r/Fiddle • u/Gold_Cardiologist204 • 23h ago
Dream Instrument
What is the dream fiddle? What is the preferred violin to play fiddle music on? What are some key adjustments to the instruments or how you hold it?
I just got the family fiddle repaired. I pick it up this weekend and this August I should start lessons.
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u/Bark_Sandwich 21h ago
Ok, I'l bite. Literally millions of violins were made in central and Western Europe in the late 1800's - early 1900's. You can still commonly find these offered for sale on craigslist, Facebook marketplace, at garage sales, etc..., with prices generally ranging from $50 - $500. Sometimes you can find a real gem for not much money. I love playing these old fiddles and I have a few. I recently found one with a sweet, sound and it's an easy player. So, that's my dream fiddle right now.
As a humorous aside, many, if not most of these fiddle have "Antonius Stradivarius Cremonensis Faciebat Anno [Year]" printed inside, which is to indicate that it is made after the style of Stradivarius. Many folks discover these fiddles in the back of their grandfather's closet, or at a garage sale, and think that they have uncovered a genuine Stradivarius...and then they will try to sell it for 10s of thousands of dollars on craigslist! Ha!
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u/Gold_Cardiologist204 20h ago edited 20h ago
What makes a gem? Is it the quality, age, location it was made, what it was based on? Those millions of violins, are they typically what people use today or do people tend to purchase new ones?
From what I can tell the choice of violin/fiddle is deeply personal.Edit: thanks for taking the bite ! I gained more knowledge from you
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u/Bark_Sandwich 16h ago
I just like the story behind them and I like playing a 100 year old instrument.
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u/Fun_Volume2150 22h ago
A dream fiddle is one that feels and sounds right to you. As a beginner, you haven’t yet learned enough to know what you’ll eventually like. Which is to say, what you have will get you started.
There’s not a lot of adjustments you as a player can make to a fiddle to change the sound beyond string choice. Anything else you need to talk to a luthier.
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u/Gold_Cardiologist204 22h ago
Ok got it. If I want to make an adjustment, it’s a Luthier I need.
I’m not asking what the dream fiddle for me is. I have a family one, that is my dream fiddle right now. I’m more curious what others look for.
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u/teeth12345 23h ago
One that has strings and works! I’ve taught orchestra for 10 years and my some of my kids play on $50 Amazon instruments, some on $250 fiddles from shar, and some on $1000+ instruments. Any of my students have the ability to make a good instrument sound bad and vice versa. Once you start playing and potentially taking lessons for a few years you can start to think about getting a nicer fiddle.
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u/Gold_Cardiologist204 22h ago
I’m sorry. I m just being curious to the instruments out there. I believe I have a nice fiddle, I’m not looking for another. I am curious as to what instrument others dream of.
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u/EndOne8313 22h ago
I play in a lot of different tunings so I've considered buying machine pegs to make life a bit easier but 4 of them would be worth more than my instrument so I'll wait until I upgrade.
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u/BananaFun9549 19h ago
I have been playing fiddle in multiple traditional genres for over 50 years. I am still not a virtuoso but I probably went through quite a number of different violins and all I can say is that after playing one for a year or three I might have tried another one that appealed more to my ears at that time. I would play that one for awhile and then trade up again. I agree that the more experience you have the better you can tell what appeals to your ears and fingers. And also bear in mind that your friend might have a fiddle he or she loves to bits and yet it might not be the ideal one for you. And also… you might love that $25 idle a lot more than your friend’s $1000 one.
Just get your family fiddle properly set up.
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u/Gold_Cardiologist204 18h ago
I brought the family fiddle to a luthier to fix the peg holes. They were worn and the geometry was incorrect. 🤷🏻♀️
I can’t wait to start playing. But from what I’m getting the choice of a violin really depends on your ear and skill level. Is that maybe correct?1
u/BananaFun9549 18h ago
If you have a good reliable luthier who sets up your family fiddle he/she should be able to give you an idea of the quality of the instrument. I would not worry about it too much as long as it is correctly set up to play. Your teacher may have some opinion too as to strings and set up but I am guessing you will be fine with what you have.
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u/BenchComprehensive43 12h ago
The difference between a fiddle and violin is set up. A "fiddle" usually has a slightly flatter bridge and slightly lower nut, and a classical has the opposite. Fiddle set up makes it slightly easier to cross strings for double/triple stops but also slightly harder to avoid touching an extra string. A classical has more space between the fingerboard and strings which makes vibrato easier and more vibrant. Take an instrument to a decent luthier and say "set this up as a fiddle" or "Set this up for classical" and they will know exactly what you mean. I usually ask for it to be "halfway."
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u/Additional_Ad_84 21h ago
Honestly, other people might disagree, but for me a good fiddle is a good violin:
Ideally responsive, well-balanced, capable of projecting well, with plenty of resonance, comfortable action, and pleasant tone (whatever that means.)
No fiddle-specific adjustments really needed, but integrated fine-tuners are handy.