Swingin' Jazz Violin: Improvisation and Musicianship for Fiddlers

Instructor Matt Glaser, for the last 18 years chairman of the String Department at the renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston, and accompanist to the likes of Stephane Grappelli, Lee Konitz and David Grisman, knows his way around a fiddle. Aimed at violinists who have put in a few years on their instruments, Swingin' Jazz Violin features Glaser providing innumerable tips and insights into the theory of the violin, using call-and-response techniques for four-bar improvs, and sharing bowing techniques. He makes good use of violin solos by Claude "Fiddler" Williams and Stephane Grappelli to illustrate how a solo is built, both rhythmically and melodically. In fact, these lessons are so intensive and full of musical insights that I learned a good deal about improvising even though I'm a pianist, not a violinist. Highly recommended. (P. Van Vleck)