FORUM

Self-introduction seems acceptable here, so here goes.

I'm a middle-aged multi-instrumentalist. Though I've only been playing violin for a little over a year and viola since November, I've been playing music for 42 years (49 if choir counts, which it should IMHO because they did make me learn to read, at least treble clef.) So ... choir at 4, clarinet at 11 followed quickly by single-reed instruments in general, guitar at 13, bass at 15--still my #1 choice if I needed to land a paying gig in a hurry--and several other instruments added over subsequent decades.

I picked up fiddle after rationalizing that an existing background on fretless bass and mandolin would probably help with an instrument that (a) had no frets and (b) was tuned in fifths. I've been going at the fiddle for about a year now for at least an hour a day.

Somewhere back around October I picked up a viola for the first time, and its voice hooked me instantly. A month later I found an irresistible deal on a viola of my own, a Soviet-era 16" (S. Kadosov, as nearly as I can parse Cyrillic) that had belonged to a player in the Russian National Orchestra. A few weeks after that I stumbled across a boderline insane deal, this time on a very nice Chinese 16" that had been obtained in the white and thoroughly worked over by William Fleischer in Boca Raton, Florida.

So now I try to spend--at the very least--an hour a day on viola in addition to violin.  If nothing else it helps drown out my credit card's screams for mercy.

Ya know, for a midlife crisis not involving sports cars or exotic dancers this sure is time- and resource-consuming.

My musical tastes in general are somewhere around the intersection of country, Celtic, and jazz, with considerable input from Broadway and a growing interest in classical with some leanings towards Baroque. I jam a lot in informal country/folk settings. Having a strong improvisational background--brought over from fretted instruments, keyboard, and reeds--really helps there.

I'd also love to develop a solid enough command of classical skills to someday play (ideally) viola or (almost as desirable) second violin in a community (i.e., non-paying!) orchestra somewhere. Only time will tell whether that's feasible, but it's a fun and challenging goal to work towards.

Well, enough bloviating; time to get back to transcribing Carolan's Concerto.

Speaking of which: HeadCheese or Violaman, what do I need to do to enable uploading sheet music?