Bowing Down Home Oral History Transcripts

File: wilsonteresa06group-oh-womenfiddling_M.mp3

Speakers:

TW - Teresa MacPhee Wilson

AM - Anne McPhee

MM - Marie MacIntyre

TB - Tracy Warren Burke

MW - Mary MacPhee Warren

GM - Gloria MacPhee MacInnis

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

File: wilsonteresa06group-oh-womenfiddling_M.mp3

Speakers:

MW – Mary MacPhee Warren

TW – Teresa MacPhee Wilson

MW: When I got married in Montreal, Aunt Hilda she was coming to my wedding, but I didn't know she was going to bring the fiddle. Everybody who was at the wedding wre Italian

File: wilsonteresa-oh-womenfiddling_M.mp3

Speakers:

TW – Teresa MacPhee Wilson

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

TW No women fiddlers at all, then.

KP I was going to ask you about that.

TW My aunt Hilda played. She was the only woman that

File: macdonaldfaber-oh-abusingthegift_M.mp3

Speakers:

FM – Rev. FaberMacDonald

FM: Your question brings up another consideration in terms of the gift, you see. I can recall the many different fiddlers who came from the little community where I was brought up, which is just about 10

File: trainorcecil06-oh-churchpicnics_M.mp3

Speakers:

CT – Cecil Trainor

KP: Tell me about the church picnics

CT: There'd be a picnic at the church. They'd have bag races and they'd have bingos and they'd have wheel of fortune and they'd set out

File: jonesandrew-oh-steannechanges_M.mp3

Speakers:

AJ – Andrew Jones

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

KP That's a very nice version of that tune.

AJ Yeah? We used to play [it] the old way -- I mean when it was first written it was kind of a …

File: macdonaldpaul-oh-gettingstarted_M.mp3

Speakers:

PM – Paul MacDonald

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

PM I played classical music for probably three years I guess it was, I quit when I was 12. I told my parents, "OK, no more classical violin. But I think I want to play fiddle

File: trainorcecil06-oh-cardplayingforhorses_M.mp3

Speakers:

CT – Cecil Trainor

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

CT: Then they used to have card playing for horses. Some fellow in the fall of the year would have an old horse that wouldn't be worth nothin', so he'd card play him. So I'

File: chaissonyoungpeter-oh-style_M.mp3

Speakers:

PC – "Young Peter" Chaisson

KC – Kevin Chaisson

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

KC We're all individuals, and I mean a teacher or whatever, they can only teach you so much. They can only show you so much, but you have to pick

File: macdonaldfaber-oh-theshadowside_M.mp3

Speakers:

FM – Rev Faver MacDonald

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

KP: What kind of stresses did this put on the lives of fiddlers, would you say?

FM: Well, for some it might have been quite heavy, simply because for

File: hornbyjim-oh-contests_M.mp3

Speakers:

JH – Jim Hornby

JH I can see that it's a fairly arbitrary result. Also, it's a small community and anybody's going to be a judge, they're not going to bring someone from Halifax to judge them. They're going to get some farmer

File: dayivan06-oh-jimmybearisto_M.mp3

Speaker:

ID – Ivan Day

JG – John Gauthier

KP – Speaker Ken Perlman

ID: I was in the insurance business at the last of it, and I used to get around, and I'd drop into Jimmy's for a few minutes.

KP: Into his shop

File: raffertyervin06-oh-basketsocials.mp3

Speakers:

ER – Ervan Rafferty

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

ER: They had basket socials back then, you know basket socials. They'd have sort of a get together. But it was mostly a card game if I remember right. The boys would be expected to

File: banksjimmy-oh-help,olderfids.mp3

Speakers:

JB – Jimmy Banks

KP – curator Ken Perlman

KP Would you find that the older fellows would take you aside and help you out?

JB Oh, if you asked them, yes, if you asked them for some information they'd tell you, you know,

File: gotellwilfred-oh-ducks_M.mp3

Speaker:

WG – Wilfred Gotell

KP – Curator Ken Perlman

WG Only one time I had resentment. I played down in Murray Harbor, a group of us; poor Fred [McCullough] was with us. There was four or us, no five of us, and we had to hire