Fiddle: Instruction Questions & Answers

Date: Wed, 12 Nov 2008 21:36:09 -0600
Subject: Re: fiddle help

Hi,

I have been reading through your fiddle lessons. I really appreciate the beginning lessons on the care and set up of a fiddle. I purchased a new fiddle for my son and your site has been a great reference for us.

That's great to hear!

My son is 6 and does receive instruction from a fiddle player once a week. However, I'm looking for a few tips on areas that we are currently working on. First, my son tends to play from his shoulder, instead of keeping that area still and using his elbow and wrist to make the movement. Any tips on how to help isolate this movement?

This would take some personal instruction ... something that has to be guided by a personal instructor. Notwithstanding, you're on track in trying to resolve this since it would be a bad habit that will be more difficult to eliminate at a later date.

You sound like you might very well oversee this ... and, try to guide him personally without discouraging him. Additionally, make sure he's using a shoulder rest ... that fits him. This may be a preventive measure in itself.

Second, my son has an amazing memory for chords and as such can finger them quickly. The problem is that he wants to play much faster than the pieces call for. Also because he tries to play so fast the quality of the sound is lost. He is not getting his fingers in the exact spot or he hits two strings at a time with the bow. Any ideas on how to help him s-l-o-w down?

Again, you're on track in pinpointing this as an issue. Maybe you could introduce some slower melodies that appeal to him ... and, certainly, if you could find a recording of these melodies, where he could play along with the CD, he would be forced to hold back and adhere to the tempo of the recording. One learning series that does use this technique extensively is the Suzuki Method.

I realize that he is still very young and this will come with age and practice, but he is very keen to play and I would like to help him get past these hurdles.

Yes ... and, it is best to develop good habits from the beginning than to have to break them at a later date. So, I can really appreciate your vigilance. Good work and the best to you and your son!

Mickey

Subject: Fiddle Chords
Date: Tue, 26 Apr 2005 16:16:38 -0700

Dear Micky,
I am a classically trained violinist with a bluegrass background, i learned how to play at festivals as a kid and when i started playing in orchestra i had teachers who were determined to break the bad habits i learned as a child around campfires and such. I am playing a piece with some old friends and they keep telling me to fill out the chords and i am at a loss. How do i go about this?
Thanks
Nicole
MD

Greetings Nicole,

I'm glad to assist:

Okay, how to fill out on chords for back-up?

1. You're already familiar with double-stops...they could be asking you to play double and triple-stops for more harmonic support. For instance, if a chordal transition is being made from F to C, you would play the D and A strings, with the D string fretted at the F while the A string is open. And, then as the chord is moved from F to C, simply walk down the F to E while adding the C note on the A to match up with the C chord.

2. This is more likely what they're referring to: try a chordal arpeggio over each chord being played. This fills in harmonically and adds lots of color on the back-up. For instance, on a C chord, you would start with the C on the downbeat, and then throughout the C measures play C to E to G to the higher octave C to E to G and so on...

You may already know the above...this would be the logical back-up for filling out chords...

Mickey

Subject: Re: adjusting a violin bridge
Date: Tue, 27 Jan 2004 22:04:42 -0000

hi, thanks for the help. I am learning to play but have never really found
playing from sheet music that easy as I've picked it up from other people
showing me so I was wondering whether you thought it would be a good idea to
get a fiddle dvd or would I be best learning strictly violin music for now -
as I want to play fiddle as opposed to classical violin.

Thanx

Greetings Christine,

My suggestion would be to focus on methodology first...which is very difficult to do from a book.

Methodology involves learning proper positioning for a good foundation...with exercises for both bowing and playing techniques that establish this foundation further. Books are good for learning to read music and learning melodies...and, of course, some scales and exercises...a personal instructor can lay the foundation down far more efficient than a book...by giving you the exact position for establishing technique...to ensure that you do not develop bad habits which may impede your playing technique. Now, a video is the next best thing...as long as you can find a video that does focus on methodology...and how to properly develop your playing position to ensure the greatest facility possible as you further your studies on violin.

