CMT Blog: Archive

If you were poring over country albums in the 1980s and 1990s, then you're familiar with fiddler Mark O'Connor, who appeared on more than 450 projects as a session player and won six consecutive CMA awards for musician of the year. Now living in a small New York City apartment, O'Connor had to cull his collection to just 15 instruments. In this New Yorker video feature, with his violins displayed on the wall behind him, O'Connor emphasizes that aspiring violinists need a working knowledge of jazz as well as classical music. He also explains his new violin method that makes it easier for kids to pursue whatever style of music intrigues them. O'Connor has long been a dedicated teacher at fiddle camps, guiding prodigies like 15-year-old Sam Weiser, who covered O'Connor's swingin' "Gypsy Fantastic" on his own debut album, Sam I Am. In this interesting video feature with Time, O'Connor explains how he's teaching cultural history through his new violin method. Even better, you can hear O'Connor and Weiser rehearse and perform -- tying together the various strings of American music.