Fiddle
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 This article is part of the Fiddle & Violin series. |
The term fiddle refers to a violin when used in folk music. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including
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[edit] Violin vs. fiddle
A violin is sometimes informally called a fiddle, regardless of the kind of music being played with it. The word "violin" is
Historically, the word fiddle also referred to a predecessor of today's violin. Like the violin, it tended to have 4 strings, but came in a variety of shapes and sizes. Another series of instruments which contributed to the development of the modern fiddle was the
One very slight difference between "fiddles" and ordinary violins may be seen in American (e.g.,
Most classical violinists prefer a more rounded curve to the top of the bridge that allows them to articulate each note more easily and clearly. In practice, most instruments are fitted with a rounded bridge to better accommodate the shape of the fingerboard. (One exception is the 3-string kontra or bracsa, a viola used in Hungarian and Transylvanian folk music fitted with an absolutely flat bridge to allow all three strings to be played simultaneously.) In any case, the difference between "round" and "flat" is not great; about a quarter or half a millimeter variation in the height of one or two strings. A fiddle strung with steel will work best with a bridge as much as a millimeter lower overall. For gut, nylon or other synthetic-core strings, the action may be set suitably higher. As a violin's bridge is relatively easy to replace, modifying the bridge does not permanently make a violin into a fiddle.
In construction, fiddles and violins are exactly the same. Various clichés describe the difference: "The violin sings, the fiddle dances," or "A fiddle is a violin with attitude," or "No one cries when they spill beer on a fiddle." As might be expected from the differences between classical and folk music, violinists tend to be formally trained and fiddlers tend to be informally trained, although crossing over is not uncommon.
[edit] Fiddling
In performance, solo fiddling is the norm, though twin fiddling is represented in some North American, Scandinavian, and Irish styles. Violins, on the other hand, are commonly grouped in sections. These contrasting traditions may be vestiges of historical performance settings: large concert halls in which violins were played required more instruments, before electronic amplification, than did more intimate dance halls and houses fiddles were played in. The difference was likely compounded by the different sounds expected of violin music and fiddle music. Historically, the majority of fiddle music was dance music, while violin music had either grown out of dance music or was something else entirely. Violin music came to value a smoothness which fiddling, with its dance-driven clear beat, did not always follow - in situations that required greater volume, a fiddler (as long as they kept the beat) could push their instrument harder than could a violinist. (Different fiddle traditions had different values, as detailed below; these explanations are meant to present the differences between fiddle music and violin music generally.)
Following the folk revivals of the second half of the 20th century, however, it has become common for less formal situations to find large groups of fiddlers playing together -- see for example the
In the very late 20th century, a few artists have successfully attempted a reconstruction of the Scottish tradition of violin and "big fiddle," or cello. Notable recorded examples include Amelia Kaminski and Christine Hanson's Bonnie Lasses and
[edit] Bows used in fiddling
Most fiddling styles that use the standard violin also use the standard violin bow, the same as so-called "classical" players. However, there are a few styles which use other bows. One notable example is the folk music from Hungary and Transylvania used in the
[edit] Fiddling styles
To a greater extent than classical violin playing, fiddle playing is characterized by a huge variety of ethnic or
- American fiddling, including
- Old Time fiddling
- Texas style fiddling
- Contest Fiddling
- Canadian fiddling, including
- English fiddling
- Clare fiddling, from the central west
- Sligo fiddling, from a bit south of the northwest
- Nordic folk fiddling (including
- Peruvian violin
- Slovenian fiddling
- South Indian Carnatic fiddling
[edit] List of notable recorded fiddle players
- Fred Carpenter
- Stuart Duncan
- Betse Ellis
- Johnny Gimble
- Red Herron
- Bobby Hicks
- Buddy Spicher
- Paul Warren
- Chubby Wise
[edit] American
- Appalachian/Piedmont
- Kenny Baker (
- Vernon Derrick (
- Clark Kessinger
- John Salyer
- Bruce Greene (collector of Kentucky tunes and styles)
- Kenny Baker (
- Bluegrass
- Contra dance (including New England)
- Sarah Blair
- Ruthie Dornfeld
- David Kaynor
- Dudley Laufman
- Randy Miller
- Rodney Miller
- Lissa Schneckenburger
- Harvey Tolman
- Becky Tracy
- Sam Amidon
- Sue Sternberg
- Country
- Irish
- Jazz
- The South
- Clayton McMichen
- Texas
[edit] Canadian
-
- Tania Elizabeth
- Cape Breton
- Quebec
- Olivier Demers
[edit] Irish
- Clare
- Paddy Canny
- Junior Crehan
- P.J. Hayes
- Martin Rochford
- Donegal
- Neillidh Ó Baoighill
- James Byrne
- Vincent Campbell
- Danny O'Donnell
- Proinnsias Ó Mhaonaigh
- Tommy Peoples
- Paul O'Shaughnessy
- Sligo
- Tommy Potts
- Kathleen Collins
[edit] Scottish
- Duncan Chisholm
[edit] References
- ^ The Session: Sessions. Retrieved on 28 August 2006.
[edit] See also
[edit] Further reading and external links
- The Fiddle Book, by Marion Thede, (1970), Oak Plublications. ISBN 0-8256-0145-2.
- Fiddle Tunes of the Old Frontier, the Henry Reed Collection, US Library of Congress audio clips, and transcriptions by
- Folk and Alternative Strings Community
- Voyager Records' catalog, organized by region, has clips of many North American styles.
- A French Violin fiddle method website - video, text, and forum with explanation (with tablatures).