Phil Berthoud
Fiddle, Guitar & Mandolin Performer, Author, Teacher, Composer, Arranger
07527 006437
contact@philberthoud.com
NEW REEL BOOKS!
Irish Jigs – Reverse Bowing

Irish Jigs – Reverse Bowing

by | May 11, 2024 | Fiddle

When I first started learning to play Irish traditional music on fiddle, I found, like most people, that jigs were easier to get to grips with than reels.  The main reason, looking back, was that you could play them fairly convincingly with minimal slurs.  When it...
Bringing Reels to Life – Collier’s Reel 2

Bringing Reels to Life – Collier’s Reel 2

by | Jan 22, 2024 | Fiddle

This version of Collier’s Reel puts all the points mentioned previously into practice, as well as some variations.  The tune has been written out in full to give space for the variation ideas. Bar 1 – starts off with two slurred sets of notes and then, on the third...
Bringing Reels to Life – Collier’s Reel 2

Bringing Reels to Life – Collier’s Reel

by | Jan 22, 2024 | Fiddle

If you want to inject some life into your reels, make them light, fast and foot-tapping then this article will help.  Things like intonation, ornamentation, tone and variations are important, but what really makes a reel fly is the bowing. Below, I’ll go through the...
Tips for Great-Sounding Double Stops

Tips for Great-Sounding Double Stops

by | Jan 19, 2024 | Fiddle

A very characteristic aspect of traditional fiddle playing is the use of double-stops, or playing two strings at once. Here, I’ll explain the 4 types of double stops, and show you how to incorporate them into a tune.  The four kinds of double-stop are: Double-stops...
Bringing Hornpipes to Life – Part 1

Bringing Hornpipes to Life – Part 1

by | Jan 19, 2024 | Fiddle

For this article, I’m looking at Irish hornpipes and how to bring them to life with sound bowing.  Hornpipes should have a real swing to them.  Often this is lacking, and it’s partly to do with the way that they’re often notated.  A lot of hornpipe sheet music has the...