Violinmaking: A historic art 

CBS Sunday Morning features another story on violinmaking:  www.cbsnews.com/videos/violinmaking-a-historic-art

"..this piece of wood that is very much alive."  Story about century old violins made by two luthiers from Cremona, Italy.

The Donegal Fiddle 

"The Donegal fiddle tradition is arguably the richest regional style in Ireland....generally aggressive, attacking sound is achieved by the use of staccato bowing coupled with demanding finger work."  So reads the inside notes from the cassette tape of "The Donegal Fiddle," of field recordings made in 1949 and 1957 by Ciaran MacMathuna and Seamus Ennis for Radio Eireann.  Remastered in the 1990s by Aodan O'Dubghaill it includes a liner cover replicate of a painting by Mairead NiMhaonaigh to "honour…

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Donegal Fiddlers 

My own home county of Donegal produced some of Ireland's best fiddlers.  Johnny Doherty, Neili Boyle, Francy Byrne, and John Gallagher (better known as John the Tea) to name a few.  

When farmers brought their livestock to town for sale on Fairdays, John Gallagher's family made lunch for them so he became known as "John the Tea."  John in his young days got another name to his credit when he went onto win the All Ireland Fiddling Championship.

Neili Boyle was the first fiddler I heard on an old 78 and…

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The City of Music 

CBS 60 Minutes featured a story called "The City of Music" which told the story of the town of Cremona, Italy and its most famous citizen, violin maker Antonio Stradivari.

www.cbs.com/shows/60_minutes/video/

Peter J. Shovlin

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