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

Led Zeppelin was blaring on the stereo and our violins trembled in the back seat. We devoured our fast food suppers as we zoomed along the dark winter highway to the big city two hours away from our small, rural Canadian town.

Anticipating the evening with mixed anxiety and excitement, our insides danced a quick nervous jig. We were travelling to the first of seven practices this month with a symphony orchestra and were already sick of the drive.

Ari, a 17-year-old fiddle student of mine, had never played in an orchestra but had won plenty of hardware at fiddle contests. Seeing the opportunity as great career experience, he reluctantly agreed to spend four Wednesdays and an entire weekend away from his friends in rehearsals. He was a proficient player and incredibly confident, which I hoped would keep him from bailing out before any music was played.

We were not at all prepared to play our parts since the music was held up by another orchestra until the day before. Thus the entire orchestra would have to sight-read (musician for fake it or die a terrible death) the music with the rest of the orchestra.

Under normal circumstances I wouldn’t have been nervous in the least. I played first violin for a year with the symphony, but had spent a couple years pregnant then raising my son. My mind had turned into a mish-mash of strained carrots and Barney and I was worrying about everything all at once.

Did I still have what it took to play with an orchestra? Was the cat fed today? Would I be able to stay awake at the rehearsal after only 4 hours sleep the night previous? Did I leave the stove on? Would my child survive at home with my unobservant husband? What if the conductor asked me to play in front of everyone else and I spontaneously forgot how to play the violin?

Leaving behind a toddler screaming for mommy was difficult, but no where near as frightening as the impending embarrassment that could have struck if I have lost my touch. My nervous tension grew as we approached the city lights.

After getting lost and being locked out of the building we were late, but thankfully, so was our boss, the section leader. We finally settled into our seats, clutching our violins with cold, shaking hands, and were met with intimidating folders crammed full of what a non-musician would think to be inkblot exams for testing the insane. On second thought, they very well could be tonight. The conductor raised his baton and we began.

Playing with a symphony is always wonderfully intense and the enormous volume within the orchestra is fantastic. Our conductor waved his hands with enthusiasm and the complete concentration everyone was immersed in was wonderfully intense. During an overture I was busy avoiding blasting unwanted notes when there was supposed to be silence and looking out for my young pupil beside me that he was on the same track.

For me the tension melted away when we pulled Beethoven Symphony No. 4 out of our folders.

Playing Beethoven was what inspired me to leave my warm cozy home and family to subject myself to potential humiliation. Playing Beethoven was enough incentive to keep all of us coming to rehearsals, though most of us were volunteers and weren’t paid to rehearse or perform in the concert. Playing Beethoven was what made the 4-hour drive in winter weather and midnight bedtime worthwhile.

Surprisingly, Ari was the one slumped over a kettledrum napping during the break, and not me. My maternal instinct took over and I helped him into a chair. He’s new to all this, I said to another player and she smirked and let him rest in peace, with full understanding of how the late rehearsals can drain a player. Players exchanged baby pictures, ate cake, then played Happy Birthday for a flautist.

Bruce, not The Maestro, but Bruce, was a great leader who told jokes and hung with the rest of us. His friendliness and encouragement always made orchestra rehearsals fun for me and I’m sure all the musicians played better as a result.

At one point he asked the rookie, Ari, how he was holding up with the music. Fine, Ari replied. How’s she doing, Bruce teased, looking at me, the teacher. Oh, I don’t know about her! Ari said with an impish grin. We all laughed and again I felt my tension evaporate until I was just having fun again.

After playing remarkably well and avoiding the wrath of the sectionleader we drove home and reflected on the events behind us. Ari was having the time of his life and became delirious and giddy with fatigue. At one point he took his violin out of the case and started playing hyper-fast jigs in the car, his bow bumping the soft ceiling. We laughed and sang and talked.

Inside I was cherishing the feeling of being back in my element: I’m playing Beethoven again I kept reminding myself as the words’ euphoric effect had not yet worn off. Ari thought playing with a symphony was pretty cool and was glad he was giving it a try.

I thought of all the other musicians around the world who were on their way home from rehearsals and concerts, dog-tired and hopelessly broke, but content because they were feeding their souls. In the weeks to come our duo would run out of gas in the middle of nowhere, my son would nearly drive my husband batty with frustration and Ari would expose my car stereo to so-called music featuring indecent bodily noises, but it was all part of the musicians’ experience.

It allowed me to play Beethoven again.

We cranked up the Zeppelin and air-guitared all the way back home through a light blizzard, enjoying every minute of the drive together.

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

Her 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

Country Music originated in early 20th century among the whites in Rural areas of West and South. The roots of this music lie in Ballads, English songs and Folk Songs. The term Country Music replaces what is popularly called Hill Billy Music.

Country Music has been associated with cowboy hats and boots. The fact is that apparel has got nothing to do with it. One of the veterans, Travis Tritt does not wear a hat. Country Music is a genre that means different things to different people. If you look over at their interpretations, you will find for some it is Johnny Cash’s weather beaten crooning or Shania Twain’s prancing-pony burlesque. Right since the beginning of the 21st century, Music Industry is divided and quite fractured as to what really the Country Music is. Most people say that, when they hear it, they know its country or its not.

The relationship is one if hate and love, either fans love it and hate other genres intensely. If you have met some hardcore country fans, you will notice, they will always find a way to hear it, no matter what state country radio currently finds itself in. Even if an artist’s presence on country radio represents a certain kind of success or acceptance, there’s no doubt that real country is always happening in the margins, in clubs and coffeehouses, and on smaller labels or self-produced records.

Recently very good different country records have been released by women artists like, the Dixie Chicks’ Home, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard chart, knocking Eminem down a bit. The other two, Kelly Willis’ Easy and Allison Moorer’s Miss Fortune, are also hailed as good country music. These two artists are not quite famous but they have a solid fan following. American Country Music is being popularized by various artists like Rhonda Vincent, Mandy Barnett, Brad Paisley, Hank Williams III and Danni Leigh.

Country Music has an association also, the Country Music Association (CMA), founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of only 233 members. This was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre. The objectives of the organization are to guide and enhance the development of Country Music throughout the world. They wish to show that it is a viable medium to advertisers, consumers and media. It provides a unity of purpose for the Country Music industry.

The association presents annual wards also. Annual awards are given in the following twelve categories: Entertainer, Male Vocalist, Female Vocalist, Horizon Award, Vocal Group, Vocal Duo, Single, Album, Song, Music Event, Music Video, and Musician.

Country Music is getting lot more world wide attention after the Country Music Annual Awards was shifted to New York.

An academy for this genre, the Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California. It was originally called the Country & Western Music Academy; and was formed by people who wanted to share their love of Country music.

Country Music had a set following earlier but now it is gaining number of fans day by day. Loud tuned ,good lyrics, special effects mark the various concerts held in America by various country artists.

#1 Country Music Resource

http://www.countrymusicland.com