Rosin the Bow with Joe McHugh

Roland Feller grew up in Switzerland and attended the violin-making school in Mittenwald, Germany, before coming to the United States to work with Simone Fernando Sacconi in New York. He later opened his own shop in San Francisco where he is a much sought after restorer as well as maker. Here Roland tells of the challenges he endured in those early years of his violin-making education.

In this part of my conversation with Alasdair Fraser, he tells a remarkable story about how a young girl with a rare and potentially fatal disease was helped by listening to Scottish fiddle music. He also tells the story of how an unscrupulous producer stole his music composition to use in a major Hollywood film.

In my twenties, I spent a year living in Scotland doing my best to learn the fiddle music of the Highlands. Later I moved to Nevada City, California, where I had the good fortune to meet and become friends with Alasdair, regarded by many as one of the most accomplished Scottish fiddlers living in the world today. In part one of our conversation, Alasdair talks about how the violin helped him overc...

Laurie Lewis is a Grammy award-winning bluegrass fiddler and songwriter. For several years she owned a violin shop in Berkeley, California. Here Laurie tells how she wrote two songs about the violin: The Maple's Lament and The Bear Song. Her interview is followed by a folktale and music from Mongolia about the origins of the Mongolian horse-head fiddle. 

In part two of my conversation with tone wood expert Bruce Harvie, we discuss the selection and use of Pernambuco for making bows and the growing problem of tone wood tree poaching

Greg and Jere Canote are identical twins who play old-time fiddle, guitar, and banjo. Renowned for their musical stylings as well as their zany sense of humor and good-natured stage-presence, the Canote Brothers have toured the world sharing their infectious love of music. In this episode they talk about the challenges of being raised by their deaf mother, the creative beginnings of The Festival o...

Bruce Harvie is a tonewood dealer who lives in the San Juan Islands of Puget Sound. Here he shares his passion and vast knowledge of tonewood for violins and other musical instruments.

This is the second part of my interview with violin collector David Fulton. Here David shares an entertaining mix of stories related to some of the most treasured violins and cellos in his collection.

David Fulton is one of the most important violin collectors in the world today. Here David shares his life story and the passion that drove him to seek out and preserve instruments made by such masters as Antonio Stradivari and Giuseppe Guarneri del Gesu.

Few violinists in modern times have made as much of a mark on the music world as Darol Anger. A founding member of the Turtle Island Quartet, he now teaches at the Berklee School of Music in Boston. I caught up with Darol at the Wintergrass Bluegrass Festival in Bellevue, Washington, and here he talks about the physical challenges of playing the violin and some of the exceptional violins he has ha...

William Monical is a highly regarded restorer of bowed stringed instruments. He also possesses a wealth of knowledge concerning the evolution of the modern violin. Here he recounts that history with the flair and wit of a gifted storyteller.

With three Grammys, seven CMA awards, and numerous national fiddle, guitar, and mandolin champion titles to his name, Mark pays tribute to his mother and her dedication to his musical gifts and his well-being as a person. He also speaks passionately about his method for teaching young people the violin.  

While performing at the Wintergrass Music Festival in Bellevue, Washington, Mark O’Connor takes time to revisit the memories of his childhood growing up in Seattle and those who taught him the language of music, such as the legendary Texas-style fiddler, Benny Thomasson.

Dr. Paolo Bodini is a physician. politician, and president of the Museo del Violino in Cremona, Italy, a city that is famous for having been the home of master violin makers Andrea Amati, Antonio Stradivari, and Guiseppe Guaneri. We visited Cremona in 2015 and sat down with Paolo to learn what inspired him to lead an effort to create a museum for the violin in Cremona and what we can learn about h...

Ms. Pine begins this part of the interview with the story of an unusual experience she had once while playing a very special violin. She also discusses her desire to bring the work of composers of African heritage into the mainstream of classical music.

Internationally acclaimed concert violinist, recording artist, educator, and philanthropist, The New York Times describes Rachel Barton Pine as “Striking and charismatic…she demonstrated a bravura technique and soulful musicianship.” Here she tells the story of her early life and love of the violin.

Joe McHugh is a storyteller, fiddler, and award-winning public radio journalist who travels the world exploring the many roles the violin family of instruments play in society today. He has interviewed gifted musicians who play a variety of styles—classical, folk, jazz, and rock—as well as master luthiers, dealers, collectors, tone wood producers, insurance agents, museum curators, rosin makers, s...