This podcast continues my conversation with two remarkable and thoughtful musicians. It also explores how the principles of abstract geometry can inform both the composition and performance of violin music and how different cultures and musical

Purnaprajna Bangere & David Balakrishnan - Mathematics as Muse - Part 1

Apr 3rd, 2022 46m 20s

Purnaprajna Bangere is both a brilliant mathematician and a highly-respected violinist trained in the classical violin music of southern India. David Balakrishnan is a violinist, composer, and member of the Turtle Island String Quartet who live

Bashar Matti - Iraqi-American Violinist

Mar 7th, 2022 42m 48s

Bashar Matti was born in Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War and endured the troubled times of the Kuwait-Iraq War and subsequent United States invasion of his country. Through it all he clung to his love of the violin and music and was eventually ab

Amanda Forsyth - Cellist

Feb 27th, 2022 54m 56s

Amanda Forsyth is a cellist who was born in South Africa and grew up in Canada. Her father was a composer who inspired her to become a musician. She is married to the violinist Pinchas Zukerman and I interviewed her after a concert she performe

Daniel Rouslin and the Mystery of the Hidden Violin

Feb 20th, 2022 39m 5s

Daniel Rouslin taught violin and music theater at Willamette University for many years. He was teaching there in 1988 when an early 18th century Italian violin was discovered hidden under the floor boards of Waller Hall, the oldest building on

Rhiannon Giddens - Fiddler, Banjoist, and Singer

Feb 13th, 2022 1h

Grammy and MacArthur award winner Rhiannon Giddens grew up in North Carolina near the city of Greensboro, which is where I interviewed her in 2015 while she was performing at the National Folk Festival. A founding member of the Carolina Chocola

John Sherba - Violinist with the Kronos Quartet - Part 2

Feb 6th, 2022 54m 53s

This is part two of my conversation with violinist John Sherba who is a member of the Kronos Quartet. In this podcast he talks about some of the quartet's innovative musical projects as well as talking about his own violins.

John Sherba - Violinist with the Kronos Quartet - Part 1

Feb 6th, 2022 52m 55s

John Sherba is a violinist and member of the legendary Kronos Quartet. I interviewed John several months after the Covid 19 pandemic changed everyone's life. Here he talks about his family and his own musical journey.

Tony Ellis - Musician, Composer, and Trader of Musical Instruments

Jan 31st, 2022 1h 3m

Tony Ellis' first professional job as a musician was playing banjo for Bill Monroe, considered by many as the father of bluegrass music. Along with being a gifted banjo player and fiddler, Tony also composes some of the sweetest tunes this side

Marco Imer Piccinotti - Italian Violin Maker - Part 2

Jan 23rd, 2022 40m 23s

This is part two of my conversation with violin maker Marco Imer Piccinotti who lives in the town of San Polo d'Enza in Northern Italy.

Marco Imer Piccinotti - Italian Violin Maker - Part 1

Jan 23rd, 2022 48m 14s

Marco Imer Piccinotti is a highly-regarded violin maker living in the town of San Polo d'Enza in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. Paula and I visited Marco at his home where I recorded this interview.

Christian Howes - Jazz Violin and the Hero’s Journey - Part 2

Jan 18th, 2022 45m 12s

This is part two of my fascinating interview with violinist and music educator Christian Howes.

Christian Howes - Jazz Violin and the Hero’s Journey - Part 1

Jan 18th, 2022 1h 4m

Christian Howes is a gifted violinist who grew up in Ohio playing classical music, soloing with the Columbus Symphony at the age of sixteen. But then his life was turned upside down when he was sentenced to served four years in prison. I travel

Mark Keenan - Irish Violin Maker

Jan 5th, 2022 1h 4m

I recorded this hour-long interview with violin maker Mark Keenan in 2017 when my wife Paula and I traveled to Ireland. Mark's studio is inside the historic Belmont industrial flour mill in Co. Offaly. Mark's grandfather was also a violin maker

Jody Stecher - Old-time Musician - Part Two

Dec 14th, 2021 56m 21s

Here is part two on my conversation with old-time musician Jody Stecher that ranges from music theory, what's in tune and what's not in tune when playing different fiddle tunes for instance, to the intricacies of an old ballad about two sisters

Jody Stecher - Old-time Musician - Part One

Dec 14th, 2021 51m 21s

Jody Stecher is one of the most highly respected folk musicians in the world today. His knowledge of the genre is encyclopedic and his singing and skill on a variety of traditional string instruments is unrivaled. I interviewed Jody at his home

Courtney Granger - Louisiana Fiddler

Sep 30th, 2021 45m 47s

While attending the National Folk Festival in Greensboro, North Carolina, in 2015, I had the opportunity to interview fiddler Courtney Granger who was performing at the festival with the Pine Leaf Boys. Sadly, Courtney passed away recently and

Clay Buckner - Fiddler With the Red Clay Ramblers

May 1st, 2021 49m 20s

Clay Buckner is an old-time and Celtic fiddler living in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. For many years, Clay has been the fiddler for one of my favorite string bands, the Red Clay Ramblers. I recorded this interview at his home after which we spe

Michael Certalic - A Custom-made Violin for a Montana Violinist

Jul 28th, 2020 53m 53s

Michael Certalic is a violinist who lives in Bozeman, Montana, where he heads up the strings program at a local high school. In this podcast, he tells the story of a violin he asked a luthier to make that would contain elements of Montana, a st

James Kelly - Irish Fiddler

Jun 2nd, 2020 1h 7m

I interviewed James Kelly at the National Folklore Festival in 2015 in Greensboro, North Carolina. Mr. Kelly was born and grew up in Ireland and is now living in the United States. His father was the renowned fiddle and concertina player John K

The Violin-Building for Musician Aid Project

Apr 26th, 2020 1h 1m

The interviews I conducted with musicians, luthiers, museum curators, tone wood experts and others for the Rosin the Bow project took place before the Covid 19 pandemic upended all our lives. The impact of the pandemic upon the livelihood of wo

Penny Brill - The Healing Power of Music

Apr 23rd, 2020 1h 8m

Penny Brill is an accomplished violist with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. She has also led an effort to bring the healing power of music to hospitals and other medical organizations in the greater Pittsburgh area. I interviewed Ms. Brill a

Hans Johannsson - Icelandic Violin Maker

Apr 5th, 2020 56m 36s

Hans Johannsson is a violin maker from Iceland. David Fulton is a noted collector of old Italian violins, violas, and cellos. I met and interviewed Hans when he came to David's house in Bellevue, Washington, to examine his collection of rare in

Bruce Molsky - Old-Time Fiddler and Singer

Mar 29th, 2020 1h 5m

Anyone familiar with what is called "old-time" music knows the name Bruce Molsky. As a fiddler, singer, and guitar and banjo player, he has helped keep traditional American folk music alive and well for the better part of fifty years. I intervi

Lyris Hung - Acoustic/Electric Violinist and Marketer of Violin Strings

Mar 22nd, 2020 49m 18s

Lyris is the former head of marketing for orchestral strings for the D'Addario Musical Strings Company. She is also an accomplished violinist who plays with the popular musical group Indigo Girls. She also has her own rock band named Hung. I in