Champion Fiddler, Inspired Performer
I really can’t mention Soppin’ the Gravy without harkening back to the 80′s and Mark O’Connor‘s album. I totally wore that Album (Record) out. In more recent times, I really enjoy the way the Doug Fleener plays Soppin’ the Gravy. He’s got some great rhythmic bump to it. Sopping the Gravy according to Fiddler’s [...]
Star of the County Down is a beautiful old Celtic Tune. I would call it a waltz because it’s a 3/4 tune, but I’m guessing it’s really an Air. It doesn’t really feel like a dance tune to me. But, what do I know. It’s a pretty song, and while I haven’t really ever performed [...]
Grey Eagle is a great breakdown, but I haven’t always liked it. Really it wasn’t the tune I disliked, it was how a lot of the people who I had heard played it. It just seems like a breakdown that has been frequently played with lots of trills, and kind of flowery, which isn’t the [...]
It’s always fun to learn a new tune for Fiddle Tune a Day. And, today is one of those days. June Apple is a tune that I have heard a few times, but wasn’t one that I have really played before. So in the tradition of fiddling, I gave it a go, and I think [...]
I really like the way 49 Cats (in a B ends the phrases. To me, it is reminiscent of a cat howling. I had to pull up a recording of Orville Burns playing it to make sure that I played the B Part of it correctly. The A Part has a really distinctive melody with [...]
I don’t think I had even heard of Sarah Armstrong before last Saturday when Steve Eulberg suggested we play it at our Streetmosphere gig. He played it through once or twice and I joined in. The second time I played it was today for Fiddle Tune a Day. There’s nothing quite like living on the [...]
I picked up Lamplighter’s Hornpipe out of Cole’s 1000 Fiddle tunes a while back when I was reading through some tunes. I think it’s fun to play and it has a catchy melody. It’s not especially difficult, but it’s playful and gives you some room to play around with it. Lamplighter’s Hornpipe according [...]
I was playing a concert with Steve Eulberg, a pretty awesome dulcimer player (of both types of dulcimer), and he started playing this tune. I thought it was a cool enough tune to be my fiddle tune for today. I picked up the tune as we played it, but I didn’t know the name of [...]
It’s a great day for a new fiddle tune. With about 1 minute of learning/rehearsal time, I played Shove the Pig’s Foot a Little Further Into the Fire with Brittany Haas and Lauren Rioux. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to jam with those lovely ladies even for such a short time. Next time, we will have [...]
This morning, I had the opportunity to support KRFC – Fort Collins Public Radio by playing on the Air with Steve Eulberg (together we are known as Fiddle Whamdiddle). Since I had someone else to play with, I thought it was a perfect opportunity to play my fiddle tune a day. Steve suggested we play [...]
