RECOMMENDATIONS FOR OBTAINING AN INSTRUMENT
For fiddles, we highly recommend that you first visit Vermont Violins in South Burlington, if you don’t already have an instrument, and consider their rental program. Their instruments are consistenly high quality and they offer a rent to own program. This is especially recommended for children since they will be going through different sizes as they grow. Renting also gives you the option to opt out before spending too much money if you or your child decide playing the fiddle isn’t for you. We think you’ll opt in, though!!
We DO NOT recommend buying a fiddle (or other instrument) online without checking with us first. There are many, many very unfit instruments out there and chances are you would have to spend as much in upgrading to make it functional and not save any money in the meantime. Please check with Sarah or John before purchasing anything online if that is the way you prefer to go. We can help you make a safe choice.
Sarah has several openback banjos available for rental for her established students and John has a few loaner fiddles to get his students started. Check with us to see what our inventory is before you make a purchase or establish a rental.
TOOLS FOR SARAH’S FIDDLE STUDENTS
Below I have listed a few of the most popular products that my fiddle students like to use. The images are linked to a place to make the purchase if you do not get these at the violin shop when you pick up your violin on the first day. Sheet music books are not necessary at first. Once we have met for a few lessons we will decide if you would do well with a book or not. Fiddling is taught mostly by ear so we will be putting together a notebook that is tailored to your experience. I have included some of these links for future reference so that parents or students can quickly find my favorite products. Whenever I can, I have linked to the Vermont Violins website so that you can support our local business.
For my beginning fiddle students, I recommend starting with this economical shaped pad. At a later time, we will select the best fit for a more expensive shoulder rest, but this will get you started. It's possible you won't need anything else.
For my more experienced fiddlers or adults I recommend Gustave Bernadel rosin. If you are just beginning, the rosin that the shop sells with their rentals is a good start. They also have a fun clear rosin for children that makes a great gift after they have played for a while!
I usually don’t need to use a beginner’s book for my youngest fiddle students, but for older youths and adults, I find this to be the best so far. The pictures are very clear, and it teaches you to read music in a sensible way. The technique presented is useful for fiddlers and classical violinists alike.
If you are going to have only one fiddle tune book in your collection, I recommend the Portland collection. These collections present a variety of tunes from different genres and are laid out very well for practicing reading music. It is best to use it as a resource but still learn the tune primarily by ear. I find myself going to this one time and time again!
Upon occasion my fiddle students want to play music from their favorite movies. Alfred Music and Hal Leonard Music put out the best selection of violin solo books to choose from. Favorites include Harry Potter, Star Wars, Sound of Music, Frozen, The Wizard of Oz, and more. I recommend you check with me to be sure this is something that would be a good fit for you or your child before you make the purchase. I have included the links below to both the companies because you can get an idea what they have made, but you can purchase many of these at other sites or locally. Look up their music for strings section and then filter by violin; movies; play alongs to see what is available.
www.alfred.com
www.halleonard.com