Fiddle

Recreating the tunes of Western PA

Richard Gordon

Mark Tamsula, fiddle, and Richard Withers, banjoMark Tamsula, fiddle, and Richard Withers, banjo and other instruments, have released two wonderful CDs of tunes and songs from Western Pennsylvania: Up in the Batten House (2011) and Up Jumped Joe in the Middle of It (2013). Most of the tunes and songs are from the two collections of Western Pennsylvania music compiled by Samuel Bayard between 1928 and the 1960s: Hill Country Tunes (1944) and Dance to the Fiddle, March to the Fife: Instrumental folk tunes of Pennsylvania (1982).

On a trip to Pittsburgh in September 2013, I had the chance to stop by Richard’s house to record an interview in which they talked about some of the great old tunes from the Bayard collections, the mixture of fife and fiddle traditions in the area, the process of bringing tunes to life from the printed page, and the process of “finding” the tune, trying for what the source fiddler might have enjoyed about the tune.

At their website, they write this about their music:
Up in the Batten House Cover

Between 1928 and 1963, Samuel Bayard and his collaborators traveled throughout southwestern Pennsylvania collecting and transcribing nearly 1000 traditional folk tunes. The intent was to “show something of what the older Pennsylvania tradition really consisted of” – “pre-radio, pre-tape, pre-TV” (Bayard, 1982, p. 2). Their sources were largely country dance fiddlers, but also fifers, who carried on a once widespread but now relatively obscure tradition of American marching music. Most of the tunes we play on [these recordings] are taken from the Bayard collection, and all are traditional tunes played in Pennsylvania until recent times.

For more information about Mark and Richard’s CDs:www.snappinbug.com.

The Interview

Interview with Mark Tamsula and Richard Withers (Recorded 9/15/13; original broadcast date: 11/5/13; host: Mandorichard). 30:06, 28.9 MB.

Up Jumped Joe in the Middle of It cover

The Music

The following music appeared on this episode of The Music Room:

  • Artist / Song / Album (or note) / Label (or source) / Date
  • Mark Tamsula and Richard Withers / Rosemont Quadrille / Up Jumped Joe in the Middle of It / Snappin’ Bug / 2013
  • Mark Tamsula and Richard Withers / Black-Eyed Susie / Up in the Batten House / Snappin’ Bug / 2011
  • Mark Tamsula and Richard Withers / The Snowy Hill, My Last Fall, O Dear Mother my Toes are Sore / Up Jumped Joe in the Middle of It / Snappin’ Bug / 2013
  • Mark Tamsula and Richard Withers / Snappin’ Bug, Pine Top / Up in the Batten House / Snappin’ Bug / 2011
  • Mark Tamsula and Richard Withers / Dick’s Handspike / Up in the Batten House / Snappin’ Bug / 2011

Kimber Ludiker: Five-string-fiddle will travel

Richard Gordon

Kimber LudikerDella Mae is one of the most innovative and interesting bands in bluegrass today. We were lucky enough to catch up with the band’s fiddler, Kimber Ludiker, backstage at the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival on August 30, 2013.

Della Mae: Wanted in San Francisco

Della Mae: Wanted in San Francisco

Kimber tells us the story of how Della Mae, a powerful all-woman bluegrass band, was founded. She also speaks about her 5-string fiddle, her early life attending — and eventually winning — fiddle contests, and Della Mae’s 6-week trip to central Asia on a State Department tour.

Kimber comes from a family of fiddlers and contest winners and is comfortable playing in a lot of different styles. She brings a ton of energy to any project with which she is involved. Whether she is playing a contest tune, a bluegrass song, an old fiddle tune, or a new improvisation, her fiddle playing is very emotive. You can hear her playing expressive long phrases that complement a vocalist; you can hear her play solos or duets with a driven energy that makes you sit up and take notice.

The interview

Interview with Kimber Ludiker (Recorded 8/30/13; original broadcast date: 10/29/13; host: Mandorichard). 25:31, 24.5 MB. Note: the version uploaded here contains excerpts from the Della Mae tracks used in the broadcast. We may upload other snippets of the interview that were a lot of fun, but were trimmed from the broadcast version.

Ralph Stanley and Kimber Ludiker

Ralph Stanley (left) poses with Kimber Ludiker.

The music

The following music appeared on this episode of The Music Room:

  • Artist / Song / Album (or note) / Label (or source) / Date
  • Della Mae / Bowling Green / I Built this Heart / self (available from Bandcamp) / 2011
  • Della Mae / Turtle Dove / This World Oft Can Be / Rounder / 2013
  • Kimber Ludiker / Nail that Catfish to a Tree / Mike Block Fiddle Camp (Michigan) Faculty Concert / via YouTube / 2013
  • Kimber Ludiker / Tom and Jerry, The Wedding Song, CottonPatch Rag / 2010 National Fiddle Championship, Weiser, Idaho / via YouTube / 2010
  • Della Mae / Polk County / I Built this Heart / self (available from Bandcamp) / 2011