I guess it's time to add an update here, I have been a little lax in keeping up the site. When last we met, I had just finished with the classes from Pima Community College and was starting into the Old Time Fiddle book by Wayne Erbsen.
I have pretty much worked through the book, at least the D tunes. I need to keep at them to get them smooth and up to speed, but am enjoying the experience. As usual, my work ethic lags and I don't do a lot of scale practice or technique work as I should. I tend to pick up the fiddle and start playing tunes. I usually work on several each time I play, but tend to concentrate on the ones that really interest me. Along with the book, I have found music and/or tab for several tunes, mostly waltzes or 3/4 time pieces like Tom Bigbee's Waltz, Lorena, Ashokan Farewell and Westphalia Waltz. It is interesting to attempt to play these from the notation and to figure out bowing for them.
Bowing will be my next big step, I think. The slower pieces force me to think about the stroke, because they have a lot of half-notes or longer and are played at a slower tempo, forcing me to consider how to get a nice, long, smooth sound from one bowstroke. I am still at the stage where I get a fair amount of unwanted noises from this.
Fiddling is fun, and I think a little addictive, just as the guitar and banjo are! My goal is to be able to add the fiddle to my live playing within the next year - we'll see!
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