Frosty Mornin'

If you like this song, leave me a comment and I'll post a lesson for it. Or you can send me an email at betweenstations.blogspot.com. Enjoy!

Bile them Cabbage Down - Better Audio Version

Audio was distorted on the first lesson...my apologies. I will work on it and get it as crisp and clear as possible for future lessons.

Happy fiddlin'

-Joe

Shuffle Bowing

This is an introductory lesson to shuffle bowing. I introduce shuffle bowing technique and teach a good practice song for this style named "Bile them Cabbage Down." I will work to improve the audio quality in the next lesson.

Introduction to the Fiddle

Online Violin Tuner

Tuning

I would strongly suggest buying an electronic violin tuner until you train your ear to know the strings. 

-Turning the peg away from (counter-clockwise) tightens the string and raises the pitch, turning the peg toward you (clockwise) lowers the pitch.

-Never force the pegs into the peg box more than necessary.  It will damage the pegs and make them not work properly.

-Fine tuners are good for the beginner, but will give a more metallic sound quality to your instrument.  If you can do without them then your fiddle tone and resonance will benefit from it!

Overstretching the strings will damage sound quality and can cause them to break!

However, since I’m sure you’re eager to get started or maybe can’t afford an electric tuner I have listed some online violin tuners.

(Yes, violin and fiddle are the same instrument…it’s all about the style you are playing and basically which word you like better.  My “fiddle” was actually sold to me as a “violin.”)

Online Violin Tuners

http://www.get-tuned.com/violin_tuner.php

http://www.violinonline.com/tuning.htm

http://www.fretlessfingerguides.com/violin_tuner.html

Selecting a Bow

Bow Advice and Tips

Just a couple quick tips about selecting a bow for the beginner.  There are two common materials that you will have to choose from in a beginner bow:  

Wood vs Fiberglass

You can get a “decent” fiberglass bow for around $40 or you can get an intermediate wood bow for about $100.  This is an area where you don’t want to be cheap.  You will be able to tell a HUGE difference in sound quality between the fiberglass and wood bows.  A beginner may not be able to hear the difference between a $100 bow and a $2000 bow (yes they exist)…but I guarantee anyone can hear the difference between a $40 fiberglass bow and a $100 wood bow.

So basically……      WOOD WINS!

Tips on Bow Maintenance

    -When you tighten your bow, never tighten it to a point that it straightens out the bow. You should be able to hold the bow and strings between your fingers and squeeze them together until they touch using very little effort

     -When choosing a rosin, get the more expensive dark green (or seemingly black) rosin.  It will cost you about $8 more but it is easier to apply and creates a much better sound.

     -Always release the tension on your bow before storing it.  If you neglect to do this your strings will become brittle and break while you are playing, or if left long enough they will snap on their own in the case.

     -It doesn’t hurt to keep a mothball somewhere in your violin case to prevent “bow bugs.”  It’s unlikely that you will get them, but if you do they will eat your bow hair.

     -Always wipe the rosin off your violin strings after each time you play.  This prevents the rosin from crystallizing on the strings, which will cause squeaky bow noise the next time you play along with drastically shortening the life of your strings.  (Just to be clear, I am talking about the metal violin strings here, not the bow strings.  You can leave the rosin on the bow strings.)

Hope this Helps get you started…and Happy Fiddlin’!

-Joe

Replacing Strings

Vital String Tips for the Beginner

                and

How to Avoid DESTROYING your new fiddle!

            As a beginning fiddle player one of the first things you will probably do is search for and buy an inexpensive beginner fiddle. (I will provide a violin buyers checklist in a later post!)  For now though, let’s assume that since you are reading this post you have already purchased a fiddle for yourself.

            One of the first things you will probably want to do after buying a new fiddle is to replace the strings.  Good quality strings can make a HUGE difference in how your fiddle sounds.  I have personally used Dominant Thomastik violin strings for years, and I love them. (No they don’t sponsor me or anything…they are just really good strings!)  They cost around $45 bucks online.  Whatever brand you decide to try just remember, do not buy cheap strings.  When it comes to fiddle strings, you absolutely get what you pay for!

            So…now you are ready to put on your new strings!  If you read nothing else in this post remember this:

NEVER TAKE OFF ALL OF THE STRINGS AT THE SAME TIME!

            As a beginner you may not realize this, but much of the support system that gives your fiddle a good rich tone is held in place by the tension of the strings.  The fiddle bridge that supports the strings is held in place by tension.  Also, something you may have never noticed is that inside the fiddle underneath the bridge is a small wooden dowel called a sound post. 

            So lets say you are a beginner like myself many years ago, who happened to be too stubborn to ask for help changing his strings.  The first thing that happens when you remove all four strings is that the bridge will fall out.  Something that you may not notice, however, is that this will sometimes also cause your sound post to shift or even fall.  Assuming you are able to replace the bridge and figure out which string goes to which peg without any crossovers, you will then realize something has gone horribly wrong after tightening the strings.  If you are lucky your fiddle will merely sound horrible and you will realize you need professional help.  If you are not lucky the pressure on the top of the violin without the sound post support will cause a split down the center of your fiddle!

            A sound post can be fairly easily replaced by someone with the correct tool and experience.  However, a crack or split can cost more to repair than your fiddle is worth.  The last time I had a very small crack repaired on my fiddle it cost me $400 dollars, and I was given a very nice discount at that.  So my suggestion…learn the correct way to string the damn thing and save yourself a lot of hassle and a whole lot of money!

How to Correctly String a Fiddle 

Not only will this save your instrument from damage, but it will save you a ton of time and effort.

This is so easy…

1)  Start by removing the thickest string, which is your low G string. 

2)  Try not to create a double layer of string around the peg, keep it thin and wrap it in one layer beside each previous round.  This will prevent it from interfering with the A and D strings which are positioned higher.

3)  Once this string is secure, tune it close to where it needs to be.

4)  Proceed to the D string, and repeat this procedure from largest to smallest (G-D-A-E)

*Remember to perform a general retuning after each string.  This will help keep the bridge in the proper position as well as decreasing the chance of snapping a string with too much pressure.

Hope this helps…and Happy Fiddlin’

-Joe

The Notes You Should Never Play

The Silence Between Notes

This first bit of advice could quite possibly be the most important and valuable advice for any experience level, hence the reason I’m giving it ahead of my beginner lessons!  This advice was given to me by my friend Chris, who is a justifiably arrogant and amazingly talented guitarist.

"Always remember, the silence between the notes is just as important as the notes themselves.  You can convey more emotion and feeling through appropriately placed silence than you can from any combination of notes.  If you’re not absolutely sure that a note should be played and sure that you can play that note perfectly, then don’t play it.”

This advice is obviously for performing and improvising, not for practice…everyone makes mistakes in practice.  However, keeping this in mind will make you a much more consistent musician at every level.  It also forces you to pay much more attention to the other instruments you are interacting with.  You can play the fanciest lick in the world, but if you do it at the wrong time and  cover up the sacred silence then it still won’t be impressive!

I'll be posting some beginner tips and tricks very soon....

Happy Fiddlin',

-Joe