What is the difference between a violin and fiddle?

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ArtistWorks Fiddle instructor, Darol Anger, talks about what makes a fiddle different from a violin. Access fiddle lessons with Darol Anger now: bit.ly/darolfiddle

[@garrettwilliamson3806]

A violin has strings. A fiddle has strangs.

[@JackGilbertJr]

Garrett Williamson nailed it

[@sug149]

hahahahahhahahahahahhahaha! oh my gawd

[@Machodave2020]

I'm sorry but, Jazz and country violin is just weird against classical violin.

[@ayatherapper8166]

Now i get it!

[@richresident4377]

Garrett Williamson nailed it...

[@ces4399]

A fiddle is a violin with an attitude.

[@tasque7251]

But if you ruin a violin then everyone will have an attitude

[@markdemell3717]

Are not the strings some what a different gauge?

[@calicobunny]

And a violin is just a tamed fiddle

[@christopherpittman8054]

@@calicobunny and nobody like a tamed fiddle. We like em wild and free here in These United States.

[@calicobunny]

@@christopherpittman8054 wait when did we get to the untited states where are we

[@cluckeryduckery261]

Time saver here: they're the same thing. The difference is largely stylistic. But the instrument is the same.

[@dr.thanos5925]

Thank you

[@napsugarzentai8362]

Thanks :D

[@hiidkwhyimhere2597]

Ohhhhhhhhh

[@kishascape]

Well the culture too. Band/classical music people are so high maintenance and uppity stiffs. Where as hillbillies and Irish people will just throw down loose and have a good time, hell some of them don’t even know how to read the music notation.

[@LA-fr4gp]

They also make strings specific for fiddlings but that’s about it.

[@korkiwi]

When a fiddle player gets mad they become a little violint.

[@johnb6723]

Lol.

[@a.acevedo]

😅 👍

[@MMRPC]

I hate you

[@roduhawma8323]

😂😂🤦🏻‍♂️

[@MusingsWithMelete]

You just made my day 🎻

[@rycenpegagan5222]

THEY PLAYED US LIKE DAMN FIDDLE

[@itsyaboichipsahoy7996]

DAAMN MIICAHH

[@leggagone833]

OBJECTION!

[@bengamerlsyolo6788]

WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!

[@hygog]

why are we still here?

[@DirtyGeorge]

@@bengamerlsyolo6788 what

[@rossclay3317]

The difference between a fiddle and violin? The Whiskey!

[@Unknown-hv4cu]

Ross Clay don't drink whiskey, its bad for you.

[@Max-The-Axe]

@@Unknown-hv4cu it’s not whiskey makes you live longer

[@bagnome]

@@Max-The-Axe Good whiskey never lets you lose your place.

[@robertshorthill6836]

Ross Clay. A violin becomes a fiddle when someone spills beer onto and in it. I've seen it happen at jams. The owner said, "Ah, it's just a fiddle, not a G.D. violin!"

[@thunderstrike6993]

Alright, here's one. Violins, you mess up a note and it ruins the performance for any and all playing with you. Fiddle, you mess up a note, you capitalize, you keep on playing, hell it might make the gig that much better. Violin, you play in a concert hall, Fiddle, you play on a corner. Violinists play to a beat and a conductor, but a Fiddler sets his own beat and changes it as he damn well pleases! Violin music might well speak to the soul, but Fiddle music's got a soul of its own.

[@anikethchilukuri1735]

Thunderstrike gee if one note ruins an entire performance, then I’ve ruined atleast 20 so far

[@AusyG]

Hell yeah I love it!!!

[@qwmx]

Well if you were trying sell the Fiddle, it worked.

[@NoaThePineconeTaker]

Damn... Now that’s a quote for the ages.

[@joana8615]

I mean, you can play however you want with both... it's not the instrument that determines the music you play, it's your own preferred style.

[@angelzugarramurdi6922]

As an spanish speaker, I really love much more the word fiddle, cause violin is the same as in spanish, it is easy to learn, but fiddle sounds to me much more interesting, sounds very English, it´s difficult to recall. I really love when people say fiddle than violin.

[@GreatOldOne9866]

I get what you mean. But I like both equally.

[@gerbilsmith]

I was told by a 2nd generation violin maker, who was trained at the Chicago violin school that there actually are 2 clear differences between a true fiddle & a violin... 1) the bridge on a fiddle is flatter than the bridge of a violin. This makes playing 3 strings at once easier on a fiddle than a violin. Second a fiddle, at least an Southern American fiddle, should have a rattle snake tail glued inside the instrument under the bridge. It is purely customary as it does not effect sound significantly. But in general they are so similar the truest difference really is as this man says, style of playing.

