Event Title
Demonstration of an Old-Time Fiddlers’ Contest
Location
Georgia State University - Dahlberg Hall
Start Date
6-4-2013 4:00 PM
End Date
6-4-2013 4:30 PM
Description
The main event of the Georgia Old-Time Fiddlers Conventions was the contest among the fiddlers who entered the competition in hopes of becoming the year’s Georgia Old-Time Fiddle Champion. This contest was held on the last evening of the convention. The fiddlers spent the preceding days of the convention warming up and sharpening their styles by playing on the preliminary programs and participating in jam sessions in the back alleys and front sidewalks surrounding the auditorium. Typically, there were three judges whose job was to decide the first place winner as well as second, third, and lower places. The judges at some of the contests were actual jurists. Two of the three judges at the 1913 contest, for example, were Judge Dick Russell of the Georgia Court of Appeals and Judge Andy Calhoun of the Atlanta City Court. Contestants were allowed to play a few tunes, but the judges based their decisions on the last tune played. The typical contestant was a male of a mature age who had spent years learning new tunes and perfecting his technique. But over the years audiences at the conventions witnessed two exceptions to this. A female fiddler was eventually allowed to enter the contests, and at another convention a much younger male contestant out played his competition to win first place.
Demonstration of an Old-Time Fiddlers’ Contest
Georgia State University - Dahlberg Hall
The main event of the Georgia Old-Time Fiddlers Conventions was the contest among the fiddlers who entered the competition in hopes of becoming the year’s Georgia Old-Time Fiddle Champion. This contest was held on the last evening of the convention. The fiddlers spent the preceding days of the convention warming up and sharpening their styles by playing on the preliminary programs and participating in jam sessions in the back alleys and front sidewalks surrounding the auditorium. Typically, there were three judges whose job was to decide the first place winner as well as second, third, and lower places. The judges at some of the contests were actual jurists. Two of the three judges at the 1913 contest, for example, were Judge Dick Russell of the Georgia Court of Appeals and Judge Andy Calhoun of the Atlanta City Court. Contestants were allowed to play a few tunes, but the judges based their decisions on the last tune played. The typical contestant was a male of a mature age who had spent years learning new tunes and perfecting his technique. But over the years audiences at the conventions witnessed two exceptions to this. A female fiddler was eventually allowed to enter the contests, and at another convention a much younger male contestant out played his competition to win first place.