Director - Golden Fiddle Awards Ltd
Martin Hayes (born 4 July 1962) is an Irish fiddler from County Clare. He is a member of the Irish-American supergroup The Gloaming.
This is a wonderful podcast featuring this incredible fiddler.
Check it out here…. from the Southern Star in West Cork UK
Here are some facts about the fiddle you might find interesting:
The ‘Digitaize’ system allows users to control virtual sounds from their fingerboard; to shape digital samples; and to visualise the movements of their instrument on a computer screen.
It was thought that a “support” post was first fitted in a central position and a connection made with the “pin hole” found in the back of some instruments but this does not seem to be valid.
It is not known when the soundpost was moved to its present position behind the treble foot of the bridge but musicians were very innovative at the time as indicated by the varying positions of the bridge.
This is a highly scientific article from UNSW and is tough going but a great read about a tiny piece of dowel and how important it is to stringed instruments….
Andrea Amati – Violin maker
(c. 1505 – 1577)
Known as the founding father of the violin, Andrea Amati appears to have been responsible for creating the definitive modern form of the instrument. His basic design was refined by later makers, particularly Stradivari, but in essence it remains unchanged today.
Details about Amati are scanty and largely derived from his instruments, of which few survive. He was sufficiently famous during his lifetime to be commissioned to make a set of decorated instruments for Charles IX of France. These included two sizes of violin, tenor violas and large cellos. His earliest instrument is thought to be from 1546, though that instrument has been lost. The earliest existing instrument from Andrea is dated 1564.
Amati’s two sons, Antonio and Girolamo, inherited the family workshop after his death in 1577, refining their father’s models and further establishing the great Cremonese tradition of violin making.
Throughout the years the violin bow has changed a lot and was subject to many developments. This eventually led to the bow you’ll likely have in your house right now
Unfortunately, few bows from the early days of violin making and playing were kept. It was much more usual to throw away a worn bow and replace it with a new one.
The elegant shape of the violin evolved over a period of 400 years, largely due to the influence of four prominent families of instrument makers, a new study finds.
The first violins were made in Italy in the 16th century. Stradivari, one of history’s most respected violin makers, lived in Cremona, in northern Italy, from 1644 to 1737. He crafted roughly 1,000 violins, including about 650 that have survived to this day. [In Images: Recreating a Legendary Stradivarius Violin]
WANT TO LEARN THE VIOLIN or FIDDLE
We have started a database of string teachers. For the moment only Brisbane but soon extending state wide and then nationally.
We need your help! If you know of teacher that would like a free listing here, let them know our email [email protected]. That way they can contact us and give us their details to add to our growing list.
The Heifetz International Music Institute has taken the bold step to innovate a Virtual Institute for Summer 2020, the first such action taken by a premier music program nationwide, the Institute announced in a news release.
In addition to creating a new paradigm in online training, the Institute will continue to connect students with its community of music lovers, supporters, and patrons both locally and worldwide, through Heifetz Rubato: The Virtual Concert Hall.
VALE CHARLIE DANIELS
Charlie Daniels, a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame who sang “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” recorded with Bob Dylan and was a vocal supporter of U.S. veterans, died Monday morning after suffering a hemorrhagic stroke. He was 83.
By the time the Charlie Daniels Band topped the charts with “Devil” in 1979, the instrumentalist, singer and songwriter had long established a remarkable, multifaceted career in Nashville. As a session musician, he played on three of Bob Dylan’s albums — including the revolutionary “Nashville Skyline” — as well as recordings for Ringo Starr and Leonard Cohen.
He was a fixture of the touring circuit for the next 40 years, became a tireless advocate for servicemen and women, and entered the information age as one of country music’s most outspoken conservative voices.