In the summers of 2001-02, I held a sabbatical to study American fiddling styles, particularly those found in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.   I attended a number of fiddling events:  festivals, camps, gatherings, and workshops, and collected sound recordings and videos at each event.   They covered a wide variety of fiddling styles found in North America, including Scandinavian, Scottish, Irish, Old Time, and Contest Fiddling.  I made a chart that compares these styles.  Especially important was my study of the Samuel P. Bayard Collection at Penn State University.  Bayard recorded fiddlers in Western Pennsylvania from 1948 to 1963.  I thank Indiana University of Pennsylvania, the Dean of Libraries and the Provost for their support of my Sabbatical.  It was by far the most enriching experience of my professional career.

Here is a brief summary of each of the events I attended, with links to their current web-sites:

“The Vandalia Gathering,” Charleston, WV May 25-27, 2001.

Held at the State Capitol each Memorial Day weekend, this festival showcased the folk talents of West Virginia.  It included contests open only to West Virginia residents: two fiddle contests (for Seniors over age 65, and an “Open” division), and contests for guitar flatpicking, banjo and mountain dulcimer.  In addition, there were three formal evening concerts that featured winners from each contest as well as other outstanding West Virginia folk musicians.

“The West Virginia State Folk Festival,” Glenville, WV June 21-23, 2001.

This is one of the oldest (since 1950) continuously running folk festivals in the United States.  Held in the central West Virginia village of Glenville (pop. 2000), home to Glenville State College, the festival was begun by Professor Patrick Gainer as a folklore class project.  It featured two fiddle contests (over age 50 and under age 50), two banjo contests, and workshops on old-time fiddle playing, banjo, mountain dulcimer, ballad and hymn singing.  There was a large old-time square dance each evening in the center of town and a worship service on Sunday morning. In addition, they featured Appalachian crafts and foods.

“The Pennsylvania State Old Time Fiddle Competition,” Brookville, PA June 23, 2001.

This is the only “official” state fiddler’s contest in Pennsylvania.  The winners are invited to go on to the National contest in Weiser, Idaho.  Kim Thomas of Sigel, PA, who won a number of contests in previous years and has a substantial fiddle studio, has organized the contest in recent years.  In conjunction with the annual Tom Mix Festival, the fiddle contest is held in the Paul G. Reitz Theater in downtown DuBois, PA.  There are four divisions: junior, teen, adult and senior. The rules were the same as for the national contest.

“Nordic Fiddles and Feet” Buffalo Gap, WV June 30-July 7, 2001

This weeklong camp concentrated on Swedish and Norwegian music and dance.  There were approximately 100 dancers and 25 musicians in attendance.  Live music and dance began each morning at 9:00 a.m. and lasted continuously until the early morning hours the next day.  I observed lessons in Norwegian hardingfele, Swedish nyckelharppa, munnharppa (Jew’s Harp) as well as traditional standard Scandinavian fiddle styles.  The instructors were some of the best Scandinavian players in North America, together with outstanding instructors from Norway and Sweden.  See my Scandinavian Fiddling Resources.

“Celtic Week” at the Swannanoa Gathering, Swannanoa, NC July 8-14, 2001

This weeklong camp, held at Warren Wilson College, included daily courses in traditional Scottish and Irish music.  The instructors were among the best Celtic players in North America.  I personally took courses from Scottish fiddler Laura Risk (Boston), and Irish fiddlers Dale Russ (Seattle), Brian Conway (New York), and Brendan Bulger (Chicago).  Each evening featured a different concert with the outstanding faculty, and then jam sessions into the early morning hours.

"Appalachian String Band Music Festival” Clifftop, WV August 2-5, 2001.

This is one of the largest “old time” music events in the country.  Perhaps the best way to describe it is “a hillbilly Woodstock.”  Several thousand people gather at Camp Washington-Carver near the village of Clifftop, WV for three days of camping, jamming, and contests.  The jamming went on at various camps 24 hours a day!  The fiddle contest had more than 80 entrants, who played through three rounds to determine the top five winners.  There were also contests for old time banjo, traditional bands, non-traditional bands, and flat-foot dancing.  There were concerts, workshops, crafts, and an old-time square dance each evening.

“Old Time Week” Augusta Heritage Center, Elkins, WV Aug. 6-11, 2001.

