to participate in one yet.
I can't even imagine how magical it must be to play under the starry sky..I'm glad you had a great time!
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If you ever get the chance to see one, I would highly recommend it! Even if it's as a spectator! They are so much fun! Not to mention, the musicians there are more than willing to talk to anybody who will listen 
This is a great year for Civil War reenactments due to 150th anniversary. You'll not only encounter military songs of the period, but some folk, blue grass, Cajun and even classical as well! Saturday nights at weekend events, you can even dance at the ball!
Ren fairs are also a blast this time of year! You'll get even more interesting styles of music! lol That's where I heard Ciprian scales for the first time and fell in love with them!
Plus, nothing beats a fiddle around a campfire! ...except maybe s'mores!
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” ~Benjamin Franklin
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Wow.. @EJ-Kisz .. that sounds wonderful. The photo is AWESOME!!!!! What a great experience. I am jealous!! Thanks for sharing.
I hope I do that sometime soon (meaning.. meet up and jam and enjoy unabashedly!!) A fire would be nice too!
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
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@coolpinkone Just to forewarn ya, when you play around a campfire, your violin will smell like it for weeks! LOL This past winter, every time I hit a certain note, I would smell campfire! 
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” ~Benjamin Franklin
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@EJ-Kisz: Yeah.. My acoustic violin, I scented the case slightly with some Amber perfume resin from India. So *usually* it has a light scent of a sort of vintage exotic ladies' perfume. Unless you play certain songs that hit heavy and loud on certain notes and then suddenly it goes to.. blueberry pancakes. LOL
I've only been playing it a few times when making blueberry pancakes in particular, but that is a scent that "stuck". Mostly I play the electric when cooking, because I figure the grease and etc aren't really good for a wood instrument, but something about making pancakes kinda calls for the acoustic.
The friend I gave my Mendini acoustic to says that sometimes he'll be playing and suddenly catch a scent of potatoes frying or fresh coffee.
Oh well, that's not such a bad thing, though. As long as it is nice smells. (Might not want to buy a used violin from someone with acute halitosis or chronic flatulence.)
Just one of those little touches that can highlight an instrument's unique and distinctive personality. (Yeah, that sounds good.) I've toyed with the idea of just going with the flow and writing a little ditty to play about blueberry pancakes that would intentionally use those notes/sounds. You could do one about campfires? LOL
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
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@DanielB
That's hilarious.....and so true! LOL After one particularly grueling practice session (double stops, drones, blue grass kinda stuff), my wife walks in and yells at me: "I told you to throw those camp clothes in the wash! Now the apartment smells like campfire!" LMAO .....and yes, my clothes had been clean for the past week!
I've actually thought about making something to scent violins! I know I talked about it in the past in another topic. I am seriously considering taking those sample scent strips (ya know, the ones that those ladies at the department store bombard you with when you walk in at Christmas time!), cutting them down an fitting them into a small vented tube that fits into the F-hole of a violin without falling in. Super simple and your violin will smell like your favorite scent!
Although, you are right about certain smells lasting longer than others! I think that would be fun to experiment with!
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” ~Benjamin Franklin
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@EJ-Kisz that is a good heads up..good reason to have two fiddlers... (like I needed a reason)...
@DanielB ha ha.. too funny... too funny..
Blueberry could be nice. ..
Vibrato Desperato.... Desperately seeking vibrato
King
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What about making something like, Scratch-n-Sniff™ strips with the scent applied to something like, Glad™ Cling Wrap. The different scent strip's could be applied to the exterior of the violin's surface under the fingerboard and changed quick and easy without leaving a sticky residue.
Just a thought. 
Ken.
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Fiddlestix said
What about making something like, Scratch-n-Sniff™ strips with the scent applied to something like, Glad™ Cling Wrap.
Except that "scratchy" is what we want to avoid . "Bow-n-Sniff" What about something like those Glade plug-ins that plug into the wall. Instead of plugging into the wall, plug it into a piezo element pickup and use the induced electricity to generate aroma instead of sound.
King
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C'mon, OC,,, waaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy to expensive and bulky,,, my idea is simple and cheap. And, what if you don't have a piezo mic on your fiddle to plug into, then what ?
The different scent refill's would cost a fortune.
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Actually, I love both ideas! If you have an electric violin, the "plug-in" style would work perfectly with the active pick-ups! The scratch-in-sniff style would work awesome underneath the fingerboard as well!
What I'm really trying to do is make the wood on the inside of the violin absorb the scent. This way, certain vibrations/notes would make the scent more prominent. ....and last longer!
I recently tried a friends violin and it smelled like her perfume! She didn't notice it because she is so used to the scent! LOL But, she immediately recognized the campfire scent on my violin!
It's really true that violins develop their own personalities!
So far, I almost have a working prototype for an F-hole Scent dispenser. ......just gathering all those sample strips from magazines to try out! LOL My wife thought I was nuts until I tried her favorite perfume sample strip in her Ukulele! LMAO
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” ~Benjamin Franklin
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