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Don
describes the first local fiddling contest in Russell in the
early 1970s.
Listen 
(Real 0:49)
A
medley of Portland Fancy and Road to Boston, tunes
Don learned from his father.
Listen
(Real 2:55)
How
Don taught himself many of the techniques of fiddlling he still
uses.
Listen
(Real 1:12)
Don
plays waltzes once performed by his father's friend, the legendary
blind fiddler Jerry Streeter.
Listen
(Real 2:44)
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Meet the Masters: Don Woodcock, Champion Fiddler
03/20/00
Don Woodcock, a dairyman from Kendrew Corners won the New York Fiddling Championship so often, he was declared grand champion and asked to retire from the competition. He began playing by accompanying his father on piano, and later taught himself a variety of traditional fiddle and dance styles.
The
first tune fourteen-year-old Don Woodcock played on the fiddle
was his father Howard's version of "Road to Boston."
More than thirty years later,
Don now holds the title of Grand Champion Fiddler of New York
State, having won the state championship contest three times.
By 1987 he was inducted into the New York State Fiddlers Hall
of Fame in Osceola. His peers say Don Woodcock's playing is technically
superb and he is widely recognized for having one of the greatest
repertoires of traditional fiddle tunes anywhere around. Don
has played at many shows and exhibitions in Northern New York,
Vermont, and eastern Ontario. In recent years, Don has performed
with pianist Myriam Gagner and drummer Rhonda Roethel, a combination
found commonly at house dances and local dance halls of his father's
generation. Don has also recorded an album of traditional St.
Lawrence River Valley fiddle tunes.
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Meet
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