Yes, how I would like to thank you all for this wonderful advice. I have printed it out and read it over and over again. I have to say that I certainly do feel less discouraged and I am glad to know I am not alone in the struggle. There are lots of interesting suggestions and comments. The most obvious one was that I should listen to music. I shamefully confess that this was something that I never did and the only thing I knew about fiddle music was that I adored it. Thank you Will Harmon for your suggestions on who to listen to. Unfortunately I have difficulty getting out to live gigs as I know no-one who shares the same interest (anyone about Chester, UK who could help me out here?)
It is true that sometimes when I have found myself playing ever so slightly better than the usual squawk I have been relaxed. It seems this only happens after about an hour of playing; it takes this long to get into it and then it
I've found that MP3.com can be a great source of music. You can find a lot of popular session tunes (usually more than one version) just by searching. For example, I've got 6 versions of St. Anne's Reel, 4 versions of Banish Misfortune, and 2 versions of Wind That Shakes The Barley, and I know there's a bunch of Drowsy Maggie/Boys of Bluehill/Staten Islands out there, too ... tunes popular around here.
Hearing tunes played, in different ways, helps the notes "stick" in my head which makes learning them MUCH easier. I've found that I almost can't learn (even from dots) if I can't hear the tune in my head or be able to hum/whistle it!
Until it all comes together (and I've been fiddling for 3+ years now and it STILL doesn't always come together!) don't try to "do it all" ... if you're learning a tune from dots, just learn the notes ... don't worry about your bowing until your fingers know where to go ... THEN work on the bowing to get the rhythm and accenting right. Or, just work on a bowing pattern on open strings; try to get a jig-rhythm going one one string, or switching between two. If you try to do it all at the same time, you'll be continually frustrated which we lead to discouragement and you'll probably play less!
Until you have a good feel for where the notes are on your fiddle and have been listing and playing for a while, learning by ear can be very hard for somone without a musical background. As for tuning, learning to hear the interval (between strings) is a good thing to learn -- something to 'listen' for is when the interval is correct the chord between the two strings just sounds "good" it's hard to describe in words but the tone(s) will sort of 'focus' and you won't hear any beat or interference patterns between them. Using a digital tuner is probably best for a beginner, though, it tells you (with lights or a dial or whatever) when you've got it right and there's no need to waste time struggling ... you want to be playing!!
There's no shame in learning from the dots if you memorize the tunes and can play them from memory ... something you should try to do as soon as possible.
I don't think you can bow using ONLY the wrist ... your wrist needs to be flexible (especially for triplets) but your elbow does need to be involved.
Unfortunately I was not been able to join the previous discussion on the fiddle. So therefore I give some of experiences and comment.
I picked up the fiddle 5 years ago (being 42 years old). I am following lessons in order to learn the technique well. My primary goal was to be able to play Celtic & Flemish folk tunes. It took me 3 years before I could play a simple folk tune in a proper way, meaning the tone and rhythm being ok. Last year I was able to play the Morrison jig with some ornamentation, meaning rolls and etc.
After 5 years playing fiddle, to my personal opinion, playing folk music is down to 3 issues
- get the left and right hand technique right
- Incarnate the feeling of the rhythm of the different types of dance music (jigs, reels, polkas, . . .)
- learn how and when to use the ornamentation (the hard bit but very creative and personal one)
I think that is one of the biggest lies in music and education. Everyone has an ear for music! Naturally, it will be much easier for someone who has heard and played music a lot than for a beginner, but nothing's impossible! It's a great idea to tune your fiddle with a tuning fork and then check it with a tuner. The more you practice it, the better you will get!
What I've been doing lately is going to lessons, learning tunes, also recording it for reference. When I get home and have it fresh in my memory I usually write it down, as it helps me remember it. This has helped me a lot, perhaps it's no good for you. But if you feel comfortable with sheet music, it might be a good idea. I rarely actually /look/ at the dots later, it seems that just writing them down helps me remembering them to next time.