[@RaneBane]

He says thT

[@Morongobill]

The rattle stops the devil from coming in, or so they say

[@emaarredondo-librarian]

Most curious. An old Chilean tradition is putting a dry red chili pepper inside a guitar for it to sound good. 😃

[@richardwebb2348]

It is not possible to play 3 strings at the same time on a violin with a regular bridge.

[@gerbilsmith]

@@richardwebb2348 it's possible but not easy as the shape of the bridge detours it. A fiddle bridge has a flatter top than a violin bridge and makes playing on 3 strings at once easy.

[@JesterWhoHelps]

A violin will never have the risk of beer being spilled on it.

[@501stsoldier4]

Only wine and maby blood if your music creates a riot looking at you Igor Stravinsky

[@hrobert745]

Thank you for the explanation! I told my teacher my instrument was a fiddle and that my daughter gave me another one which was a violin and he said they’re the same, so I was wondering. To me the sound of the two is totally different but he said it mainly had to do with the bridge, as you mentioned-not only flatter for the fiddle but also taller for the violin. And now I have a reply for someone who criticizes that I don’t use sheet music-because I play fiddle, not violin!

[@danyis3042]

befor i knew fiddle i called it folk violin

[@Steppenwolf27]

As a guitar player, I have always admired violin players. Also, I love playing with a violin player. I lived in a dorm in Mongolia many years ago. There was a Japanese guy who lived on my floor who played violin. Sometimes I'd be hanging out with friends in the common area and he'd walk buy and I'd shout, 'Hey, go get your skripka" (Russian for violin). And he would get it and we would play a few songs together. He was the best accompaniment ever. When we played "Knocking on Heaven's Door" he would gently follow the chords during the verses, he would support me while I did a solo, then I would hit the last chord in the progression hard and say, "Take it!" and he would rip into an amazing solo while I strummed backup.

[@northwestcustoms6663]

Sounds soooooo much better with the "fiddle" sound.

[@officialgaylord5578]

Here’s the difference You play the Violin, while you get PLAYED LIKE A DAMN FIDDLE

[@johnhead5699]

Year's ago in a conversation about my playing the fiddle without any sheet music a friend and longtime classical violinist said " I'd love to be able to play like you do" . The music you produce is simply an expression from the heart of ones personality. A violinist is like your accountant or your banker, a fiddle player is like your best friend.

[@ahmadnicolas9224]

When provoked, all musicians commit violins

[@Archades6969]

You have blown my mind. Thank you so much for explaining this. I love both classical music and what would be considered "fiddle" music. You have just bridged the gap and I appreciate it so much.

[@yttrv8430]

So, it's not about the instrument itself, rather who plays.

[@patricklasko1360]

Fiddle - Jamming out (grooving). Violin - Compassionate playing.

[@MattManProductions]

The best way to understand "fiddling" or "violin" playing. Fiddle=left to artists interpretation (aka lindsey stirling) Violin= structured (mozart, Paganini) I was 3rd chair in school, started off cello, then got tired of lugging it around and moved to violin. I did very structured classical orchestras, and when the devil went down to georgia played on the radio I loved that's style. So I broke off, and went that direction

[@richardwebb2348]

That is a difference in the choice of music and style of playing on the same instrument.

[@thomaslthomas1506]

The only technical differences are: Some fiddle have flatter radius on the bridge. Tuning often is DGBD or DBBbD like banjo’s there of course are more tunings than a certain ex prez had liver pills. A friend of mine who builds “fiddles” also make the scale longer between viola & violin. All this info from a steel guitar player getting this second hand.🤔

[@Seastar14TheWitch]

There is actually some instruments that are called a fiddle, without being a violin, the national instrument of Norway is an excample of this, it's called the Hardanger Fiddle.

[@megancook6415]

The hardanger fiddle is a violin but modified with more strings, different bridge shape, and thinner wood. It still classifies as a violin but with slight changes.

[@richardwebb2348]

In Norwegian a Hardingfele.

[@WolfieboyMachi]

@@megancook6415 I mean, that's quite a lot of differences, though. And that's not to mention the significant aesthetic differences. By your reasoning one could argue mandolins are guitars.

[@fiddlix]

It looks like Darol brought his Bob Kogut 4-string out for this video. Thank you so much for everything you have brought to string instrument education. And thank for keeping me inspired.

[@oleksandr3959]

I panicked for a second but you're the calming voice to tell me to relax.

[@gilgamesh7055]

THEY PLAYED US LIKE A DAMN VIOLIN

[@Andy_Holmes]

I wanted to learn to play both! Now I don't have to.

[@nvdawahyaify]

A violin is carried in a case, a fiddle is carried in a gunnysac

[@hydrolito]

Gunnysack isn't that just another name for a duffle bag?

