SCVFA Youth Programs

Playing traditional music is an activity for people of all ages. The SCVFA has been a family organization since its inception, and we encourage and welcome young musicians to participate in our monthly jamboree.

Our Beginners' Circle is a slow-jam session led by an experienced player. It's aimed at musicians of all ages (not just fiddlers!) who prefer a slower pace and more structure than an open jam. Check the Beginners' Circle page for details, including music for most tunes the group has played so far.

We also have two programs aimed specifically at young fiddlers:

KidFiddle Youth Fiddle Workshops, aimed at the advanced-beginner to intermediate student, are offered several times each year–usually at the October jam plus a couple of times in the spring. The workshops are generally led by a well-known musician, sometimes in conjunction with a concert. The SCVFA underwrites the workshops, so tuition is typically only $5 per student. After the workshop, the students play for our audience to show what they've learned — and to gain some experience playing on stage. KidFiddle instructors have included Luke Abbott, Kenny Blacklock, Larry Chung, Tashina and Tristan Clarridge, John Francis, Richard Greene, Brittany Haas, Arthur Kee, Sarah Kirton, Laurie Lewis, Megan Lynch, Nancy Solomon and Jack Tuttle. See our Events page for information about upcoming KidFiddle workshops.

The SCVFA Youth Fiddle Contest is for fiddlers up to 17 years old, and is held at our monthly jam on the first Sunday of November. Contestants receive custom ribbons and individual certificates, and and can win cash prizes and other awards. This has been a fun event for both contestants and the audience. Click the contest link above for more contest information.

SCVFA Youth Fiddle Contestants, 2003 Richard Brooks Photo

This nice video of the 2010 contest, taken by LiPo Ching of the San Jose Mercury News, shows some of the contestants preparing and performing (after a brief ad).

Our 11^th contest was held November 4, 2012. We had 21 contestants in the three divisions. Thanks to all the contestants and their families, and to the many SCVFA volunteers who all helped make it a successful event. The winners are listed below. (Hover your cursor over a name to see the contestant's teacher, if specified, and the tunes played.)

This year Jaclyn Chiew was Contest Chair, with Pete Showman as co-chair. If you would be interested in helping organize the 2013 contest, we'd love to hear from you!

Winners from the November 4, 2012 (11^th Annual) contest:

Winners from the November 6, 2011 (10^th Annual) contest:

Winners from the November 7, 2010 (9^th Annual)

Winners from the November 1, 2009 (8^th Annual) contest:

Winners from the November 2, 2008 (7^th Annual) contest:

Winners from the November 4, 2007 (6^th Annual) contest:

Winners from the November 5, 2006 (5^th Annual) contest:

Winners from the November 6, 2005 (4^th Annual) contest:

Winners from the November 7, 2004 (3^rd Annual) contest:

Winners from the November 2, 2003 (2^nd Annual) contest:

Winners from the November 3, 2002 contest (our first):

In the past we granted several scholarships to young players for fiddle instruction, but we don't currently offer scholarships.

Updated 9/13/11