But, of course, one must not forget that the most important thing is to have fun. If you think it's the most boring thing in the world to write down tunes, don't do it. It probably won't help you.
I fully agree with comment of pobe - everyone has an ear for music but you need to develop it by exercise.
Taping a tune during lesson of a session can be a good help. You can listen over and over and get the tune into you mind and memory and at the end play it.
This was one of the surprises for my, if you have heard a tune a few times it makes some much easier and faster to learn it afterwards when playing it from e.g. musicsheet .
Mmm. I dunno, guys, I've taught for a while, and while most people who say that they have a "tin ear" really only need some training, there are occasionally a few people who really can't understand the concept of the beat, much less intonation, in their gut. They can get it in their heads, but getting it out through their bodies is a real challenge for them. For some, it's worth it to keep trying. Others don't want that much stress and frustration in their lives.
Carver, developing an ear takes time, if it doesn't come naturally. To learn to tune your fiddle, you have to be able to hear the fifths in your head and then match up the strings to what you hear in your head. To learn by ear, you have to practise it. Try some of the hints at our tune learning session's website: http://www.slowplayers.org/SCTLS -- if you need some amplification of what's explained there, just let us know and we'll do our best to help.
As for bowing -- bowing technique is as varied as every fiddler out there. Some say it's all a ball of wax if you can get the sound you want out of the thing. Others say that you MUST have the elbow close to your body. Still others say that you MUST have the elbow out from your body. Go with what your teacher tells you to do. If it's not working for you, then ask about trying some other bowing technique.
We can give you advice til we're (and you're) blue in the face (and in fact, we'll be very happy to do so), but if you have a teacher, trust him or her, that's why you're going to them in the first place, right? Your teacher can hear and see you, and we can't. S/he can help you to crawl before you can walk, too, so don't go trying to work on things you're not ready for, either, which is really frustrating for a teacher to watch a student do.
And listen, listen, listen to music, at all times, in all places you possibly can. That's the very best piece of advice you've been given; don't let it fall by the wayside!
To help you relax while playing: practise playing something you know really well, even if it's just a scale, or even five notes of a scale, over and over again. Do that until you can play it comfortably, well, with good tone and lovely sound, while thinking about the grocery list, the household errands, what you're going to practise next, the plot of your favorite soap opera, whatever. In other words, practise it until you don't have to think about it anymore, you just play it.
Once you've done that, then you know what it feels like to relax while playing, and you can work/not work at getting everything to feel like that.
My teacher recently told me about the bowing that he wouldn't give me any bowing instructions, since I could get a decent sound out of the fiddle and he thought that I should "discover" the bowing by myself. Not sure if this is generally a good idea, but it has worked quite good for me.
Carver-
Your comment about playing better when you are relaxed brought to mind some advice my teacher gave me. I was having the same problem early on--death grip on the neck, stiff bowing, trying too hard. Not only did she tell me to listen to a bit of a cd for 10 minute before starting to play, but have a relaxing beverage while doing so! (Okay, okay, we all sound GREAT after a couple of beers......) But I found that a cup of tea, glass of wine, etc.... got me to untense a bit and make it past that discouraging plateau where I didn't seem to be getting anywhere. (Just don't knock back a couple of single-malts every practice session and hope to make real progress.) A little mind prep before a practice session almost mimics that hour that you play before you start sounding pretty good. I tend to look upon my time with my fiddle as a meditation & reducer of stress in my life; I don't want it to become a SOURCE of stress....
You sound like you really care about doing this right; that attitude will go a long way towards carrying you past the steep part of the dreaded learning curve.
I still remember the advice I read from Wil Harmon - basically, concentrate on making playing effortless.
That small piece of advice has made a trememdous difference in my ability to relax, and my enjoyment of playing!
