Marking 20 years, Vermont Fiddle Orchestra to honor current, past directors

November 18, 2023  |  By Waterbury Roundabout 

The Vermont Fiddle Orchestra eschews traditional concert black for colorful outfits in their 2022 winter concert. Courtesy photo

Music by and with past and present directors will feature prominently in the Vermont Fiddle Orchestra’s winter concert marking its 20th anniversary on Dec. 2 at the Barre Opera House. 

The performance starts at 7 p.m. with traditional music chosen to be uplifting and uniting, especially in times of hardship. Admission is by donation with proceeds going to Barre and Montpelier Flood Relief.

On the program is guest soloist Sarah Hotchkiss who started the orchestra, Vermont’s first statewide fiddle orchestra. Accompanying her will be her husband, John Mowad, who composed the tunes they will play with the orchestra, including “Veefer Swing #2” which he wrote for the orchestra’s 10th anniversary. The couple are now semi-retired and continue to teach private lessons at their home in Winooski.

The orchestra will also honor its previous director David Kaynor by performing several of his tunes. Kaynor took over when Hotchkiss retired in 2013, helping to grow the orchestra to approximately 50 active musicians at any one time and developing members’ interests in Swedish music and in playing by ear. 

Susan Reid joined the orchestra soon after Kaynor, her friend and mentor, and became the orchestra's musical director. When his health made it harder for Kaynor to always lead the orchestra, Reid stepped up as assistant music director, making it possible for the VFO to continue, and benefiting from Kaynor’s musicianship and mentorship until the end of 2019. 

The concert will feature three lively tunes composed by Reid as well, including an aptly named walking tune called “Warm in Winter.”

Peter Macfarlane was so appreciated as the Vermont Fiddle Orchestra’s guest artist in 2019 that he was asked to be the music director in 2020. His good humor and technical abilities with Zoom kept the orchestra together virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic until the orchestra could play together in person again. 

The orchestra has honed its repertoire of English country dance and Scottish tunes under his leadership. Macfarlane teaches fiddle from his home in Addison County and drives to Montpelier weekly to lead rehearsals at the Grange. He plays in Atlantic Crossing and even builds and paddles wooden canoes. The orchestra will play several of Macfarlane’s compositions and he has written a rag for the orchestra’s 20th anniversary concert entitled, “To Twenty More.”

More information is online at vermontfiddleorchestra.org.