Flying Fiddles© – A Violin Studio & String Class Method

Let the Music Begin!

Flying Fiddles© Book 1, second edition combines words, images, and practical strategies into a joyful, balanced approach to violin teaching and playing—playing that is free of tension and full of expressive, confident music-making. When students leave your violin class or studio lesson, their cases will hold more than a violin and bow—they will carry each student’s growing musical confidence, motivation to practice, and delight in sharing music with others. 

• Section 1: How the Body Moves
• Section 2: The Flying Violin 
• Section 3: Making Music – Pizzicato
• Section 4: The Flying Bow
• Section 5: Making Music – Bowing 
• Section 6: The Giving Left Hand 
  1. 6A: The First Finger and One Finger Tunes
  2. 6B: The Second Finger and Two Finger Tunes
  3. 6C: The Third Finger and Three Finger Tunes 

The Flying Fiddles Story

The Flying Fiddles© String Teaching Series is the outgrowth of Chet Porcino’s decades of trial-and-error experimentation as a string music teacher. Porcino’s firsthand experiences, wealth of ideas, and string teaching strategies were born from over 40 years in public school string classrooms, and now come to life once again in the pages of the newly updated series.

In 1962, Chet Porcino was among the first group of American teachers to study with Shinichi Suzuki, and he adapted much of the Suzuki method into his teaching long before the approach became popularized among American music educators. Just over a decade later, in 1975, Porcino was introduced to Kató Havas, the renowned Hungarian born violinist and teacher. His subsequent study, collaboration, and friendship with Havas over the next 30 years, further transformed his career as a string teacher and performer. The concepts described in Flying Fiddles© Book 1, second edition and the upcoming Flying Fiddles© Book 2, are closely based on The Havas New Approach and its relevance to the teaching of children and adult beginners. Porcino was honored to be advised and mentored by Kató Havas on the project. 

In the 1985 publication of Flying Fiddles©, Porcino described the aim of the New Approach principles as “a tension free violin-hold which prevents gripping and choking the instrument, and a tension free bow-hold which prevents the fingers from clutching the bow.”  “Every teacher knows,” Porcino went on to say, “how strong the tendency is to hold on to the violin and bow for dear life and what disastrous consequences this can have. . . . Anyone who has participated in or has observed Kató Havas’ workshops, has experienced the instantaneous results she can obtain from players in the release of tension and anxiety at her Master Classes. However, as these participants are almost always adult musicians whom Havas helps to cure from lifelong faulty habits, my aim with these [string class] method books is to prevent tensions and anxiety in children and adult beginners from the start, and at the same time give them a feeling of fun and joy in making music.”

Decades later, the Flying Fiddles© series continues to offer a wealth of knowledge for beginning to intermediate string players—and in parallel, acts as a catalyst for individual teacher creativity and the exploration of string teaching concepts drawn from a deep well of pedagogical wisdom, shaped by many voices and traditions.

Flying Fiddles© Book 1, second edition

Flying Fiddles© Book 1, Second Edition (1985/2025). Originally developed by Chet Porcino; revised and expanded by Jeanne Porcino Dolamore. Co-editor and score writer, Gerianne Wigboldus.

The recent adaptation of the Flying Fiddles© series began with Chet Porcino and Jeanne Porcino Dolamore’s ‘work in concert’ as public-school string teachers in New York between 1981 and 2008. The newly adapted activities and illustrations in the book have been developed so that each step in the teaching process can be intentionally and joyfully introduced in a manner that helps violin students to establish a lifetime of positive playing habits. The flying violin and flying bow activities, tune patterns, and finger tunes are offered as effective materials to help achieve this goal and to ensure successful music making from day one. These step-by-step concepts and techniques have been utilized, explored, and reworked with hundreds of youngsters and adult beginners, and have been met with tremendous success and gratification.

This unique father and daughter collaboration coincided with Dolamore’s development of the successful String Chorale Concept© in 1999, published in Teaching Music in the Urban Classroom (Frierson-Campbell, 2006). This approach engages a ‘chorale’ format, using SATB (soprano,alto, tenor, bass) voices to create string ensemble arrangements that truly sing! Beyond the classroom, Dolamore’s highly acclaimed community string ensembles have included culturally and economically diverse cadres of young musicians, the longest performing of which was aptly called ‘The Flying Fiddlers String Chorale!’ 

Flying Fiddles©, Book 1, 2nd ed. will be closely followed by the Flying Fiddles©, Book 1 Teacher’s Edition, Flying Fiddles© Book 2, and The Flying Fiddles String Chorale Anthology – a collection of String Chorale music and arrangements for beginning and intermediate string players.

Special Thanks: 

To complete the series, Jeanne Porcino Dolamore joined forces with Gerianne Wigboldus in 2018. Her tireless efforts as co-editor and score writer for Flying Fiddles© Book 1, second edition, co-author and co-editor of Flying Fiddles© Book 2, as well as her use of the materials in real time with students of all ages, have made the series possible. 

Wigboldus is the Netherlands representative of the Kató Havas Association for the New Approach, teaches violin to individuals and groups in her own successful private practice, and performs regularly with her husband, pianist, musical theorist, and composer Ton van der Valk. Wigboldus’ decade-long (2008–2018) study with Kató Havas transformed her performing and teaching life, and increased her interest in helping to create and promote Havas New Approach concepts and resources for teachers around the world. 

Mary Porcino: Mary Porcino, an artist by trade, patiently drew and redrew the illustrations for both the 1985 and the updated Flying Fiddles© Book 1, second edition.

Sophie Dolamore: Sophie Dolamore, a third-generation violinist, piloted the Flying Fiddles© series as a violin teacher in both England and the United States. 

It is our collective hope that you will find the concepts, images, and instructional practices presented in the Flying Fiddles© second edition helpful and transformative in your own teaching. The spirits of Chet Porcino and Kató Havas have not only guided the publication of the adapted Flying Fiddles©series, but can be imagined clapping and singing along with every teacher and student whose music is carried from his/her ‘flying fiddle’ to grateful audience members around the world!

*For optimal use of this book, we encourage you to explore the published works and tutorial video of Kató Havas. Visit www.katohavas.com for a full catalog of resources.

Engagement

Teaching, Workshops & Professional Use: Flying Fiddles© is designed to live beyond the page. The materials and teaching approaches presented in the series are actively used in school-based string programs, private studios, community music settings, and teacher preparation contexts.

Professional engagement related to Flying Fiddles© may include:

• Demonstration lessons and model teaching
• Workshops for string teachers and music educators
• Professional learning focused on beginning string pedagogy
• Conversations around adapting materials for diverse learners and settings

These engagements emphasize joyful, tension-free music-making and support teachers in helping students build strong foundations from their very first experiences with the violin.

Continuing the Conversation

Flying Fiddles© reflects an ongoing, evolving approach to string teaching—shaped by practice, reflection, and shared experience.

If you would like to connect, ask questions, or learn more about the series and its use in your own teaching context, I welcome your inquiry.