Hey all!  I wanted to drop you a brief note on fiddle contests.  Fiddle contests are a great way to get involved in the fiddling community, to practice your tunes with a purpose and motivation, and to experience the satisfaction you feel after conquering your nerves and getting up on stage to play.  There are fiddle contests organized by the local fiddle associations in almost every state. Generally a player has to play three tunes: a breakdown, a waltz, and a tune of choice, all within a 4 minute time limit.  Most contests don't allow hokum bowing or cross tuning.  Generally, judges prefer "contest style" tunes, meaning tunes drawn from the repertoire of Texas style fiddle players.  Some contests in the eastern part of the country favor more of an old-timey style and encourage appalachian style fiddling.

 

I recently competed in the National Old-Time Fiddlers Contest in Weiser, Idaho, and won 3rd place among Young Adults.  The Weiser contest has been running for over 50 years and is held at the local high school.  For an entire week, the high school is transformed into a campground where the best fiddle players in the world jam, hang out, and compete.  Recently, contest officials changed the format of the final championship round to a round robin format much like the contests in Texas.  While judges are usually sequestered and can't see the fiddlers while they play, for the round robin round the judges are sitting by the stage and actually make spontaneous requests of the fiddlers.  This last year, fiddlers were asked to play a hoedown that is not part of the traditional contest repertoire, to change the time signature of a common tune (for ex. play a waltz melody in a jig time signature), and to play a non-typical tune of choice (for ex. no rags were allowed, players had to play a Strashpsey or a blues, etc.)  This new format is much more entertaining for the audience and challenging for the players.  Before the round robin was introduced, players could prepare their rounds to perfection in advance.  This meant that players without depth of musical experience could win by simply practicing their 18 tunes, even if they didn't know any other tunes and couldn't improvise.  The round robin forces players out of their comfort zone, which really reveals how skilled and experienced a player they really are.

 

Other good contests include the Grand Masters in Nashville, Tennessee, held in conjunction with the IBMA festival, and the Fiddlers Frolics in Halletsville, Texas.  In fact, these contests are starting to draw better talent than the National Contest in Weiser, Idaho because they have better prize money.  The Fiddler's Frolics will also give you a taste of true Texas style fiddling.  In Halletsville, true Texas style is rewarded above mere perfection.

 

So go look up a local contest and make a plan to go.  Prepare three tunes, practice them to the best of your ability, get up on stage and let er' rip.  It's a scary challenge, but one that you will feel so good about once you've done it.  Later on, I'll be teaching Texas style and contest tunes, including Sally Johnson as played by Terry Morris and a waltz as played by Tristan Clarridge.  Stay tuned for those lessons, because they will probably have the greatest amount of style and bowing information!