Casey Willis

Hi, Steve.

George has a good point. Having a good shoulder rest which raises the G string side of the instrument is a solid recommendation. I use Wolf Forte Secondo rests.

I’d also recommend doing a bunch of stretching before working on some G/D string exercises. You might also check out my technique tutorial on vibrato to see how I…[Read more]

Hi, Antonvon.

Are you asking if there’s a bluetooth looping pedal that would work with setting in/out points for the videos hosted on this site? That’s something I’ve never even considered, and I’m not sure what technology is out there that connects to a computer & would control a video player. Or are you asking about a pedal for live…[Read more]

I’ll ask him. A couple lessons currently out for his review.

Keep your chin up…

Hi, Joseph. It may be a pressure thing. You shouldn’t be gripping too hard – perhaps that’s the root cause? Also, make sure there is a little space between the bottom of the neck and the joint between your thumb and first finger.

Finally, I’d recommend doing 3+ minutes of hand stretching before and after you play…that could help, sir.

C

Thanks, George! Great to meet you, and it’s been a busy summer of gigging!

Hi, Kitegal/George.

George – you hit the nail on the head…it’s been a busy summer, coupled with backup scheduling issues. I do very much look forward to getting things back to production speed, hopefully soon. I know you’re not alone in wanting to see new tunes published…

Thanks for chiming in, George!

Hi, Krissa. Good for you for tackling the contest environment. Contests are great because they are good motivators…and they force you to decide on a specific set of tunes, notes, and bowings.

But as far as what specific tunes you should pick, I’d say start with what you know and bucket your bag of tunes into the three categories. Keep in…[Read more]

Norman Blake composed Cairo Waltz. This fact was unclear to me when I recorded the lesson, but many folks, Jay Ungar included, have set me straight. So I repeat; Cairo Waltz is a Norman Blake Composition.

C

Kevin Burke is a wealth of knowledge, and if you haven’t yet seen all of his technique tutorials, I would recommend checking them out: https://www.fiddlevideo.com/category/fiddle-technique-fiddle-lessons/irish-fiddling-techniqes/. I suspect that the bowing answers you seek are lightly hidden.

C

Thanks for posting, Ringlets. Patti is a wonderful person, and cancer sucks. Patti is such a giving person to the fiddle world. Anything we can send in return will help her out.

Hi! Sorry for the delay in response. A couple of technical items (mp3 downloads) we’re working through here.

I don’t have a specific date by which new Hanneke vids will be posted. We do have a guitar player lined up, but schedules are tight to get backing tracks recorded. If you would like, you can pause your membership until the new…[Read more]

Hi, Odile. We really only use the pickup to drive reverb on the fiddle for the lessons. The majority of the audio you hear is from a couple of Neumann TLM-103 microphones.

However, Megan said she uses a V-200 Fishman pickup…and has mixed thoughts on its tone.

All the best!

C

Ya, Mabish. Well put.

Hi, Gary. Great tune. I’ll put it on the list. I spoke with Michael a while back about joining the project, but he ended up not wanting to do it. It’s at least on the list for another instructor to possibly tackle in some future session.

Hi, Sonya. That’s one of the most beautiful waltzes out there. I’ve started to learn it several times but have never gotten to the finish line. But it’s definitely on my list to teach in some future recording session.

Very cool, Mabish. That dude is everywhere in Celtic music.

Another great cross tune…I’ll pitch it to Megan, Martin.

Hi, Paul. Added to the running list, sir! It’s kinda Texasy/swingy…maybe a Megan tune. Or Patti might know it. Cheers!