The article Thicker'n Fiddlers in Hell has moved!
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©2009 by Wayne Erbsen
Throughout its long and spicy history, the fiddle has been both loved and loathed. In early frontier days fiddlers were held in the highest esteem, even above doctors, lawyers, and politicians. It was a lone fiddler who held sway at community dances, which were the most popular form of entertainment in early America. Without the fiddler, there simply was no dance. A pioneer community that could boast having a fiddler was the envy of all, and a skilled fiddler was always in demand to play for community gatherings, such as barn dances, log rollings, cornshuckings and bean stringings. Fiddle contests existed as early as 1736, when fiddlers in Hanover County, Virginia, competed against each other with the winner taking home a fine violin.
Read the Full "Thicker'n Fiddlers in Hell Article on our updated website >
Parts of this article are taken from the book
Old-Time Fiddle for the Complete Ignoramus! by Wayne Erbsen,
available from us at Native Ground Books & Music, 109 Bell Road,
Asheville, NC 28805, (828) 299-7031.
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