On Monday 09 July 2001 14:51, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
>
> Re "When learning a reel in A major with a fiddler"
>
> Many violinists/fiddlers have a common problem. There is a tendency to
> play certain notes out of tune, for example C#'s on the A and G strings;
> G#'s on the E and D strings are frequently played flat to correct pitch,
> C and G [naturals] on the A and E strings are played sharp,etc. This is
> due to the combination of those notes being physically difficult to
> execute in the early stages of learning to play the instrument and
> subsequent inattention to the need to listen with the consummate
> attention required to play precisely in tune.
I dunno.. in all honesty I find this assertion baffling. It goes without
saying, that beginner fiddlers often miss the pitch they're aiming for. But I
didn't think this thread was about beginners. And it seems to me that if
playing "out of tune" as you describe it (and I'm putting it in quotes
because I don't agree that the altered pitches in question are out of tune),
was a universal *fiddler* problem, it would turn up with *all* fiddlers,
regardless of the style being played. In other words it would be just as
prevalent among mature fiddlers specializing in bluegrass, contra etc. etc.
etc. (insert whatever fiddle tradition you like here), but it isn't. The
bluegrass and contra fiddlers around here in Connecticut and Massachusetts
stick to the tempered scale. So I can't concur that it's sloppy fiddling, at
least not among seasoned players.
There is a recording floating around, of Mary MacDonald playing MacLean's
Farewell to Oban, where she is hitting the C's and G's *exactly* between the
sharp and natural position (I tried playing along with this a few times
because I wanted to be sure I understood what I was hearing), and her tempo
is moderate enough that I could only assume she was hitting those pitches
deliberately. That recording happens to be one of the pipey-est pieces of
fiddling I've ever heard, bar none.
I would add from personal experience that although there are some notes I
find hard to reach, C# and G# on the A and E strings aren't among them. I'm
much more likely to miss the ones that require either a stretch or a tightly
curled finger (F natural or C on the A string, for example.)
It's interesting that you should mention listening as a criteria. On that I
couldn't agree more. It is something that I devote a great deal of time to,
and in fact it was only after 1000's of hours of listening to recordings of
Cape Breton fiddlers, particularly those of the last generation, that those
neutral notes started to surface in my playing.. :-)
Wendy
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