Bridging fiddle and classical communities in Calgary, Canada : the Baroque & Buskin’ String Orchestra

Driving the BowFiddle and Dance Studies from around the North Atlantic 2 Elisa Sereno-Janz is a fiddler and a classical violinist in Calgary, Canada.She became interested in folk music as a vehicle for teaching music while studying at the University of Western Ontario.Inspired by teaching at fiddle camps in Alberta, she started the Baroque & Buskin' Strings, an amateur fiddle and baroque string orchestra in Calgary.Currently she is pursuing her interest in alternative and contemporary styles for string ensembles.185 15 Bridging fiddle and classical communities in Calgary, Canada: the Baroque & Buskin' String Orchestra ELISA SERENO-JANZ T he Baroque & Buskin' String Orchestra in Calgary, Alberta, Canada was created toprovide a social environment where people of all ages and musical backgrounds have the opportunity to pursue music as a means of expressing creativity in their lives.I will discuss how making music in a social context is important to lasting enjoyment of musical pursuits, how an atmosphere of non-judgment and noncompetitiveness leads to more satisfaction and the freedom to be expressive and, how breaking down the barriers of musical and social segregation creates a community of cooperation.I will also explain how fiddle music and baroque music are related, how the performance of these two styles support each other, and how they are the vehicles through which the primary aim of this orchestra is achieved. Making music in a social contextMany amateur and professional musicians seek out musical groups with which they can practise and perform.Socially, they have the chance to make friends with similar interests.Musically, they have something to practise for, and there are o�en opportunities to perform.Music is an art which can be enjoyed as a private pastime and a way of unwinding a�er a stressful day, yet it seems that the pleasure is magnified when there is an opportunity to make music with others.In my twenty-five years of experience as a violin and fiddle teacher, I have found that those students who have opportunities to play with other musicians continue to enjoy music throughout their lives, whereas those who practise alone and have no social connection to music o�en turn to other activities.Whether in a small ensemble of two, a large group of fi�y or any of the possibilities in between, I believe that the ensemble experience is essential to the continuation of the enjoyment of music.Steven Mithen, Professor of Early Prehistory and Head of the School of Human and Environmental Sciences at the University of Reading, England, notes: 'music-making is first and foremost a shared activity, not just in the modern Western world, but throughout human cultures and history.' 1It is natural to our humanity to desire to make music with others.John Holt (1923-1985), a well-known educator who wrote several insightful books about the

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