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I'm working on a southern gospel (country) album that could use a fiddle on a few of the tracks. I've tried searching for a Fiddle V.I. but haven't had much luck. I came across one (MOTU Ethno World) that had a fiddle listed among several other ethnic instruments but i didn't want to spend nearly $300 just to get the fiddle sound. I also would like to get some sort of "strings" package that I could eventually use for your more typical orchestral arrangements. Granted, I have no knowledge or experience in writing that type of music, I'm a drummer turned rocker guitarist, but I do plan on studying and trying to learn how to compose so that I can open myself up to more listings. But in the meantime, I'm faced with the choice of hiring a session player to track a live part (which would be my preference if money were no object) for a couple of songs, or get a good V.I. that I could use on other projects later on. Suggestions? Advice? - Big Blue

Oct 1, 2008, 10:25am, bigbluebarry wrote:I'm working on a southern gospel (country) album that could use a fiddle on a few of the tracks. I've tried searching for a Fiddle V.I. but haven't had much luck. I came across one (MOTU Ethno World) that had a fiddle listed among several other ethnic instruments but i didn't want to spend nearly $300 just to get the fiddle sound. I also would like to get some sort of "strings" package that I could eventually use for your more typical orchestral arrangements. Granted, I have no knowledge or experience in writing that type of music, I'm a drummer turned rocker guitarist, but I do plan on studying and trying to learn how to compose so that I can open myself up to more listings. But in the meantime, I'm faced with the choice of hiring a session player to track a live part (which would be my preference if money were no object) for a couple of songs, or get a good V.I. that I could use on other projects later on. Suggestions? Advice? - Big BlueHey Big Blue,I seriously doubt a sample would work, because a fiddle player has so many articulations and human emotion.You MIGHT want to check out demos of the Garritan Stradivarius. I bought it awhile ago, and haven't had a chance to work with it much. It's pretty complicated to make it sound "real," but some people who have worked with it for awhile get fairly realistic renditions. I'm not sure anyone has done a "fiddle" demo.BTW, I think Garritan discontinued it, possibly because it's so difficult to master, I dunno.Good Luck!Ern

Hey Big Blue, if you don't have anylick with a VI try this http://efiddler.com/loops.htmThis guy is very inexpensive plus you just might get lucky with some of the free loops he offers on his site.good luck!

Ern... that's what I was afraid of, but I think I just needed to hear someone else say it. Bill... Thanks!!! I checked out a couple of his samples and I think I may be able to use them! - Big Blue

For exposed fiddle parts, it would be way less time consuming to just hire a good fiddle player for a couple of hours. If you sent them the tracks ahead of time and let them know what you are looking for, a good session player will show up with a few options to show you for each tune.Since you live so close to Nashville, I would think you couldn't swing a dead cat without knocking a fiddle player in the head!! BTW: The Garritan stradivarius is a great instrument but apparently Garritan severed his relationship with the Italian company that created the technology in the first place and it's no longer available. That company, Sample Modeling has a fantastic trumpet VI that really sounds great. I've used the Garritan violin as a concertmaster on some things and it really adds a nice "live" vibe to the first violin parts.EDIT: The East West Gold orchestra package is a really great sounding orchestra that a lot of composers on this forum use. The Kirk Hunter orchestra is also very good: http://www.kirkhunterstudios.com/ I've seen that you can download individual sections of the Vienna orchestra as well so you could build up your orchestra a little at a time. The Vienna samples are pretty dry so you need a good reverb along with them, the East West samples have the reverb sampled in which some prefer and some don't.

Oct 1, 2008, 11:26am, bigbluebarry wrote:Ern... that's what I was afraid of, but I think I just needed to hear someone else say it. Bill... Thanks!!! I checked out a couple of his samples and I think I may be able to use them! - Big BlueB.B. --- I'm not a string player, but I know that fiddle players use a lot of "double stops" (I believe that's what they're called), and that might be pretty hard to emulate.I'd vote for hiring someone for "lead" parts, and if you can find some good fiddle samples that work for rhythm parts, that would be gravy! I once hired a fiddle player for a client of mine, and he really knew the style, all the"slips and slides." He nailed the session in about one hour. It really sounded great!Best Regards,Ern

Mazz... I know at least one fiddle player down here, and I'm sure I could find another one without trying too hard. It's really more of a money issue, big suprise eh? I'm doing this project as a gift for my mom so everything is coming out of my pocket, including the CD duplication costs, so I'm trying to as cost-effective as I can everywhere else. I want to get the most bang for the buck. But at the same time, don't want to sacrifice quality so I'm probably going to end up hiring the guy I know. I think you guys have helped answer my question for me And thanks for the tips on the orchestra. I'll have to check that one out. I love this forum!!!- Big Blue

Hi Blue;One option is to find an orchestra or fiddle student willing to perform/ record for free or for a reduced rate. -- Some are looking for ways to build up their demo reel, and others are excited to have the experience of recording. Others may be willing to trade for a drum or guitar lesson.I'd suggest putting a listing out in Craigslist.net . . . Just a thought.Good luck with the project!Suz

Double stops with one note scooped-what a guitarist would call an oblique bend, are idiomatic to fiddle, and almost no synthesizer is equipped to handle that, (other than Yamaha's DX100) meaning holding a note stationary while bending another. You can do it on a MIDI fiddle (and if you can play the dang fiddle you wouldn't need the MIDI anyhow) and you can do it on a MIDI guitar if it's set up so each string is generating MIDI notes on its own channel. With a great set of samples, careful attention to the note attacks and some intense programming and editing, it still won't sound much like a fiddle, at least not for exposed parts. If you just need rhythm/background parts, it's really not that tough to learn a little shuffle bowing, though. Nice thing about studio work, you only have to get it right once.

Blue,For duplication: How many discs do you need, and what sort of artwork on the disc itself?I have a perfectly good bravo disc duplicator, the ink, and the discs. I would be happy to print em full color for exactly my cost and the mail fee.Others would probably be happy to do the same.I do NOT have a laminator, but that is usually not too bad of a problem. If the discs are touched with wet hands they may smudge or land ink on fingers. Most people have relatively dry hands when handling such things, though.If you're looking for retail ready, in shrink wrap, I can't help there. But I can get you the discs on a spindle, ready to go.If it's a short run, you probably would save a small fortune.Send a PM if you wanna look at the idea.Good luck with this!