What is the difference between a fiddle and a violin?
This question is commonly asked by traditionally trained players who are interested in fiddling music. Most musicians who dub themselves fiddlers will answer that the fiddle and violin are one and the same as far as the instrument itself goes. The real difference lies in the way that the instrument is played. Violinists play from a written piece of music, allowing the pre-orchestrated notes and phrases to dictate what is being played. Their primary concerns lie in their ability to sight read and in the tone and timbre of their instrument. A fiddler will play often within a basic musical structure, but with no pre-written music for him/her to follow. Fiddlers concerns are with the quality, creativity, and originality of their improvisation. Although the instrument itself is of less importance in this difference, there have been known modifications that will define a violin as more of a fiddle. A traditional fiddle has a lower bridge, causing the strings to be closer to the fingerboard f
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