Multiple fiddling personality disorder

One thing which became very apparent to me at Swannanoa was the vast difference between Irish and Scottish style Celtic fiddling. Being so new to all of this, I had a vague notion about it, but didn't really 'get' it until I listened to very experienced (in many cases, professional) proponents of these distinctive idioms.

My original preference had been for Scottish fiddling, for three reasons:

1) My ancestry is partially Scottish (Mother was a Bell - a Scottish Border clan)
2) I really like vibrato in fiddle music and you don't hear much of that in other styles, especially Irish
3) I enjoy the unique "Scots-snap" rhythm in strathspeys, found only in Scottish and Cape Breton fiddle tunes

In Asheville, I was exposed to a wider variety of fiddle music and now have a keener appreciation of the other fiddling styles than before. While there, I attended an Irish session and liked what I heard there very much. I also have begun to understand the Cape Breton style as a throwback to what Scottish fiddling might have sounded like 150-200 years ago. In addition, I have come to admire Shetland fiddling for its powerful and almost raw qualities.

I don't know where this is all going to lead, but I have now in my playlist tunes from all of these categories. When I finally figure it out, I will probably focus on only one style and leave the othes behind. For the near term, I will experiment to find my authentic "voice" for this instrument.

Rosin: a thumbnail view

A tip from a friend: if in doubt as to whether your bow needs rosin, drag the hairs across your thumbnail and check for residue. If you don't spot any white powder, rosin up; otherwise, play on!

A little farther down the road and a little further up the neck

Well, the fiddle camp in Asheville was simply wonderful. I have never before spent so much time in the company of that many talented artists and it was a great experience. I played for an average of 4-5 hours every day for a week, a lot of the time in group classes, and it did raise my level of play. It was an inspiration and an education to watch and listen to the great players there.

I vividly recall a late-night session at which several of the fiddle instructors played. Due to the late (early) hour, one of the young men nodded off while playing, but didn't miss a note! After a few seconds, someone nudged him and he awoke a little startled, but kept going as if nothing had happened. That was quite an eye-opener (pun intended).

In my classes, I found that my bow grip was too tight and that I needed a looser wrist rather than brute strength. I also began playing with my fourth finger for the first time. My left hand fourth finger was dislocated early in life and has been suspect since, so I always avoided tunes which required 4th finger action. After watching other players, it became apparent to me that I could avoid it no longer and so I have chosen to learn several pieces which require use of my fourth finger, mostly for B natural notes on the E (4th) string.

The main thing I came away with was a deep respect for the talent, hard work, and love of the music demonstrated by the instructors and experienced students at Swannanoa, as well as a keen desire to improve my own skills.

Ante up for the game

I finally did buy a fiddle. No, make that two.

The first fiddle I bought is a 1930 French instrument made in Lyons by a luthier named D. Emile Boulangeot. I chose this one because of its smooth and creamy lower registers, sweet middle and upper registers, good condition and also because the violin shop from which I purchased it has a 100% trade-up policy. My Boulangeot sounds very close to the tone of my instructor's 1890 German $10,000 instrument. In fact, when she first heard it she looked worried and picked up her own instrument to compare them. The online violin stores routinely list Boulangeots at $5,000-$8,000 more than I paid and Boulangeot is kindly regarded in William Henley's classic reference book "Universal Dictionary of Violin and Bow Makers":

Boulangeot, Emile 1877-1944
Gave all possible artistic impulse to reproducing the Stradivarius model. Accomplished his work with something besides mere mechanical precision. Oil varnish of a delightful reddish-orange tint. Principal maker to the conservatoire at Lyons and the Symphony Orchestras. Produced 175 violins, 7 violas, and 28 cellos.


I figured that I could always resell the instrument for at least as much as I paid or trade it up at the shop where I bought it.

However, I discovered that I sometimes was unable to pull the same sweet tone from this fiddle that the symphony concertmaster who sold it to me and my teacher (also a concertmaster) were able to attain. No great surprise, but a little discouraging. On a whim, I visited another local violin shop and, while plinking around on some of their step-up instruments, found a Rudoulph Doetsch model with a clear, ringing tone. It did not take long to discover that I could tune and play this instrument more easily than the Boulangeot, so I tried it at home and bought it the next day.

Since then, I play the Doetsch most of the time, although I do still use the Boulangeot, especially for a tune that spends a lot of time on the G and D strings. I will hold on to it for at least another couple of years and I may discover that I can get more from it later than now.