Mandolin to fiddle

[Bitterroot]

I was just curious how many mandolin players after being told that the mandolin and the fiddle had the same fingering how many have tried the fiddle? Did you have success or did your bow work send the animals and family running to the hills?

[bradeinhorn]

sadly, the latter.

[Alex Fields]

I played fiddle before I played mandolin and while I've converted and am now primarily a mandolinist, that meant I didn't have that problem. The reverse actually, as the first few times I tried a mandolin I gave it up because I thought picking was freakin impossible. Ironically my right hand technique is now considerably better than left (I think I have good left hand too but I'm really proud of my right hand, and a lot of other mandolin players I know have told me basically the same thing), go figure. Seems to be easier to go fiddle > mandolin than mandolin > fiddle because of intonation problems when you're used to mandolin.

Possibly my fiddle work still sends folks running though haha. I used to have a dog who would howl and yelp every time I played fiddle so maybe there's a message forme there. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[farmerjones]

i picked up a mandolin about a month after taking up the fiddle. They seem to compliment each other. i wouldn't discourage getting either one or both.

[TeleMark]

The few times I've picked up a fiddle, it was, well, disappointing. My sound can best be described as "someone sawing through a screen door with a cat." I've decided it's better to be mediocre at fewer instruments.

A fiddler I used to jam with told me that fiddle was maddening. He commented that he could play for a couple hours and start feeling like he was making progress. He'd put the fiddle down to get a cup of coffee, and when he picked it up again, it was as if he'd never played one before in his life. I don't need that type of pain. Neither does my wife or our pets!

[catmandu2]

While there are many similarities between mando and fiddle, there are as many dissimilarities. They are two different instruments: fiddle is one of the more difficult instruments, while mando, really, is one of the easier. I've played both for ~15 years. On a good day, fiddle is the most expressive of instruments; good tone and intonation comes easily. Some days, it just isn't there, though. This doesn't occur with mando.

The bowed instruments are difficult--probably because they respond to nuance and are capable of great expression, both good and bad http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif . As a double bass player, playing fiddle helps me: principles of bowing are similar and transpose, to some extent.

[olgraypat]

While I'm no great fiddle player, I've at least progressed to the point of playing in church with no great complaints. I would recommend trying it, it should help with your mando playing, but I agree that fiddle to mando would be a lot easier.

[wildpikr]

I've been working on a fiddle also - what an eye opening ear splitter it was at first! Intonation is a challenge but it gives a kind of "sliding-for-the-note bluesy effect". http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif Bowing is the real challenge - trying to get tone is only half of the struggle...everything is not a continuous succession of saw strokes, or is it? Right now I think I sound a little better than a hungry pig...anyway, for now I keep the "fiddling" to the confines of the house and try to keep it fun.

[Jack Roberts]

After playing mandolin for several years, someone here on the mandolin cafe traded a used fiddle for one of my used mandolins, so 6 months ago I started playing fiddle. Fiddle is as much fun as the mandolin, but most of the music I play it is quite a bit easier to play on the mandolin than the fiddle. The fingering of the left hand is only part of the challenge (no frets): any bowing other than sawing back and forth takes a lot of practice to get right. When I first started playing fiddle, every time I picked it up doors would slam shut in the house. Now after several months of lessons, my son's 16 year old girlfriend came in my music room just to listen to me practicing an Irish fiddle tune. (My son doesn't want me practicing when his friends were over, but I find it a good way to keep them out of the house.)

Playing the fiddle makes me a better mandolin player. Only advice I can give is if you are going to learn fiddle, spend some money on lessons. The fiddle lessons will help on mandolin, too.

YMMV

[Dan Cohen]

I picked up the fiddle at 50 after some years of mandolin playing. At first I progressed well but when I expected it to sound real well I gave up. I'll stick with the mando since I can reach greater heights in my remaining time on earth.

It definitely was the bowing that got to me. Luckily I didn't have a cat at the time but my family sure appreciates that I stopped.

[JeffD]

Playing the fiddle makes me a better mandolin player. #Only advice I can give is if you are going to learn fiddle, spend a some money on lessons. #The fiddle lessons will help on mandolin, too. #
Very true.

[Jack Roberts]

I picked up the fiddle at 50 after some years of mandolin playing. At first I progressed well but when I expected it to sound real well I gave up. I'll stick with the mando since I can reach greater heights in my remaining time on earth.

It definitely was the bowing that got to me. Luckily I didn't have a cat at the time but my family sure appreciates that I stopped.
I feel your pain. I'm 53 and have been told it is useless to try to learn violin as an adult. Fortunately, I am not trying to get good at fiddle. I'm just trying to have fun and improve my mandolin playing.

