Canada’s Interior Provincial Exhibition in British Columbia is renowned for its prize-winning pigs, 10-gallon hats and cowboys being flung from the backs of snorting bulls.

Did I mention classical violin music?

In 2001 the IPE hosted the Festival of the Arts, an all classical, jazz and theatre venue in the heart of the fairgrounds. I’d honestly never been out to the fair before but was hired to emcee and play violin in the new event.

From the moment I pulled into the dusty parking lot full of pickups and horse trailers I knew I was in for an interesting five days. Dressed in a formal satin gown I entered Armstrong’s Centennial Hall as farmers and cowboys watched with curiosity and suspicion. Imagine a decked-out diva playing Mozart in the “Tumbleweed Saloon” and you get the picture. Though the carnies teased me that I’d "gotten lost on the way to the opera house" I smiled coyly: I had an ace up my sleeve.

In the past I’d gotten myself into all sorts of embarrassing gigs where the music did not suit the venue. As a relatively shy and inexperienced performer I was hired to play classical violin at the formal (and final) Royal Canadian Mounted Police Regimental Ball in Trail, BC in 1997. The evening consisted of over 100 less-than-sober Mounties and dignitaries who incessantly requested “Achy Breakie Heart,” a song I was certainly not prepared to play that night.

I was obligated by my contract to play all classical repetoire and it was with much effort I was able to sustain it to the end of my set. Just before packing up I surrendered to play a few fiddle tunes. The crowd went wild and I was thrown from background music to front and center entertainer, a place I was far to shy to want to be.

I left the party just as some resourceful officers at the nearest table discovered their wide-brim hats could also function as frisbees. I couldn’t have felt more out of place!

To keep everyone feeling comfortable in the concert hall each style of music has developed a distinct set of audience protocols.

For example, Jazz modus operandi requires we clap after the solos, whereas proper classical etiquette insists the audience hold applause until all the movements are completed. Folk and country music’s tradition has us clapping with the beat.

By stark contrast there was no clapping permitted in Baroque concerts held in churches during the 1600’s. Always looking for a way around the formality, Antonio Vivaldi’s inventive fans adapted a way of showing their appreciation for the music by shuffling their feet, coughing and blowing their noses loudly.

If stuffy clergy could bring themselves to blow their schnozzes in appreciation, I could modify my performance to make my classical music suit the audience. Along came a considerable challenge: I was invited to play British Columbia’s wacky “Streetfest” alongside fire-swallowers, stilt-walkers and sultry female impersonators.

I couldn’t be shy at this gig so I carefully developed a “circle show” that helped me fit into the zany antics while still doing what came naturally to me. Clad in an extravagant red sequined gown and combat boots I played the overstated role of “Virtuoso Violinist,” a direct poke at classical music’s stuffiness.

Keeping it simple I performed the same set of music I always played, but this time on my 5-string Zeta electric violin, and amused the audience with hilarious true stories about classical composers.

The result was an entertaining educational show that made classical music and it’s history accessible to people of all ages and music preferences. Analogous to protein-rich chocolate-coated ants, it was a sneaky way of making classical music more palatable! Disasters such as the infamous “Mountie Incident” would hopefully never happen again.

Though they squirmed in their seats at first, the farmers and cowboys at the IPE were pleasantly surprised to discover a hidden appreciation for classical music in each of my and other groups’ performances. One such ensemble, the “Stoney String Quartet,” earned the audiences’ admiration and respect for their musicality and familiar backround.

The group of siblings played superb classical music in addition to working on their parents’ farm building barns, haying and processing poultry. It was amusing to imagine the nimble fingers that plucked out delightful melodies under the bright lights of the stage also plucked chickens back on the family farm.

Thanks to receptive audiences the IPE had a Jazz and Classical festival that year where showing appreciation for a great saxophone solo, a magnificent Shakespeare sonnet or a Mozart masterpiece meant yelling “YEE HA” at the top of your lungs!

It sure beat blowing your nose for five days.

**Rhiannon Schmitt (nee Nachbaur) is a professional violinist and music teacher who has enjoyed creative writing for years.

She currently writes columns for two Canadian publications and has been featured in Australia’s Music Teacher Magazine. Writing allows her to teach people that the world of music is as fun as you spin it to be!

Rhiannon’s business, Fiddleheads Violin School & Shop, has won several distinguished young entrepreneur business awards for her commitment to excellence. Her shop offers beginner to professional level instruments, accessories and supplies for very reasonable prices: Visit http://www.fiddleheads.ca

Rhiannon is also Founding President of the Shuswap Violin Society which promotes violin & fiddle music and helps young musicians in need: http://www.violinsociety.ca

When the day of the gig arrives, youll need to pack some essentials. You will want to take a bottle of water with you, and some money, (although I mostly avoid, the array of merchandise) and you will also need some music, for the way there and back. An mp3 player is good, or some CDs if youre going by car. If its a rave, dont forget your glow-sticks. Finally, when you have your tickets in hand, youre ready to go. Set off early, as its a lot better than being late.

On the way there, my friends and I always play the music of the band we are going to see. It gets us pumped up for the gig, and also if its the kind of band, where you can learn some of the lyrics, then its always good to sing-along with the band at the gig.

When we get there, we find the venue first, and if weve got time, we go for something to eat or drink. Inside the venue, I like to get as close to the front as possible and most people also want the same, but I usually manage to get within the first eight rows of people.

Its important to throw yourself into the performance of the main band as much as possible, and you can only have a break from the one footed, swaying, moshing experience, if you literally going to be sick, or faint, within the next five seconds. Until that point, you must carry on, regardless.

Remember what clothes your friends are wearing, and then between songs, you can find your friends again, if you have been separated (and if you want to find them again). Failing that, take a flag with you and wave that about.

When the gig is over, wait around incase there is an encore, and if so, go even crazier than the last song you just heard. If not, be happy with your ringing ears, and aching limbs, and feel sorry for whoever has to drive home like that. Drink your water, if you took some, or find a twenty-four hour supermarket, and stack up on bottles of water and sugary snacks. Another great idea, is to phone all your friends and tell what an awesome gig they missed. They might be asleep, but it doesnt matter, they need to hear about it now.

On the journey back, I do not listen to the band Ive just seen as the music on CD always seems a bit flat, after hearing it live. I avoid that CD for a few days, but instead listen to similar music, or if I have another gig coming up, I listen to that CD on the way home.

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