That effortless mantra really is the key to having it all click. I'm happy to pass it along--something I learned too from other musicians. At the risk of sounding like I've overdosed on ecstasy....
What it boils down to is: playing music should be FUN. In the final analysis, there's really no other reason to do it. (Barring parents who force their children to take lessons, or the professional who sometimes has to play a gig even when s/he's not feeling up to it.) *Music is Play.* Try to approach every second with your instrument that way, like you're 5 years old again and about to dive into finger painting, or chasing the waves up and down the beach, or building a sandcastle. Shake all the tension out of your hands and arms, take a bunch of deep breaths, and hold your fiddle (or whatever) like you would a soap bubble wand--light and easy, ready to breathe and make a little magic happen.
Especially in the beginning, give yourself permission to make lots of horrible, loud, geese-plucking, cat-skinning noise. Really, it's okay. EVERYbody does it when they first start. And it's actually kinda fun (just listen to Jimi Hendrix and tell me he wasn't having fun).
Then enjoy the sounds you make, have fun gradually making them sound more like what you imagine yourself sounding like when you're really experienced and good. All it takes is time, perseverance, occasional rest, and the love of music. I like Martin Hayes' spin on this: The gift of music is not some innate knack to play it well, but the gift of loving the music. Anyone can love the music. Approach your playing that way, and it will eventually show in everything you do.
The fingers of your left hand will be in the right place or wrong place no matter how hard you press them onto the fingerboard. Your term, "grip," speaks volumes. In reality, you don't grip the fingerboard. (Are you holding the fiddle properly, clamped between your chin and collarbone, without support from your left hand? If you have to hang onto it with your left hand, how is your hand gonna be free to dance all over the fingerboard?)
I like the way some fine fiddler (Kevin Burke? can't remember) put it: Your left hand should be in position so your fingers are ready to DROP down onto the fingerboard. (Again, this has to do with proper grip with chin and collarbone.) Your fingers are sweating? You're definitely trying too hard and worrying about it too much. If you play a bad note, so what? Everybody does, millions of times. You know what happens when you stop playing a bad note? Guess! The bad note goes away!
When you practice, you don't have to work on everything at once. You can work on playing a scale in tune, or long bows, or short bows, or bowing a reel, whatever. Every little thing you accomplish is a triumph.
Like Will says, the secret is in enjoyment. If you love it, all this discussion will be ancient history, forgotten, before you know it.
Batlady, IMHO, I think that one have to be really careful when it comes to alcohol. If you drink alcohol to relax when you're going to play, after a while you might not be able to play at all without drinking. (Oh, this if of course no problem in sessions, but perhaps you want to play at different occasions as well...)
A cup of tea sounds like a much better idea than a glass of wine.
Another important thing when it comes to relaxing is to not have too high expectations and demands on your playing. If you're a beginner (I am, and I constantly think of this), you don't have to sound very good! It's ok if it sounds crap at times. That might help you relax. Of course, one should try to make it sound good, not leave it at 'crap'.
I think Will's comment about giving yourself permission to make loud screeching, cat-skinning noises when you start on the fiddle is very wise. If you learn to enjoy ALL the noises the instrument makes, you won't get so tense and try to force it so much. Once you're happily making a racket, then you can gradually work on shaping the sounds into what you want to acheive. If you adopt this approach, I reckon you are more likely to discover YOUR fiddle sound, rather than fighting to acheive the sound of the person who maybe inspired you to try the instrument in the first place.
Also, listen to some Old-time fiddlers, they use a lot of the discordant screechy abilities of the fiddle that would be frowned upon in Irish or classical circles.
Have just got back into your discussion after being away for a few days and then spending about 20 hours a day at the Stonehaven folk festival. Would also like to thank everyone for the advice that they posted for you - cos i've read the lot too!
On a wee side note my small boy - 9 - who has not really wanted to learn to play anything at all, spent sunday afternoon at the harbour during the festival listening to all the sessions going on in the hot sottish sunshine(!!!) Anyway the next morning he say's "Dad, can I learn the fiddle?"
