SAVAGE FIDDLER METHOD BOOK AND ONLINE LESSON METHOD

SAVAGE FIDDLER METHOD BOOK AND ONLINE LESSON METHOD
BY ANNIE SAVAGE
No Label, No Number. (www.savagefiddler.com)

This books compliments the many files found on Annie Savage’s website. There was no password included with this book, so the opportunity to view the online tools was not fully realized. Each tune is taught with the following steps. A “Tech Check” is used to unlock the techniques that the tune embodies and as a warmup to playing the tune. It is also to be used as a pathway to variations on the tune. Then she teaches the lead or the melody of the tune, then a backup to the tune that provides a feeling for the chord changes in the tune. Harmony and twin fiddle lines are supplied along with an idea of how one might take a break on the tune.

Starting with the tune that everyone seems to start with, “Boil Them Cabbage Down,” this methodology is applied to each tune. This is followed by progressively more complex tunes. Blues scales are addressed, and notes are found along the way regarding practice tips and tips for playing out. Fairly rapidly, the student is introduced to some fiddle tunes quite popular in bluegrass, using the third position and lots of work with double stops.

Savage says her fiddle guru is Blaine Sprouse. Her approach teaches a lot of information in a short time. With diligence, the budding fiddler could well learn a lot in that short time. One could go through the book several times learning the leads, then the backup, and finally the breaks for each tune. Of course, along the way, it would behoove the user of this book to keep their ears and eyes open to all fiddlers they can find in order to see how others do it and gain insight for their fiddle journey.RCB