The Augusta Heritage Center at Davis and Elkins College is the oldest and largest sponsor of summer folk music workshops in the country.  I attended the “Old Time Week” which featured an outstanding faculty of the leading regional and national old time musicians.  I took the weeklong masterclass with Bruce Molsky, a virtuoso Southern style old-time fiddler.  In addition, I was able to take a number of “mini-classes” in Cajun fiddling, Swing fiddling, and Jug-Band music.  The outstanding faculty gave a concert each evening and there were many jams into the early morning hours.  The week culminated with the Augusta Festival, which brought together the finest old time musicians in the region.

“The Cook Forest Folk Music Gathering” Cook Forest, PA September 7-9, 2001

This weekend festival, founded as a Dulcimer Festival, has grown to include some of the best folk musicians in the country.  There were workshops throughout the day on various folk music topics.  I took workshops with George Wilson, an outstanding Northern style fiddler from Wynantskill, NY.  There were two evening concerts held at Clarion University of PA, and a final Sunday afternoon concert at Cook Forest.

‘The Clarion Folk College” Clarion, PA May 17-19, 2002.

This weekend festival is held annually on the campus of Clarion University of Pennsylvania.  Like the “Folk Music Gathering” in the fall, this spring event features a number of quality workshops, jams, and concerts.  I took workshops with Barry Mitterhoff, one of the top mandolinists in the country, as well as Jason Cade, superb Irish fiddler from the group Cucanandy.  There were great concerts each evening and jams sessions into the early morning hours.

"National Fiddlers Contest and Festival," Weiser, ID June 17-22, 2002

This is the largest and most prestigious fiddle event in the United States.  There were more than 300 fiddlers who competed in eight categories:  Small Fry, Junior-Junior, Junior, Young Adult, Adult, Senior, Senior-Senior, and Grand National.  Each category went through at least four rounds of competition; the Grand National category had seven rounds!   Only the winners advanced to subsequent rounds until the top five were awarded in each category.  Each performer was limited to playing three tunes (a hoedown or reel, a waltz, and a tune of choice) within four minutes.  Even with that strict time limit, the competition lasted from 8 am to well past 11 pm M-F.  Saturday was reserved for the Grand National final rounds and it wasn’t decided until past midnight!  Between the rounds there was a variety of entertainment featuring the fiddle.  I was lucky enough to attend the 50^th anniversary of this event, and they brought back many of the past winners, most notably Mark O’Connor who is recognized as one of the best competition fiddlers of all time.  This event featured the very best in competition fiddling in North America.

“The Festival of American Fiddle Tunes” Port Townsend, WA, June 30-July 7, 2002.

This festival and weeklong series of workshops is unique in that it combines a number of fiddle styles found in North America.  The 2002 Festival featured Southern old-time, Bluegrass, Irish, Scottish, Cajun, Northern Maritime, French Canadian, and even Mexican fiddling.  Students were allowed to move to different classes as they wished.  In addition to the workshops, there were formal concerts each evening.  The concerts over the Fourth of July weekend drew more that 5000 people for each performance!

“Scottish National Fiddle Contest” Mt. Vernon, WA July 13, 2002

Held in conjunction with the Skagit Valley Highland Games, this is the official national contest in Scottish fiddling sanctioned by the “Scottish Fiddling Revival (SFIRE)” Organization. Each fiddler is required to play a “set” of three tunes: an aire or march, followed by a strathspey and reel.

“Scottish Fiddle Contest” Ligonier Highland Games, Ligonier, PA  Sept.7, 2002.

This is a significant regional competition that happens in conjunction with the Ligonier Highland Games.  The morning featured two classes with the master Scottish fiddler Calum Mackinnon from Seattle, WA.  In the afternoon, seventeen fiddlers competed in open and novice classes, with the same rules as the National Contest.

Web-site created and maintained by Carl Rahkonen.  © 2003-   Last modified 9/13/07
Comments and/or suggestions may be e-mailed to: rahkonen@.iup.edu.
Space is provided for this site by Indiana University of Pennsylvania,
which assumes no responsibility for its contents.  Please read the official disclaimer.
URL=http://www.people.iup.edu/rahkonen/Fiddling/Fiddling.htm