G
erry Hale from the Guitar Gallery advises that they now run regular monthly workshops.
The Guitar Gallery is located at 30 Johnston St, Fitzroy, and specialises in acoustic instruments. The focus of the shop has broadened to include a great selection of banjos, mandolins, and Dobros as well as guitars. The Guitar Gallery is owned and staffed by musicians who also run a range of workshops and take classes and lessons in guitar, banjo, Dobro, mandolin in various styles such as Irish and bluegrass.
The tutors have many years of experience as performers and teachers of their chosen instruments. They create a warm and encouraging environment for students, from beginners to advanced.
Workshops run on Wednesday nights 7:00pm to 9:00pm:
- the first Wednesday is always banjo workshop
- the second Wednesday is always mandolin
- the third Wednesday is always Dobro
- the fourth Wednesday is usually either fiddle or guitar
Missouri Fiddle Tunes Volume 1 & 2 – Fast & Slow for Learning
News from Charlies Walden this morning is that he has written two new fiddle books to accompany his recordings of Missouri Fiddle Tunes – Vol. 1 & 2 Fast & Slow for Learning.
The book contains a transcription of all 64 tunes from the CDs. The original recording has been around for nearly 20 years.
Many of my students have used it as a guide to building repertoire and technique in playing Show-Me style fiddling. I’ve always contended that anyone who wants to fiddle should school themselves in the “standards” and many of these are presented herein. These transcriptions are provided as an additional aid in learning the tunes from the recordings. Anyone who notes differences between the recordings and the transcriptions should be patted on the back for being an active and attentive listener.
The book is available at www.lulu.com and best of all for my Australian pals is that it can be downloaded – less expensive and zero shipping cost. Just enter ‘Charlie Walden’ into the search, at Lulu and it will come up.
Also, the CDs are available as downloads from www.cdbaby.com - Charlie “Possum” Walden.
The books contain standard musical notation including chords as well as mandolin tablature for each tune.
Charlie has included his own comments on the origins of these tunes along with alternative sources of recordings and tanscriptions. there is also a list of other recordings and books which might prove useful in learning more great Missouri fiddle tunes.
Charlie Walden has advised us of the release of two classic volumes of Missouri/Midwestern fiddle tunes that have been reissued by University of Missouri Press.
The Old Time Fiddlers Repertory (Vol. 1 & 2), compiled and edited by R. P. Christeson, are now available in a new paperback spiral bound format.
In the first volume Christeson presents the scores for traditional tunes as played by thirty-three different fiddlers from nine states. Many of the tunes, divided into categories of breakdowns, waltzes, quadrilles, and pieces that have never been published nor appeared on commercial recordings.
In the second volume the scores are again arranged by musical type: breakdowns, organized by key; quadrilles, which some folks call jigs; miscellaneous pieces; and waltzes.
Most of these tunes are from Missouri, fitting because the state is a leader in old-time fiddling, with numerous contests and active local associations promoting the music. Both volumes of The Old-Time Fiddler’s Repertory are outstanding collections in an attractive and useful form.
The Old Time Fiddlers Repertory Vol. 1
The Old Time Fiddlers Repertory Vol. 2
News from The Daily Telegraph this week
On a flight from Brisbane to Canberra this week an Australian musician’s prized violin was damaged after Qantas staff refused to let her carry her instrument on board as hand luggage. Emma Dean instead had to put the violin, which she has used for 14 years, in the baggage hold, where it was badly damaged.
Emma was boarding a plane to Canberra this week when staff ordered her to hand over her delicate instrument.
Never have I been banned from taking my violin on a plane. They didn’t give me bubblewrap or another case to put it in but just said I had to put it down below with the other luggage or I wasn’t getting aboard - Emma Dean.
Read the full article in The Daily Telegraph
News from Donal Baylor is that he will be presenting a fiddle workshop in Melbourne next month that might be of interest.
The workshop is at Fancy Yourself Fiddling located at 316 Park St., Carlton. The workshop will run from 2:00pm to 5:00pm on Saturday 13th March.
Workshop space is limited to a maximum of six students participating. The workshop fee is $60. If you are interested you can contact Sean Kenan on Phone: (03) 9380 5643 or email: seankenan@hotmail.com.
Sean is a great fiddle teacher for anyone in the Melbourne area. He is particularly good with adults who want to take up the instrument. Here’s a link to a recent article in The Age about him and his success with students. The Age Newspaper link
Country music star Dolly Parton recently received the Dr. Perry F. Harris Award.
The Grand Master Fiddler Championship. Inc. presents the honor to individuals who have had a lasting impact on the fiddling art form. The award is named for the late Grand Master Fiddler Championship founder Perry Felton Harris, M.D., D.D.S, Colonel U.S.A.F., who convinced the Grand Ole Opry’s E.W. Bud Wendell that the organization needed a fiddle contest.
His son Howard Harris serves as president for the non-profit. His late father gathered Howdy Forrester, Roy Acuff, Johnny Gimble and others together to come up with a list of those to be invited to compete in the first Grand Master to be held in June 1972.
The first contest was held in the parking lot of Opryland USA, now Opry Mills, under a tent since the park was not ready for visitors. Vernon Solomon of Texas was crowned champion and appeared with Roy Acuff on his live radio show that Saturday night. Thus, began a tradition of the Champion playing the Saturday night Opry that continues today.
Ms. Dolly has been associated with the Grand Master Fiddler Championship since it’s beginning in 1972. Dolly has been consistent in her support of fiddling for over forty-years and former Grand Master champions have played in her band and on her CDs all along the way; most notably Mark O’Connor and Jimmy Mattingly. We are grateful for Dolly’s support and look forward to many more years of her producing fine music. Howard Harris.
The contest was held in Opryland from 1972 through 1997 with the preliminaries held in the historic Ryman Auditorium. The organization now hosts the annual event each year as part of the International Bluegrass Music Association Bluegrass Fan Fest in Nashville, Tenn. welcoming fiddlers from around the world wishing to gain the world’s highest fiddling honor.
For more info, visit www.grandmasterfiddler.com.
Scientists Claim to Have Unlocked Stradivarius’ Secret.
It has long been suspected that the beauty of a Stradivarius violin was skin-deep, with its gleaming lacquer responsible for the instrument’s supreme, bright sound. Not so.
After years of examining fragments of varnish taken from Stradivarius’ instruments, scientists have ruled out any secret ingredient as the key to the superb timbre of his many instruments. They reveal that Antonio Stradivari (1644-1737) applied two simple products in his workshop in northern Italy, oil and pine resin.
Read the full story in the Australian Online.
erry Hale from the Guitar Gallery advises that they now run regular monthly workshops.
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