Fiddler's Frolic – April 26-28, 2024

History of Fiddler's Frolic

The fiddle was first used in the tenth century in Europe and was derived from the ‘Byzantine lira,’ a bowed string instrument used in the Byzantine Empire. The lira paved the way for most European bowed instruments. Persian geographer, Ibn Khurradadhbih, first referenced the bowed lira in his lexicographical discussion of instruments in the ninth century. He cited it as a musical instrument of the Byzantines and an equivalent to the rabāb played in the Islamic empires.

Lira soon became widely used and spread westward to Europe so much that in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, European writers used the terms fiddle and lira interchangeably when referring to bowed musical instruments. After spreading to Europe, the fiddle spread to other parts of the world, especially the U.S. By the mid-1600s, black fiddlers were playing for black and white dancers at street celebrations in the Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam, New York City. This trend continued and by 1690 slave fiddlers were providing music at plantation balls in Virginia.

As lots of people took up fiddling over the years, it was only a matter of time before a celebration or competition was set up. In 1971, Fiddler’s Frolics was set up to celebrate and compete in fiddling. Texas has been the home of the competition since its inception with a lot of competitors and fans coming from all over the U.S. to join in on the celebration.