Folklore and Superstitions

Here is some folkore about fiddles collected from the web. If you know of any tales about fiddles, folklore or superstitions, email me and i will post them here.

Fish bite best at night, and if you play a fiddle or guitar, the fish just can't stay in the water but will come to the top because they love the music of a fiddle or guitar.

Long ago, dances would last up to the late afternoon after all night celebration. The dance would begin with a ribbon being tied to the fiddler, which was the only kind of music in town at the time. The ribbon was to be removed by the fiddler only, when the dance would be over. The dance did not end until the bride and the groom left for the night. When the wedded couple did leave, the fiddler would then put his fiddle away. It was considered bad luck for anyone but the fiddler to open the case after the fiddle had been put away.

"My favorite use for rattlesnake rattles is the Appalachian fiddle-players' custom of placing them in one's instrument before entering a fiddle contest. Even folks who do not believe the rattles will help them win a contest may add a rattle to their fiddle to make it "sound better." The origin of this belief is unknown, but it is quite commonly encountered, even to the present day. In the South, rattlesnake rattles are sometimes placed in guitars for the same reason." "I just got back from the music festival in Owensboro, KY. A lot of elder (over 70) fiddle players from Appalachia were there and I asked about the rattlesnake rattles in the fiddles (which most had)." Here were the responses:
1) All mentioned that the rattles inside "sang along" with the music giving it a better & sweeter sound.
2) One wonderful old gentleman from North Carolina said that his grandfather told him that "way back, the fiddle used to be a woman's instrument and putting the rattles inside 'masculinizes' it for men folk to play".