Dear Don,
My husband and I were lucky to attend the first Fiddleicious Traditions weekend. The entire event far exceeded our expectations. All of the presenters and classes were top notch. An outstanding feature was the piano offerings, that were perfect. The operation ran very smoothly and we felt welcomed and cared for at all times. The final concert was phenomenal. Our only problem was having to choose between all of the interesting workshops. We have already rearranged our family vacation schedules for next year so that we are able to attend. Can’t wait!
~Barb and Bob O’Reilly
Dear Don,
I want to thank you again for creating and offering the first ever Fiddleicious Traditions weekend last April 2019. I’m still thinking about it, learning from it, and being inspired by it, and am certainly looking forward to participating in the next one this spring. Having all those fabulous musicians gathered to share their talents and wisdom was really quite extraordinary. You could feel the vibration in the air! The great variety of classes offered made it easy to dig deep, and try new things too, and to learn about where the heart of this music lives. It was hard to fit everything in I wanted to take, and that’s a good thing! Thank you, and thanks to all those who helped you make this come off so seamlessly.
Sincerely,
~Rebecca McConnaughey
Dear Don,
My experience at Fiddlicious Traditions was one of the very best experiences at a workshop or festival of it’s kind. The instructors were world class and also great teachers. It has been my experience that sometimes an instructor can be one or the other. I found every class I attended to be so well taught by musicians of a super high caliber.
I so look forward to attending again this year, and plan to allow even more time during that weekend to attend all of the classes I can fit in. The choices and options were so varied and interesting to me.
I found the whole event to be very well organized and timely and there were even hall monitors everywhere to point you in the direction of your class. The food was great and I ended up making a lot of new friends.
Thank you for all you and your team do to put on such a great event for us in Maine. I don’t know if you will be needing any help, but please keep me in mind if you do
Sincerely,
~Jeanine Loubier
Waterford, Maine
Dear Don:
I am writing this letter in support of grant funding that might be available for Fiddle-icious Traditions. I attended the Fiddle-icious Traditions event in April of 2019 and found it to be a great experience that helped me understand the broader context of the traditional music taught in the Fiddle-icious orchestra. Through both the formal and informal learning opportunities I came to understand that the traditional music of the Canadian Maritimes, Quebec, Maine and New Hampshire were all closely related and shared many of the same standard bearers. I also learned through observation that this form of music was not just relegated to history as a curiosity but rather was full of life and relevance today.
Apart from the cultural significance of the event, it was also a great opportunity to learn many aspects of music. I concentrated on the basic music theory classes because I am a self-taught musician who learned to play as an adult, so it was really helpful to sit in a class and have someone explain what I have tried to read so many times with limited success. I also took a class taught by the highly improvisational musician Rob Flax who really opened my eyes to the idea of creating your own music. One of the highlights of the weekend was the opportunity to take a class and play in a small group setting with Erica Brown, Matt Shipman, and Neil Pearlman. Later I took part in several small jams including one where the genre was Swedish fiddle tunes. I was able to listen to a talk by luthier Robert Miller who explained the astonishing specificity of violin construction and how most of the construction details are much the same as they have been for hundreds of years. No report about this weekend would be complete without mentioning the outstanding concert put on by the staff at the end of the event where it all seemed to come together. I am looking forward to attending again and hope this fantastic opportunity exists for years into the future.
Best Regards,
~Ed Foster
South Portland, Maine
Dear Don,
What a pleasure it was to participate in the inaugural Fiddleicious Traditions weekend! You, and the wonderful group of musicians you brought in, facilitated a weekend packed with rich and diverse workshops that were not only informative but super fun and accessible. All of the instructors were so talented, friendly, helpful, and welcoming. The space was great and the schedule flowed nicely with lots of opportunities for playing music! It was a wonderful experience to be surrounded by so many other musicians who clearly love, live and breathe the joy of music! I so admire all you do in your mission to bring music to communities and make it a shared experience.
See you there this year!
Sincerely,
~Kelly Bicknell
Don,
I wanted to tell you about my experience at Fiddleicious traditions last year, in 2019. The whole event had a positive and welcoming atmosphere, and I thoroughly enjoyed the weekend. The classes offered were quite varied in their presentation, and were different than I have experienced at other fiddle camps. The instructors encouraged us to take risks, and to push ourselves beyond our personal comfort zones. I learned a lot from this approach.
I am looking forward to returning this year to take some of the classes I couldn’t fit in last year!
Thank you,
~Kevin Johannen
To Whom It May Concern,
It is my pleasure to extend a hearty recommendation that Fiddleicious Traditions receive all the monetary support their great endeavor needs and deserves.
Fiddleicious Traditions is dedicated to community building through music, helping people discover their inner musician and participating in group music experiences that ripple out through all of our Maine culture. There must be thousands of people out there, musicians, dancers and audience members, who have benefited from the very active mission of this group.
Their masterful approach to music is more than matched by the sensitive way Fiddleicious Traditions encourages their apprentices and audiences to aspire to greatness in art and life.
~Greg Boardman
Dear Don,
I can’t begin to describe how beneficial the Fiddleicious Traditions conference was for me last year. I have been playing the fiddle for 10 years and have had the pleasure of going to conferences, fiddle camps, playing in concerts, and traveling to Prince Edward Island and Cape Breton to play on stage with groups but nothing tops what I learned at Fiddleicious Traditions 2019. My experience was mind blowing to say the least. I told another Fiddleicious member who also attended that I had never learned and taken away so much about fiddling in such a short period of time and had a blast doing it. This member also agreed!
I wouldn’t call myself an elite fiddler by any means but I can hold my own. There is always room for improvement and Fiddleicious Traditions provided that for me immensely. Not only did I learn how to improve my skills, I learned countless other skills that are proving to enhance my core fiddle learning. At Fiddleicious Traditions I learned a variety of different skills to improve my technique physically (ex. learning how to chop), ways to mentally improve my playing (ex. how to avoid stage fright), and ways to enhance my playing (ex. learning how to play back-up chords to tunes I have never heard before during fiddle jams).
I am so excited for Fiddleicious Traditions 2020 and all the possibilities that await me. This is definitely an event I would love to add to my calendar annually and I hope that this short essay of mine can help in some way to make this a possibility.
Respectfully,
~Danielle Fotter
Hi Don,
I am writing to you regarding Fiddle-icious Traditions first annual weekend that took place last April. I attended that wonderful event and fully intend to be at many more Traditions in the years to come. I began my fiddling shortly before Fiddle-icious took wing. The music and camaraderie has become a big part of my life. The Traditions weekend introduced me to a wider scope of traditional music. The Cape Breton instructors were all familiar to me and it was a joy to spend so much time in their tutelage. The step dance classes were really informative and interesting. The wrap-up concert was the highlight of the weekend and put on display many genres. I think everyone who was able to attend the concert was duly impressed with the quality of the performances and the range of talent. Traditional music really does cover a huge range. It came, that day, from many regions and formed into one very entertaining concert. I want to thank you & your committee for all the work that went into putting on that event. I expect Fiddle-icious Traditions will grow in numbers each year because of the quality that was on display last April and because of your dedication to traditional music.
Sincerely,
~Val