[@nvdawahyaify]

@@hydrolito a gunnysack is a burlap bag.

[@jennifergordon80]

I learned today that it had to do with the bridge 🌉… that the fiddles bridge was smaller on one side because with the fiddle you’re playing two strings at a time. But THANK YOU FOR THIS little lesson

[@davidcurtis4478]

Never heard of the 'violinist on the roof' 🤣 groove on whether a violin or fiddle 🎶🥁😎DC

[@Hotdogwater421]

I love how no matter what kind of instruments you or any one plays. 90% hands. Other 10% comes from the face. every note someone plays is a different facial expression. Shit makes me laugh so hard can’t help it . But damn I wanna play a fiddle

[@ayunii1004]

Blake and Kelly's argument on the voice made me come here.

[@briankennedy1313]

Piano, fiddle/violin; that sound hits me deep. I have the soul of someone from the 1800s.

[@marilyngailnichol]

i Love how you go BACK AND FORTH! from fiddle to the violin.

[@juniperwoodgreen4090]

Traditional Irish American Scottish music emanates from a violin. But if you go to a classical performance and you refer to the violin as a fiddle you'll be lambasted and thrown out for courting such fiddle-some folly...

[@wingking077]

My pops always used to say you’re at a party when you hear a fiddle and you’re at a funeral when you hear a violin.

[@hanifbadar2150]

THEY PLAYED US LIKE A DAMN FIDDLE!!!1!1!1!1!

[@illicitryan]

"A violin sings and a fiddle dances" This was a comment i seen in anither video that was spot in for me!

[@crneube]

Thats fine and all but, does it Djent?

[@pnut3844able]

chris neube fuck off

[@ayatherapper8166]

What means djent?

[@arandomlanguagenerd1869]

*blend

[@haydenblack5648]

Lmfaoooo XD

[@jacksonricebreadman240]

It doesn’t have 100 strings so no

[@generalbarry]

I always say, a violin sings, a fiddle dances.

[@Tman896]

I feel how the instrument is held is also a part of the difference. I feel like fiddle player hold the instrument lower and pointing down more

[@hippocharis4220]

If you don't want to watch the whole video, the answer is at 1:18

[@fadetoal]

In Rock, I often refer to my guitar as an axe, Guit-fiddle, or my girl.

[@TheKingDrew]

“Forgot me old fiddle and forgot me old fiddle, But thank god im a country boy”

[@davidkellymitchell4747]

Correct. Just a style of playing. Really good players can do both plus more styles. This guy is a great player.

[@Masonjarislit]

Thanks!!

[@beabea3121]

In the city, the violin sings..in the country, the violin dances.

[@fatboysgarage7984]

My boyfriend and my music teachers in college taught me that a fiddle has a slightly shorter scale length than a violin. I didn't know they're the same because I'm a guitar and bass guy.

[@fatetastarossa]

After 20 years I just learn this fact. Thank you!

[@arklu4598]

the video starts at 1:20 and ends at 1:24

[@kdkarr]

Just remember, if you're going to play in Texas, you have to have a fiddle in the band.

[@billmcdonald8011]

Fiddle is my favorite instrument

[@yoavmor9002]

Is "Fiddle" a metaphor for the Republic?

[@1904home]

really enjoyed this.

[@discipleofliberty9249]

The main difference that you can hear between the two styles is that fiddle more often drone and hammer on, whereas violins do not

[@vegitagames8081]

Então a diferença é que o violinista toca mais pela partitura e o fiddle toca mais de cabeça? Show!

[@italoyvens7767]

Não,a diferença é que quem toca violino toca músicas mais elaboradas e técnicas já o fidlle é o mesmo violino mas com músicas populares e folclóricas,como o violão erudito e popular

[@italoyvens7767]

Eu entendi isso,mas também entendi que fidlle é um nome genético pra instrumentos parecidos com o violino ,tbm achei isso aqui Western classical players sometimes use “fiddle” as an affectionate term for the violin, that intimate companion and workmate. But in the United States, most often “fiddle” means the violin as used in Irish-Scottish-French traditional music and all the descendant American styles: Appalachian, bluegrass, Cajun, etc.

[@PSlo0over]

Oh my this gotta be the funniest comment section ever!

[@Vikingwerk]

You never accidentally spill beer on a violin.

[@Eddie_Schantz]

Several years ago I asked a lady in our church orchestra "How long have you been playing the fiddle" OMG. That didn't fly at all.

[@pro42o81]

best part of this instrument imo is the fiddle. thanks for the content

[@nathan7401]

I am looking to learn but I think I read that they use different strings. I think it said fiddle uses steel core strings or something?

