I remember hearing a story that Chief Sitting Bull was the first fiddle tune that Benny Thomasson taught to Mark O’Connor. I don’t know if this is a true story, but I would bet that Mark O’Connor could verify this for me.
It’s a fun tune to play and I have definitely heard Mark play it more than once. It was on his Appalachian Waltz album with Edgar Meyer and Yo Yo Ma.
I’m playing it tonight here at the Huntsville, AL airport because my plane was delayed. It was supposed to leave for Denver at 3:15, but it will instead be leaving at 9:30, and if my calculations are correct, that will put me home after the day is done. AND, my rule for Fiddle Tune a Day is that I MUST record a new tune every day, so here it is!
Chief Sitting Bull according to Fiddler’s Companion
CHIEF SITTING BULL. AKA and see “Big Chief Sitting Bull,” “Big Chief Sitting in the Rain,” “Hell Among the Moonshiners.” Old-Time, Breakdown. C Major (‘A’ part), C Minor (‘B’ part) & G Major (‘C’ part). Standard tuning. AA’BB’CC’A”A”. Source for notated version: Dale Morris and Gary Lee Moore [Phillips]. Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes), 1994; pg. 48.
NOTE FROM VI: This is definitely a very different tune than the one I call Hell Among the Moonshiners.
I have been listening to your “tune -a -day” and have enjoyed it and look forward to each instalment. This is to let you know that your efforts are appreciated. I am a fellow fiddler as well.
William Bechard
Thanks for being a part of this journey, William!
It's interesting that you were able to find a time/place that wasn't crawling with people and didn't have frequent (and annoying) P.A. announcements. I just got home from a gig in NC (non-musical gig; I teach C++ programming classes), and both airports each way would have been nearly impossible. Would have been easier to do a video on the plane! However, I did without my fiddle on this last trip.
The sound on this video was better than some of the other FTAD videos. I was surprised, because the spoken intro was a little bit hard for me to understand. I usually do my videos using a lapel mic, which helps lose the background noise. (I got a bunch of reasonably good lapel mics on Amazon for less than $3 each.)
I'm assuming that you took the fiddle as a carry-on. Do you have a special carry-on case for it? These days, the carry-on size restrictions are so small that I don't think I could get a fiddle into one of those sizing bins even without a case! Which is one reason I'm seriously considering driving instead of flying from Dallas to Orlando next month.
It's interesting that you were able to find a time/place that wasn't crawling with people and didn't have frequent (and annoying) P.A. announcements. I just got home from a gig in NC (non-musical gig; I teach C++ programming classes), and both airports each way would have been nearly impossible. Would have been easier to do a video on the plane! However, I did without my fiddle on this last trip.
The sound on this video was better than some of the other FTAD videos. I was surprised, because the spoken intro was a little bit hard for me to understand. I usually do my videos using a lapel mic, which helps lose the background noise. (I got a bunch of reasonably good lapel mics on Amazon for less than $3 each.)
I'm assuming that you took the fiddle as a carry-on. Do you have a special carry-on case for it? These days, the carry-on size restrictions are so small that I don't think I could get a fiddle into one of those sizing bins even without a case! Which is one reason I'm seriously considering driving instead of flying from Dallas to Orlando next month.
Wonderful musical performance !
Thanks, Michael.
Can’t get thru the day without my fiddletune – you’re beginning to feel like an old friend who drops by every morning! Thanks for such creative use of airport wait time.
Thanks, George. That’s one of the best comments I have received. Thanks for welcoming me into your house each day. This isn’t the first time I have played a few tunes while I was delayed at an airport. 🙂
Vi
I like to fly southwest. They haven't given me any hassles about bringing my fiddle as carry-on ever.
The reason that the airport was so quiet is that it was getting pretty late and there weren't many people left in the airport. I think it was about 8:45pm when I recorded it. 🙂
Getting the right mix for easy portable recording is a challenge, but the technology keeps getting better.
Thanks,
Vi "The Fiddler" Wickam