Happy Dad took him right down to the shop and got him a half size. He had his first lesson today and came out smiling more than he did on the way out.
Will let the list know the exact moment the the wee lad can play his dad out the room - probably not take long!
well,thecarver, in addition to all of the esteemed fiddlers mentioned above i would like to point you in the direction of kane o'rourke should you ever sally forth from your scottish haunts in the general direction of london.
if you do,mail me and if he's playing somewhere i will give you the details.you won't regret it
sorry,thecarver et al,as you may have guessed, i have drink taken and my last post belongs to fifer's SOS thread.
but he's still worth a listen!
yours,running to get my coat,
bigdave
What a great set of advice again. At the moment I am just repeating about 10 tunes I have learned over and over again- and I really am enjoying myself whatever sounds come out -but paticularly as feel myself progressing no matter how slowly. I feel so much more confident now. I'm also learning more tunes to continue my dot reading progress.
Thank you all! I need to print all this out too and read it again and again. What a great site!
Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
Yes, how I would like to thank you all for this wonderful advice. I have printed it out and read it over and over again. I have to say that I certainly do feel less discouraged and I am glad to know I am not alone in the struggle. There are lots of interesting suggestions and comments. The most obvious one was that I should listen to music. I shamefully confess that this was something that I never did and the only thing I knew about fiddle music was that I adored it. Thank you Will Harmon for your suggestions on who to listen to. Unfortunately I have difficulty getting out to live gigs as I know no-one who shares the same interest (anyone about Chester, UK who could help me out here?)
It is true that sometimes when I have found myself playing ever so slightly better than the usual squawk I have been relaxed. It seems this only happens after about an hour of playing; it takes this long to get into it and then it
# Posted on July 15th 2003 by thecarver
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
I've found that MP3.com can be a great source of music. You can find a lot of popular session tunes (usually more than one version) just by searching. For example, I've got 6 versions of St. Anne's Reel, 4 versions of Banish Misfortune, and 2 versions of Wind That Shakes The Barley, and I know there's a bunch of Drowsy Maggie/Boys of Bluehill/Staten Islands out there, too ... tunes popular around here.
Hearing tunes played, in different ways, helps the notes "stick" in my head which makes learning them MUCH easier. I've found that I almost can't learn (even from dots) if I can't hear the tune in my head or be able to hum/whistle it!
Until it all comes together (and I've been fiddling for 3+ years now and it STILL doesn't always come together!) don't try to "do it all" ... if you're learning a tune from dots, just learn the notes ... don't worry about your bowing until your fingers know where to go ... THEN work on the bowing to get the rhythm and accenting right. Or, just work on a bowing pattern on open strings; try to get a jig-rhythm going one one string, or switching between two. If you try to do it all at the same time, you'll be continually frustrated which we lead to discouragement and you'll probably play less!
Until you have a good feel for where the notes are on your fiddle and have been listing and playing for a while, learning by ear can be very hard for somone without a musical background. As for tuning, learning to hear the interval (between strings) is a good thing to learn -- something to 'listen' for is when the interval is correct the chord between the two strings just sounds "good" it's hard to describe in words but the tone(s) will sort of 'focus' and you won't hear any beat or interference patterns between them. Using a digital tuner is probably best for a beginner, though, it tells you (with lights or a dial or whatever) when you've got it right and there's no need to waste time struggling ... you want to be playing!!
There's no shame in learning from the dots if you memorize the tunes and can play them from memory ... something you should try to do as soon as possible.
I don't think you can bow using ONLY the wrist ... your wrist needs to be flexible (especially for triplets) but your elbow does need to be involved.
Hope this helps,
Len
# Posted on July 15th 2003 by KeepFiddlin'
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
Unfortunately I was not been able to join the previous discussion on the fiddle. So therefore I give some of experiences and comment.