Yes, fiddle has more latitude for position and technique, however, my suggestion is to gain the best foundation possible by learning proper violin technique...there are many master fiddlers that have taught themselves, only this is the exception not the rule...good fiddle technique is as important as good violin technique....

Hope something here helps, Mickey

Date: Sun, 06 Apr 2003 20:48:52 -0600
Subject: Sunday am, thanks Mickey

Hi Mickey,

Thanks so much for you fiddle-choosing help yesterday.
I enjoyed talking with you.

I mentioned my recent gypsy jazz project. If you're curious, please check out my web site for this project--

http://homepages.together.net/~gentsmin/palmiscuous.htm

We have just entered our new cd (see our site) in Acoustic Guitar magazine's Homegrown competition. (Just for fun-- thankfully we still have our "day jobs." :-)))

Again thanks for your help, and I look forward to the Gliga...

Cheers, Gary

Greetings Gary,

I certainly enjoyed the phone conversation...and, hopefully, I've expressed to you the sensitivity of the violin in relationship to the balancing of elements...do not become discouraged...once you tune into it, you'll find yourself far ahead of the average beginner whom may not have the same mandolin background as you. Your focus will be on the bowing techinique and proper positioning of the violin between the left hand and the chin. Your mando technique, on the left hand, will fall into place. And, remember, try playing it in your lap, similar to the mandolin, to first get a feel of the neck and where the notes fall.

I attempted to visit your link, and received a connection failure...I'll try again later...I'd love to see and hear what you're doing within the gypsy genre. I've always been a fan of "Hot Club of France"...

The Gliga is scheduled to go out 3-day air today.

Hope all else is well...Mickey

Date: Wed, 20 Nov 2002 08:39:48 -0800
Subject: Question on Notes for the Fiddle

First I want to say, I love your web site! It is great!! I am 40 and just started learning to play the fiddle about 2 months ago. I couldn't locate a fiddle teacher in my area so I am learning from a violin instructor. Although, he knows the techniques of the fiddle and how it is played and sounds different from the violin.

My question is in regards to notes. He has taught me the Open strings and the B, C, D and E notes. Last night I pulled out a video on learning bluegrass fiddle and was watching the teacher use these particular notes. It looked different the way he was playing these notes, appearing that he was only using one finger on the notes, where I am playing, for instance, with the C, putting my first finger on the B and the middle finger on the C. Are notes played differently on the violin than they are on the fiddle?? I hope my question makes sense!!

Thank you for your help...

Margie Klingensmith

Greetings Margie,

Glad to assist if I can:

A violin instructor, at the very least, will assist you in developing good habits. I've known my share of fiddlers who started with formal training...and, usually, it's been contributory to a refined technique within a fiddle context...

I'm not sure how your video would display the fiddler playing these notes with one finger...unless the instructor was chording two notes with the tip of one finger...which is common...such as the Em chord being played at the e/b notes of the d/a strings.

Notes are not necessarily played differently from fiddle to violin...I believe the approach can be quite a bit different. Violin has a long tradition which has set a standard for technique and approach...with the hopes of optimizing playability...

For instance, I've seen many fiddlers play with their palm against the back of the neck...although it sounded great, they were limiting their stretch to reach notes in one position...whereas, on violin, with the palm kept away from the back of the neck, you can reach notes, playing out of one position, further up the neck without limitation...

Therefore, I personally believe you're on the right track in studying proper violin technique...it'll be up to you to adapt your violin technique to fiddling after you've gained some foundation...

Hope this helps...Mickey

Date: Sun, 17 Nov 2002 17:54:41 -0600 (CST)

Greetings,
Dear Sir. Do you know an easy way to get rythum on fiddle. I
play a little fiddle. I know the notes, strings, and so on, but can't
get that dance rythum down. And how do I play chords on fiddle?

