Violin and fiddle: a comparison of styles between traditional schools of violin and folk music

This paper presents a comparison between the styles of classical violin and folk music fiddling. There are many influential classical violin teachers, like Ivan Galamian, Dorothy DeLay, Leopold Auer, Shinichi Suzuki, Joseph Joachim, and Otakar Sevčik. The violin and fiddle are taught in different ways; in folk music, the violin is called the fiddle and is rarely taught using Western music notation. Instead, musicians learn the music aurally. Though the instrument itself is not different, the techniques in which it is played between styles is very different. The bow hold, tuning system, and sound of the music is distinct between classical and folk music. However, there are some musicians today that are combining the two styles, like violinist Augustin Hadelich. Though the styles have their differences, the enjoyment they bring musicians are very similar.