I told my fiddle teacher I was not interested in learning any new tunes, I just want to improve the quality of the sound. Now I do nothing but bowing etudes from out of a classical method book. I bow for a half hour at a time and then I pick up my mandolin and loosen up again.

[ApK]

I just started learning fiddle not too long ago, and was pleased to find that it was not quite as difficult as I thought it was going to be to get started. #Though clearly it's among the harder instruments to get really good on, with some sound technique and practice you can be making music-like sounds in no time at all.
A good teacher helps even just for one or two lessons at the very beginning. #Sound violin foundations make for good fiddling.
I only picked up a mandolin after starting fiddle, because I figured it would give me another outlet for fiddle tunes I'm learning. #And it has.
I heartily recommend giving fiddle a go. #And mando and fiddle make a great pair to learn.

ApK

[bikebum]

I'd like to try the violin/fiddle but due to a shoulder injury I can't hold my arm extended out to support the neck. Might be a way to support my arm against my body like I do with the mandolin. I don't have access to one to find out.

Oh well, the cats have just started hanging around and becoming friendly again. Don't need to drive them off.

Jerry

[rap1]

Well I decided to try fiddle about three or four years ago. #It's been extremely challenging but I think it's helped me in several ways including improving my ear and improving my undedrstanding of the mandolin. #Mastering the bow is the most difficult aspect by far. #Playing in tune is mostly a muscle memory and ear thing. #Lessons are extremely helpful. #The goal in the beginning is to develop the proper technique so in my opinion is doesn't matter if your lessons are with a classical violinist or a fiddler. #One thing that helped me was to do scales slowly with the intent of working on the bowing all the while keeping my tuner on and checking to see if I was in tune. #This really helped develop my ear and my bowing technique together.

[Elliot Luber]

I played violin for many years, but it normally takes three or four to get any tone out of it whatsoever, so if you're switching from mando to fiddle, don't expect to play in tune overnight. Going the other way was much easier.

[Ted Eschliman]

Same here, Shayne. Blaming the daughter (http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=15663041)!...

[niaflsbob]

i started playing fiddle about 4 years ago after playing guitar and mando for many years. i play every tuesday night with some local boys, one of whom is a pretty fair fiddle player. i found the basic left hand noting to be close enough to be able to find the melody notes without much problem. however getting the exact intonation took a lot practice. it is critical to get the fiddle tuned exact. this of course helps improve your ear forother instruments. bowing isa matter of going slowly and not rushing. again a lot of practice, especially the basic stuff. i still like to take a fast tune (ex:fire on the mountain) and slow it down a lot and work to get every note right. sounds easy, but getting every slide and pull off exact is a great way to practice. when i try to learn from sheet music again i go slow and work every note. no short cuts. its amazing how much is in some of those old tunes when you learn the note for note. and lastly, i have found that this method greatly helps my manodlin playing. we played "june apple" last night i was showing the fiddle player notes that he didn't have in the tune.

[Dan Cohen]

oh yeah and it hurt my chin too.

[surfandstrum]

Out of curiosity and forgive me because I didn't look for past threads (I've seen some people get reprimanded for that)...but what is the price ranges of beginner/intermediate fiddles? And what are reputable brands in case I wanted to try and do the switch?

[catmandu2]

By and large, "brands" do not carry in violin family instruments; there are many good, vintage "no label" instruments from all over Eurpoe and Asia. There are abundant cheap, new MIC violins all over the net. Many of these are fine after being set-up--especially for one to saw on to get some feel for bowing.

If you know what to look for, you can easily score a good student violin on ebay for ~$100: Roth, Knilling, Glaesel, Lewis, et al. I recommend going to the local band/orchestra rental place and simply asking them to set you up with something around $150.

[Tim2723]

I've been playing fiddle for a year now. #I thought it would be easier than it is. #I fell for the old "they're-both-tuned-the-same-so-the-notes-are-in-the-same-places" routine.

I sound like somebody killing a seagull with a bagpipe.

[hellindc]

I've played guitar since 6th grade and mando about 9 years. I'm 59, and I just started playing four months ago. I've found it challenging but t as difficult as some folks are making out here. And it's gotten me back to reading music after I got dependent on tabliture. I'm practicing mostly fiddle tunes and a couple standards (Anytime, I Can't Give You
Anything but Love), ad the variety helps keep me going. I'm hoping by next summer to be able to use fiddle on a couple tunes in my band.

Try playing some blues, if you're frustrated, especially something in G. It's generally slower than bluegrass, has lots of room for fills, and, as on mando, is a fairly easy key. More fun.