[@sheaf6593]

Amazing!

[@petebard]

The diff is the guy who’s holding the bow. Or.. you could say a violin is like a wife and a fiddle is a sweetheart. I fiddle but being 83 yrs old I have the dots in front of me.

[@Esrom_music]

Funny I always thought fiddle playing vs violin playing was in the posture and hold. Thought basically fiddle players held with hand and violin held with chin.

[@syahminorizan8064]

You played us like a damn fiddle!

[@DredCthulhu]

3:05 to 3:20 anyone know the “song”?

[@ExtremelyOnlineGuy]

Oh it’s a term of endearment? So can I only say fiddle? Or can I use a hard r?

[@welpjesphinx8881]

Difference is that Larl isn't played like a violin.

[@uptonsavoie]

If you're selling it, it's a violin.

[@korkiwi]

A violin fiddles around with country and bluegrass.

[@vladv5126]

In the '90s, they were all fiddles. Gotta have that 'tude.

[@OlePorkchop]

A violin sings, a fiddle dances

[@nicolasmogensen8727]

In German "f" is written as "v" so just by doing that we have "viddle" which immediately looks much closer to "violin". Yeah, they're the same.

[@karsonhutler9923]

What was the first song he played in the intro

[@htfiddler]

Hi Darol ... I need to take issue with your comment that any fiddle can be a violin. What about the viol, rebec, erhu and morin khuur, to mention just a few examples of many early fiddles that predated our favorite Cremonese invention? I have always said that a fiddle is any musical instrument with strings, played with a bow. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say any "modern western fiddle" can be a violin, but I s'pose that might be "splitting hairs" (no pun intended). :)

[@cellokid5104]

There actually are some minor differences. A fiddle for example has a flatter (less curved) bridge to make string crossings easier

[@robertchavez9318]

He mentions that. Did you watch the video?

[@patriciajrs46]

Do you know how to play Turkey in the Straw? Or Old Joe Clarke?

[@boblienhart]

The difference is "attitude" 😊

[@randomfrog1196]

Fiddle players sometimes sand the bridge flatter than the bridges on a violin.

[@hydrolito]

Explains at 4:15

[@NG-ww9gv]

What about a stringy-paddle?

[@grandma.p]

Do you think classical violin is a good background before learning to fiddle?

[@井実芳仁]

Fiddle feels like fun.

[@SaltheartFoamfollower]

Living in Switzerland, and Geige is the Violin, Fiedel is the Fiddle

[@ibkristykat]

I think of the fiddle as fun. The violin is the stuff ya gotta play only classical music to refer to it as a violin. But i take it as the instruments are the same instruments only referred to as both. ?

[@thefalchion]

0:58 no way this happened

[@guitarconspiracy]

I was told a fiddle has less curve in the saddle?

[@laurawallbank]

I think you mean the bridge, sometimes they do and sometimes they don’t. It’s really personal preference. I, as a fiddler, personally prefer a slightly flatter bridge, but not super flat.

[@rakhisharma4692]

Which music were you playing when the video started 😊

[@laurawallbank]

If you mean the intro music, that was fiddle. If you mean the music when you could very first see Darol, that was classical violin

[@rossboyd1162]

Hi....so many ideas and definitions out there, but here's the one l like.....'a violin player most likely uses musical scores, while the music from a fiddle player comes from his heart.'

[@piedpeter1]

A violinist wears a tuxedo and gets paid $$$ and a fiddler wears overalls and drinks beer.

[@deanaconklin649]

Thank you … settled a dinner time discussion in our house.

[@aus71383]

0:29 that note hurt my brain

[@GroovingPict]

dont fiddles generally have a significantly flatter bridge compared to a violin?

[@f.b.iagent906]

This sound i remember in the l4d2 game files l4d2 horde danger beta horde called fiddle so i opened it and found this instrument.

[@Ser_Locke]

THEY PLAYED US LIKE A DAMN FIDDLE!

[@namelessentity5851]

The REAL question, Mr. Anger; can you fiddle like the Devil himself!? If so, a demonstration of such dark powers is a must!! Keep on rockin' Sir! ✌🏻👹✌🏻

[@Jesterhead88]

the main difference is the smile on his face

[@jamupsnepali7200]

Only because of genere of music vilon and fiddle differecates ..its really cool..I though there should be differences in sound quality..

[@ballofwax9yards]

Very little. Country more double stops or two strings at once and volume strings. Violin more single notes and expensive strings.

[@glittersgo742]

so what is a guitar called......after what you play with it???

[@sarahoko2090]

Epic battle: violin vs fiddlle!. Ugh. The nerd in me, just hit me.