Reply To: Beginner Level

[Juliamary]

Isn’t it funny that our brains work in different ways!
I really wanted to play the violin when I was 10 years old. I’d had 4 fun lessons playing by ear until the “teacher” told me very strictly that I had to “learn all the notes”. This terrified me because I knew I couldn’t do it.This led to a tragic road accident where my violin was smashed and I was nearly killed. I didn’t touch a fiddle for over 50 years because I thought you had to be able to read music to play.

When I was 54 I discovered that I suffer from dyscalcula. About the same time I went to see Riddell Fiddles, a learners group in Scotland who play a good deal by ear. It dawned on me then that I could learn by ear too!

I saw an old violin in the window of a charity shop. It was in a battered old case and had one cat gut string hanging from it. It cost £40.

It wasn’t until November 2021 that I discovered Jason and embarked on my FiddleHED journey.It’s one of the best things I’ve ever done.

Last night I made my debut at my local folk club, playing Tennessee Waltz and Lovers Waltz (two slow safe ones!) Ive been wanting to perform for ages, but have been too scared to do it. However I practiced a lot and it went well. There was a lot of applause and congratulations by some young people who seemed surprised that a 70 year old granny could actually learn from scratch!

I’m slowly starting to learn to read music through lots of repetition.

Thanks Jason.🎻❤️😊