I picked up the fiddle 5 years ago (being 42 years old). I am following lessons in order to learn the technique well. My primary goal was to be able to play Celtic & Flemish folk tunes. It took me 3 years before I could play a simple folk tune in a proper way, meaning the tone and rhythm being ok. Last year I was able to play the Morrison jig with some ornamentation, meaning rolls and etc.
After 5 years playing fiddle, to my personal opinion, playing folk music is down to 3 issues
- get the left and right hand technique right
- Incarnate the feeling of the rhythm of the different types of dance music (jigs, reels, polkas, . . .)
- learn how and when to use the ornamentation (the hard bit but very creative and personal one)
As been told by my teacher mastering the technique (whether is classic music or folk music) is important for the good tone and rhythm and speed of notes. Therefore I am doing daily exercises on this ( scales, . . .). I also picked up a lot of stuff and advice from websites on classic/folk music (e.g.
http://www.violinonline.com/
http://www.instrumentworld.info/info.php?id=violin http://www.fiddlingaround.co.uk/
http://www.siegelproductions.ca/fiddle.htm
And some books like
- Aerobics for Fiddlers
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by dirk van damme
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
About "not having an ear for music"...
I think that is one of the biggest lies in music and education. Everyone has an ear for music! Naturally, it will be much easier for someone who has heard and played music a lot than for a beginner, but nothing's impossible! It's a great idea to tune your fiddle with a tuning fork and then check it with a tuner. The more you practice it, the better you will get!
What I've been doing lately is going to lessons, learning tunes, also recording it for reference. When I get home and have it fresh in my memory I usually write it down, as it helps me remember it. This has helped me a lot, perhaps it's no good for you. But if you feel comfortable with sheet music, it might be a good idea. I rarely actually /look/ at the dots later, it seems that just writing them down helps me remembering them to next time.
But, of course, one must not forget that the most important thing is to have fun. If you think it's the most boring thing in the world to write down tunes, don't do it. It probably won't help you.
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by Pontus Adefjord
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
I fully agree with comment of pobe - everyone has an ear for music but you need to develop it by exercise.
Taping a tune during lesson of a session can be a good help. You can listen over and over and get the tune into you mind and memory and at the end play it.
This was one of the surprises for my, if you have heard a tune a few times it makes some much easier and faster to learn it afterwards when playing it from e.g. musicsheet .
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by dirk van damme
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
Mmm. I dunno, guys, I've taught for a while, and while most people who say that they have a "tin ear" really only need some training, there are occasionally a few people who really can't understand the concept of the beat, much less intonation, in their gut. They can get it in their heads, but getting it out through their bodies is a real challenge for them. For some, it's worth it to keep trying. Others don't want that much stress and frustration in their lives.
Carver, developing an ear takes time, if it doesn't come naturally. To learn to tune your fiddle, you have to be able to hear the fifths in your head and then match up the strings to what you hear in your head. To learn by ear, you have to practise it. Try some of the hints at our tune learning session's website: http://www.slowplayers.org/SCTLS -- if you need some amplification of what's explained there, just let us know and we'll do our best to help.
As for bowing -- bowing technique is as varied as every fiddler out there. Some say it's all a ball of wax if you can get the sound you want out of the thing. Others say that you MUST have the elbow close to your body. Still others say that you MUST have the elbow out from your body. Go with what your teacher tells you to do. If it's not working for you, then ask about trying some other bowing technique.
We can give you advice til we're (and you're) blue in the face (and in fact, we'll be very happy to do so), but if you have a teacher, trust him or her, that's why you're going to them in the first place, right? Your teacher can hear and see you, and we can't. S/he can help you to crawl before you can walk, too, so don't go trying to work on things you're not ready for, either, which is really frustrating for a teacher to watch a student do.
And listen, listen, listen to music, at all times, in all places you possibly can. That's the very best piece of advice you've been given; don't let it fall by the wayside!
