Papa Vern Screech

And his not-so-funky fiddle. (With apologies to the esteemed Papa John Creach, fiddler extraordinaire with Jefferson Airplane/Starship. We are not worthy!)

Truth be told, I'm doing reasonably well for someone who's had about an hour of practice, but it's still sounding rather screechy. To move things along, I've invested in a few beginner's aids—a shoulder rest, high-quality rosin and fingerboard tape so I can at least screech in tune. The tape is to novice violinists what training wheels are to the budding cyclist. Eventually, when my fingers know where they're going, it can come off.

In the meantime, I could use a refresher on Lesson 1: How to Hold the Violin & Bow. Yes, like most online lessons, this is geared to young pups with conservatory ambitions. But I've come to learn that fiddlers and violinists alike find proper technique indispensable. Holding the thing correctly is a good start, yes?

The good news: I'm blessed with a keen ear, so I'm (painfully) aware when my intonation is out or my bow technique poor. The bad news: progress will likely be slow because I have little time to practice. My goal for now is major scales starting on the open strings (G, D and A)—fluidly, with correct intonation and, I hope, an ever-improving tone.

Having only played instruments that are fingered, plucked or picked, I must say the bow strikes me as pretty freaky. I'm unsure how tight it should be, the optimal pressure on the strings, the speed at which to bow and most crucially, the correct angles for each string. But all is not lost; these vexations and more are, I'm sure, covered on YouTube.

All that said, I sound better than I did when I first picked it up at the music store, and this after but one hour. Cool.

Fiddler on the Goof

You'll recall my quasi-bluegrass tune, "Year of No Tomorrow," in which I quoted the opening bars of Coltrane's A Love Supreme on my virtual keyboard fiddle. Upon further reflection I loved the part, but the tonal qualities of the patch were wanting. In short, it sounded like a cheesy keyboard fiddle. I tried EQ'ing and remixing, but no avail. So, guess who's bought himself a fiddle for his birthday? Yup. Mine is the blue one:

It's a Stentor student violin, it cost me under $200, and no, I don't know how to play it. Yet. But I'm confident I will eventually. You see, many birthdays ago, circa Grade 8, I played violin in school, and I recall that after the initial screechy period I was able to produce some quite musical sounds. As for how I'll learn, I won't be entirely on my own because these days, all the violin lessons a beginner could want are available online for free (hooray for YouTube; pity the out-of-work violin teachers).

Sure, I could have hauled in a professional to play the part, but I'd rather do it myself. It's a bit of a goof, a lark, a fun challenge. My neighbours will hate me, but hey, a practice mute should mollify them. And I don't envision my fiddle as a one-shot deal: I have my eyes on a dulcimer next, and armed with a dulcimer and  fiddle I'm seeing some lovely British folk music in my future.