Zoom Fiddling this Saturday!

Can't make it? There are videos!

Hi Fiddle Friends,

The crew and I will be on Zoom this Saturday leading you through a gentle fiddle practice! Please join us! Also, important information regarding the videos and how long you can work with them. Read on if you are interested in this.

Tricia’s Zoom Room: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/2648621651?pwd=UVJFdVZuZUNoZ3RDTkpOV2tpTHcxZz09

Saturday Mornings

Time: Log in at 10:45 am CST and we will start at 11:00 am CST

Current Dates (subject to change):

Feb 8, 15, 22

Mar 1, 15, 22, 29

The Videos from Saturday Mornings

These are often available the day after now or on Monday if you want more time with the videos! Where to purchase or check new videos: https://www.patreon.com/c/spencerandrains/shop

(FYI, you do not need to become a member.)

#8 Video (January 25, 2025) link expires on February 9, 2025.

Description: index/thumb bowing work (handwriting and turn the door knob), pulse, bow rock across the strings, adding G arpeggio (landmarks), and 3-1 shape for C, G, and D. This video is from the Saturday morning zoom session on January 25, 2025.

#9 Video (February 1, 2025) link expires on February 16, 2025. Bow hand demonstration, a-ok into door knob rotation, rounding bow work, 3 shapes and understanding intonation, micro adjustments, and ring finger.

I’m excited to now be offering a video recording of the Saturday Sessions. It is because many of you continue to show up on Saturday mornings and provide donations that I can offer the videos. I enjoy working with fiddlers, having you in front of me and donating for my time keeps me inspired to teach more effectively and also makes the sessions fun for me. Please keep showing up regardless if you can donate!

In trying to keep the integrity of fiddlers showing up for the weekly live sessions, these videos are available to view but please check the video’s expiration date. The LINK will no longer work on/after the EXPIRATION DATE. They come down on Sunday night/Monday morning. For those of you who cannot attend or would like to repeat the session, I will have them available the day after our session and the video can be purchased for $15 on Patreon. I cannot offer these for free as it is another layer of work for my team (Howard, Orion, and Birdie), which is why they will have a nominal fee for use (as opposed to the sessions themselves, which are still free). I am not ok with the videos being available permanently which is why you have over a week (depending on when you purchased) to work on the lesson. If you can’t show up and can’t afford the video lesson, please email me back. We will work something out.

Videos of a few things we have been working on!

Big Taters In The Sandy Land:

Big Taters In The Sandy Land Bowing Chord Work Only:

I used this tune to demonstrate the traditional end lick and saw stroke combination. You can slow this video down and really work on the bowing.

The live Saturday Sessions are free but if you are inclined to donate for my time, I do appreciate it as it helps me keep doing what I’m doing and allows us to upgrade and make more educational videos. If you can’t donate, that’s fine, just tell your friends! I believe everyone should have the opportunity to learn regardless of their income.

Zelle: triciaspencerfiddle@gmail.com (without phone number)

Venmo: https://www.venmo.com/u/lawrencefiddler

Paypal:paypal.me/TriciaSpencerFiddle

Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/triciaspencer

If you are NEW to the Saturday Sessions!

Welcome! These sessions are designed to work on the mechanics of fiddling and give you ideas on how to utilize your own practice. These are the same mechanics that I continue to work on even after fiddling for 49 years and are some of the fundamentals I cover with my private students. Think of it as fiddle yoga. There continues to be a group of fiddlers from all over the world who show up on Saturday mornings. You don’t have to let me know if you will be there or not and you don’t have to have your camera on. Just show up and take what you can.

What I will be doing: I am going to be combining bowing elements and working through chord shapes in all registers. If you have The Fiddle Garden, keep it handy as I will be using lessons from the book. If you don’t have the book, have a pen and paper handy to take notes.

Other helpful things not necessary but recommended:

• Keep your video turned off during the session. This transmits less data and allows my video quality to be better.

• If you can, plug directly into your ethernet.

• Audio too low? “For those who are having audio issues, I would recommend that they click the little arrow to the right of the microphone button and go to audio settings, and they can adjust their audio volume using the speaker slider. They can also select a specific audio output, such as headphones vs. speakers. If their volume is still too low, they can go into their computer's volume settings and adjust volume there.”

• Make sure you are in tune before the session as I will have tuned beforehand.

• Put a mute on your fiddle & wear headphones while working with me. You still want to hear your fiddle but make sure I am louder than you.