To help you relax while playing: practise playing something you know really well, even if it's just a scale, or even five notes of a scale, over and over again. Do that until you can play it comfortably, well, with good tone and lovely sound, while thinking about the grocery list, the household errands, what you're going to practise next, the plot of your favorite soap opera, whatever. In other words, practise it until you don't have to think about it anymore, you just play it.
Once you've done that, then you know what it feels like to relax while playing, and you can work/not work at getting everything to feel like that.
Work at relaxing!
Hope you're still having fun --
Zina
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by Zina Lee
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
My teacher recently told me about the bowing that he wouldn't give me any bowing instructions, since I could get a decent sound out of the fiddle and he thought that I should "discover" the bowing by myself. Not sure if this is generally a good idea, but it has worked quite good for me.
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by Pontus Adefjord
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
Carver-
Your comment about playing better when you are relaxed brought to mind some advice my teacher gave me. I was having the same problem early on--death grip on the neck, stiff bowing, trying too hard. Not only did she tell me to listen to a bit of a cd for 10 minute before starting to play, but have a relaxing beverage while doing so! (Okay, okay, we all sound GREAT after a couple of beers......) But I found that a cup of tea, glass of wine, etc.... got me to untense a bit and make it past that discouraging plateau where I didn't seem to be getting anywhere. (Just don't knock back a couple of single-malts every practice session and hope to make real progress.) A little mind prep before a practice session almost mimics that hour that you play before you start sounding pretty good. I tend to look upon my time with my fiddle as a meditation & reducer of stress in my life; I don't want it to become a SOURCE of stress....
You sound like you really care about doing this right; that attitude will go a long way towards carrying you past the steep part of the dreaded learning curve.
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by Michele Sims
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
I still remember the advice I read from Wil Harmon - basically, concentrate on making playing effortless.
That small piece of advice has made a trememdous difference in my ability to relax, and my enjoyment of playing!
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by RedFiddle
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
That effortless mantra really is the key to having it all click. I'm happy to pass it along--something I learned too from other musicians. At the risk of sounding like I've overdosed on ecstasy....
What it boils down to is: playing music should be FUN. In the final analysis, there's really no other reason to do it. (Barring parents who force their children to take lessons, or the professional who sometimes has to play a gig even when s/he's not feeling up to it.) *Music is Play.* Try to approach every second with your instrument that way, like you're 5 years old again and about to dive into finger painting, or chasing the waves up and down the beach, or building a sandcastle. Shake all the tension out of your hands and arms, take a bunch of deep breaths, and hold your fiddle (or whatever) like you would a soap bubble wand--light and easy, ready to breathe and make a little magic happen.
Especially in the beginning, give yourself permission to make lots of horrible, loud, geese-plucking, cat-skinning noise. Really, it's okay. EVERYbody does it when they first start. And it's actually kinda fun (just listen to Jimi Hendrix and tell me he wasn't having fun).
Then enjoy the sounds you make, have fun gradually making them sound more like what you imagine yourself sounding like when you're really experienced and good. All it takes is time, perseverance, occasional rest, and the love of music. I like Martin Hayes' spin on this: The gift of music is not some innate knack to play it well, but the gift of loving the music. Anyone can love the music. Approach your playing that way, and it will eventually show in everything you do.
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by Will Harmon
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
Carver,
The fingers of your left hand will be in the right place or wrong place no matter how hard you press them onto the fingerboard. Your term, "grip," speaks volumes. In reality, you don't grip the fingerboard. (Are you holding the fiddle properly, clamped between your chin and collarbone, without support from your left hand? If you have to hang onto it with your left hand, how is your hand gonna be free to dance all over the fingerboard?)
