Fiddlers Take Their Bows Music Was Fast And Furious At The Northwest Regional Fiddling Contest At Trent Elementary
He danced with his fiddle, moving with a toe-tappin’, knee-slappin’ rhythm as he slurred notes from high to low.
Tony Ludiker of Spokane fiddled his fingers numb Sunday afternoon at Trent Elementary School, where 108 fiddlers gathered for the 29th annual Northwest Regional Fiddle Contest.
Ludiker, 34, was crowned top fiddler in the championship division - his sixth win in seven years.
“It’s kind of a relief,” he said. “I have to sit out next year.” Fiddlers can only win three years in a row.
In the audience, soaking up the hoedown tunes, was a Coeur d’Alene couple who’ve been coming to the contest for years.
Merle Seamster and her husband, Denney, loved hearing “San Antonio Rose.”
“That’s our theme song,” said Merle Seamster. “About 56 years ago, over a 10-cent beer and a big bowl brimming with shrimp, we heard that song. I was wiggling my foot on that one.”
Fiddlers won honors in six of eight divisions on Saturday. Sunday’s junior and championship division finals drew a crowd of about 200. The contestants played nine songs in three rounds.
Bethany Dick, 16, of Belgrade, Mont., faced the challenge of beating last year’s junior division champion, Katrina Pearce, 14.
Bethany smiled through her performance, her fiddle singing as fast as her heart pounded. Her crisp, clean notes gave her the edge over Katrina in the final round.
“I practiced a lot,” Bethany said afterward. “I also had a good day.”
Backstage, other fiddlers frantically squeezed in a few final minutes of practice before performing. Some prayed not to fall on stage because of nervewracked knees. A few hoped they’d remember all the notes to songs with lightning-quick tempos.
Luke and Jenny Anne Bulla, brother and sister from Northport, Wash., squared off in the championship division.
The two have fiddled for 10 years, practicing together at home. At competitions, they sometimes choose the same songs to play against each other.
“We’ve gotten used to it, I guess,” said Jenny Anne, 16. “Luke wins more often.”
“I have a feeling she’s going to beat me here in a few minutes,” said Luke, 17.
Minutes earlier, while playing “Over the Rainbow” for his final round waltz, he said he goofed and had to improvise.
Despite the slip, the five judges placed him second - three spots ahead of his sister.
Martin Stevens, 8, of Vancouver, Wash., finds his fiddle a constant companion. In between homework and just being a kid, Martin practices every day for at least an hour.
The boy placed second in his division last year at the national competition in Weiser, Idaho. On Saturday, Martin won the small-fry championship.
“If you don’t have anything to do, you can just pick it up and start playing,” he said, his eyes aglow. “When you’re playing a song really well, you’re saying to yourself, ‘This is the best!”’
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