Glad to assist if I can:

Rhythm on the fiddle can be somewhat difficult...there are many approaches to playing rhythm on fiddle:

For example, a few may include:

1. Lifting the bow and to obtain more of a percussive rhythm...
2. Shuffling the bow with one long stroke and two short strokes...
3. Using a combination of shuffle bowing and lifting....

Playing chords on fiddle:

Playing chords on fiddle only requires what we call double-stops...these are chords that only include two notes...for instance, a G chord can be played on fiddle by drawing the bow over the G and D strings open...additionally, you can play a B note on the A string and a G note on the E string...which will allow you to cross over from the G and D open to the B and G closed within a 4-beat measure...to understand this clearly, I highly recommend finding fiddle instructional videos to learn by...

To play a 3-note chord on fiddle can be most difficult...all 3 notes are not normally played at once...but shuffled across from two-note shuffles by the bow...many old-time fiddlers will sand down their bridge so that it's flatter than traditional...allowing for the bow to hit 3 strings at once...if you want to try this, I highly recommend your taking your fiddle to a local repair technician...do not attempt to sand your bridge yourself...

To play a C chord on fiddle, you can start by playing the C note on the A string, and the E note on the D string...this would give you a double-stop C chord in the first position...again, this would be much easier to instruct by video than by books or e-mail...

Wish you the best in your mando and fiddle playing efforts, Mickey

Subject: frustrated
Date: Sun, 14 Jul 2002 17:24:08 -0400

Dear Mickey,

I am a novice Bass ONLY player. I play 4 string electric bass and just bought a new Dobro Acoustic bass. A couple of year ago I thought I would like to learn to play fiddle. I thought that, since a fiddle was just a small bass, it would be easy. All I'd have to do is learn to use the bow. Boy... was I wrong! Please tell me, why is a bass tuned E-A-D-G and a fiddle G-D-A-E? Who changed it? I have gained a new respect for fiddle players.

Terry Goodrich

Greetings Terry,

I'm not sure how these tunings for both bass and fiddle ended up directly opposite of each other. I do know that the fifth intervals offered by fiddle is more melodically oriented than the fourths offered by standard bass tuning. Both tunings have their advantages...

I took up the fiddle a little over a year ago and am having a great time working through the learning process. And, I agree, fiddlers deserve more respect for taking up one of the most difficult instruments in history...outside of how difficult it is to learn, I've truly enjoyed the journey.

Wishing you the best on your journey...Mickey

Subject: Do big hands impair playing?
Date: Sun, 3 Mar 2002 20:24:35 -0500

Hi! I'm 25 years old and have been playing the fiddle since I was 13.I'm not to bad at it now,but I'd like to get a lot better!My question is,since I have large hands and fingers,will I be handicapped?Does anyone even ask this question?

Greetings,

Congrats on having the foothold you have along with the early start on fiddle.

Larger hands should not be an impediment whatsoever. You have an advantage over smaller hands in some ways such as being able to fret two strings easier with the tip of one finger. Always keep in mind, developing your own style on fiddle should be an objective in itself, and certainly, differentiate you from the average fiddler. Having larger hands essentially would influence who you are as a player and contribute to your own signature revealed through your playing.

I recently took up fiddle and am having fun with the learning process. My biggest difficulty is bowing technique. Since I've played mando for 25+ years, the fretting hand comes relatively easy.

I wish you the best in your fiddling career and encourage you to develop your own style based on your larger hands and their innate advantage. Mickey

Date: Thu, 7 Feb 2002 16:38:11 EST
Subject: how to fiddle Orange Blossom Special

Just got a fiddle,would like to learn orange blosson special.Any help u can
give would be appreciated.Thanks

There's a great video out that's sold through Mel Bay:

Titled: "All Time Fiddle Favorites" by Ed Marsh

You can find it on: www.melbay.com

Ed Marsh teaches a great version of this tune and is a methodical teacher.

Let me know if you have trouble finding it...we can also get it through our store.

Mickey