Fiddle Music on the Frontier
Hearing a modern-day artist play old tunes on the fiddle can really take you back in time.
“Ain't it funny how a melody can bring back a memory, Take you to another place in time, Completely change your state of mind”
If you are a country music fan, you’ll probably recognize these lyrics from Clint Black’s hit song “State of Mind.” The song addresses something that we’ve all felt at one point or another; the way a song can take you back in time. Heck, it says it right in the lyrics!
Some music can take us back to memories in our own lives and some music can take us back to other times in history. Whether it is an old-time cowboy song, music from the Renaissance, or the oldest known melody, music really can take you back in time. People interested in the frontier will probably enjoy themselves a good fiddle tune.
One of the most popular musical instruments on the American frontier was the fiddle. Fiddles were popular on the frontier mainly because of how easy they were to transport from place to place. As a result, the fiddle has become central in the traditional folk and pioneer music of America. Whether in the Appalachians, the South, or out West, a fiddle tune is part of tradition. If you’ve ever read the Laura Ingalls’ Little House books you’ll know that Pa often lifted the family’s spirits with a fitting fiddle tune throughout their trials and tribulations. However, the fiddle wasn’t always popular and many religious sects viewed the instrument as the “devil’s box.” Try as they might, the people against fiddle playing couldn’t stop the instrument from becoming very popular.
If you are reading book three of the Jemmey Fletcher series A Tyrant’s Road to Oregon, you might have just finished the chapter where Arthur Caldwell lays down some fiddle tunes in celebration of the fourth of July. Fiddles were popular along the Oregon Trail for the same reasons they were popular on the frontier in general. It was also very common for wagon trains to stop at Independence Rock and have a much-deserved celebration. You may think you can accurately picture the scene, but you might be surprised to learn that all fiddle music is not the same. Pioneers had a collection of songs they would have known and a unique playing style as well. Fortunately for us, there are a few musicians out there keeping the tradition of frontier fiddle music alive. One man in particular has put out a series of Youtube videos accurately showing what Caldwell’s tune may have sounded like.
Enjoy the videos.
Hopefully, this video has given you a better sense of the book and of history. As mentioned, the fiddle is still a popular instrument today in many folk genres. If you like fiddle music, you’ll probably enjoy listening to the folk music of Elana James a modern-day fiddle player. If you are like me and Clint Black, these toe-tapping fiddle tunes might just take you back to another place in time.