I like the way some fine fiddler (Kevin Burke? can't remember) put it: Your left hand should be in position so your fingers are ready to DROP down onto the fingerboard. (Again, this has to do with proper grip with chin and collarbone.) Your fingers are sweating? You're definitely trying too hard and worrying about it too much. If you play a bad note, so what? Everybody does, millions of times. You know what happens when you stop playing a bad note? Guess! The bad note goes away!
When you practice, you don't have to work on everything at once. You can work on playing a scale in tune, or long bows, or short bows, or bowing a reel, whatever. Every little thing you accomplish is a triumph.
Like Will says, the secret is in enjoyment. If you love it, all this discussion will be ancient history, forgotten, before you know it.
Carol
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by carolsviolin
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
Batlady, IMHO, I think that one have to be really careful when it comes to alcohol. If you drink alcohol to relax when you're going to play, after a while you might not be able to play at all without drinking. (Oh, this if of course no problem in sessions, but perhaps you want to play at different occasions as well...)
A cup of tea sounds like a much better idea than a glass of wine.
Another important thing when it comes to relaxing is to not have too high expectations and demands on your playing. If you're a beginner (I am, and I constantly think of this), you don't have to sound very good! It's ok if it sounds crap at times. That might help you relax. Of course, one should try to make it sound good, not leave it at 'crap'.
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by Pontus Adefjord
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
I think Will's comment about giving yourself permission to make loud screeching, cat-skinning noises when you start on the fiddle is very wise. If you learn to enjoy ALL the noises the instrument makes, you won't get so tense and try to force it so much. Once you're happily making a racket, then you can gradually work on shaping the sounds into what you want to acheive. If you adopt this approach, I reckon you are more likely to discover YOUR fiddle sound, rather than fighting to acheive the sound of the person who maybe inspired you to try the instrument in the first place.
Also, listen to some Old-time fiddlers, they use a lot of the discordant screechy abilities of the fiddle that would be frowned upon in Irish or classical circles.
# Posted on July 16th 2003 by Ottery
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
Hello The carver
Have just got back into your discussion after being away for a few days and then spending about 20 hours a day at the Stonehaven folk festival. Would also like to thank everyone for the advice that they posted for you - cos i've read the lot too!
On a wee side note my small boy - 9 - who has not really wanted to learn to play anything at all, spent sunday afternoon at the harbour during the festival listening to all the sessions going on in the hot sottish sunshine(!!!) Anyway the next morning he say's "Dad, can I learn the fiddle?"
Happy Dad took him right down to the shop and got him a half size. He had his first lesson today and came out smiling more than he did on the way out.
Will let the list know the exact moment the the wee lad can play his dad out the room - probably not take long!
Happy fiddling Carver
Clunk
# Posted on July 17th 2003 by clunk999
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
How COOL, Clunk! What a proud father you must be, for sure. We'll send him to Australia to bother Dow.
zls
# Posted on July 17th 2003 by Zina Lee
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
well,thecarver, in addition to all of the esteemed fiddlers mentioned above i would like to point you in the direction of kane o'rourke should you ever sally forth from your scottish haunts in the general direction of london.
if you do,mail me and if he's playing somewhere i will give you the details.you won't regret it
# Posted on July 17th 2003 by biggus dave
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
sorry,thecarver et al,as you may have guessed, i have drink taken and my last post belongs to fifer's SOS thread.
but he's still worth a listen!
yours,running to get my coat,
bigdave
# Posted on July 17th 2003 by biggus dave
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
What a great set of advice again. At the moment I am just repeating about 10 tunes I have learned over and over again- and I really am enjoying myself whatever sounds come out -but paticularly as feel myself progressing no matter how slowly. I feel so much more confident now. I'm also learning more tunes to continue my dot reading progress.
Thank you all! I need to print all this out too and read it again and again. What a great site!
# Posted on July 18th 2003 by thecarver
Re: Still learning the fiddle (thank you...)
Hey Zina - you want a laugh? my wife just bought a guitar.........
# Posted on July 18th 2003 by clunk999