Bonnaroo 2012 Stringed Musicians

By Stefan Aune and Angie Newgren of Fein Violins 

The 10th annual Bonnaroo music festival will be held this year from June 7-10 in Manchester, Tennessee. Bonnaroo is well known for its diverse lineups and arts and crafts atmosphere; in addition to the music there are usually artists selling handmade products along with movie screenings and live comedy. From Eminem to Neil Young, Bonnaroo has something for everyone, and it routinely features some of the best and; brightest of bluegrass, folk, and country-tinged rock. We wanted to feature a few of our favorite folk and bluegrass artists performing at Bonnaroo, many of whom include stringed instruments in their sound.

The Avett Brothers

Rachel Barton Pine. Violin Soloist. Head Banger.

Written by Andy Fein, luthier at Fein Violins
and Angela NewgrenRachel Barton Pine. Concert violin soloist. Metal head. Head Banger. Baroque violinist. Electric violinist. The gal does it all.

Rachel Barton Pine

Talented on her instrument, playing solo performances, writing music and traveling across the globe to perform, Rachel Barton Pine's off-stage life remains just as accomplished. Whether she is teaching lessons, working at a summer camp for young musicians, promoting music education, or jammin' back stage with metal junkies, Rachel Barton Pine uses her talents to give back to the community.

Rachel Barton Pine started violin lessons at three years old.

7/8 Size Violins and Cellos. The Right Size?

Written by Andy Fein, luthier at Fein Violins

The 7/8 size for violins and cellos is a somewhat rare and odd creature. Not quite a full size and definitely larger than a 3/4 size. If you feel, for any reason, that a full size instrument is too big for you, then you might consider a 7/8 size.

Generally, if you are at about 5 feet tall, you are right in the range of the person that might need a 7/8 size. There are also other factors: your age, the length of your arm, the length of you fingers, arthritis, and muscle or tendon injuries.

This is the right size!

Judy Kang's Dream Life - From Bach, Lalo & Glazunoz to Lady Gaga

Written By: Andy Fein, luthier at Fein Violins
Stefan Aune and Angela Newgren


"I live in a dream world." Judy Kang is an extraordinary Canadian violinist who has lived the dream life of many musicians. She first picked up the violin at age four. Shortly after, she was auditioning for solo performances and soon began appearing as a soloist with orchestras around the world. At age 11 she was accepted into the Curtis Institute of Music where she earned a Bachelor's degree in music on a full scholarship. At age 19, (two years after finishing her Bachelor's) she was awarded another scholarship and began work on a Master's degree from Julliard.

Judy Kang

Judy Kang has performed in many great places and for many great people. Her career as a violinist (solo and chamber) has taken her to Carnegie Hall (sold out show!), Tokyo Suntory Hall, Schubert Hall in Vienna, and many other famous venues. She has performed for Bill Clinton, Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, and other important leaders around the world.

She was also chosen by Lady Gaga to join Gaga's "Monster Ball Tour" (January 2010 to May 2011). Putting down her 1689 "Baumgartner" Stradivarius,  Judy Kang picked up a pink Mark Wood "Viper" electric violin for the tour.

Bonnaroo 2011. A Great Year for String Players.

Written by: Andy Fein, Luthier at Fein Violins
and Angie Newgren


Bonnaroo is an annual music and arts festival held in Manchester, Tennessee. This was it's tenth year. Hope everyone stayed cool and had fun!

Just in case you're a violin, viola or cello player, and need some inspiration to play outside the classical music box, here is a list of some of the musicians performing this year who include stringed instruments of the violin family in their performance. The genres vary to the extreme:

Round or Octagonal Bows?

Written by Amy Tobin of Fein Violins

Design question- Octagonal bow stick or Round bow stick - We get asked this question a lot!
The answer is really whichever bow sounds best with your violin (or viola, or cello), and whichever bow feels best to you (hopefully they are one and the same!).

This photo is an example
of a round stick:

Violin bow with round stick

And here is an example

Plugging in and Making Noise!

 Written by Amy Tobin of Fein Violins

Now you have your electric violin. The question is, what do you do with it?
The good news is, once you've plugged in, the world is definitely your oyster!
Do you want to play cleanly and clearly, with a smooth sound a little bit of reverb? You can do that.
Do you want to turn it up loud and start shredding like your favorite electric guitarist? You can do that, too! Really, when it comes to the kinds of sounds you can create when you are plugged in, the only limitation is your imagination!

Now that you are plugged in, there are a few essentials that I would suggest for you.

Electric Violins Part II - Solid!

 Written by Amy Tobin of Fein Violins

Electric violins are cool! Sometimes you just need to plug in and make a sound that people can hear, which is when you might want to use a pickup. Sometimes, however, you want to plug in and make a really rockin' sound that EVERYONE can hear!!! Yes, that is when you will probably want to use a full on, solid body electric violin!

Now, the difference between a pickup (or an acoustic/electric) and a solid body electric violin is

Electric Violins Part I - The Pickup Artist

 Written by Amy Tobin, violinist and manager of Fein Violins:

It's really hard to stand in front of a microphone and play. You have to be close enough, but not so close that the mic hits your violin, you have to stand pretty still when you play,  you have to sometimes maneuver your bow around in different ways, and sometimes you want to sing at the same time. Well, lucky for you (and me!) there are options.

There are two basic ways to go about plugging in so you and your beautiful sound can be heard; pickups and solid body electric violins. This post will cover some of the basic information for pickups.