# Music by Genre > Old-Time, Roots, Early Country, Cajun, Tex-Mex >  The Old-Time Fiddler's Repertory  - R. P. Christeson

## JeffD

Perhaps I am the last to know, but I'll report anyway, reprints of The Old-Time Fiddler's Repertory  - R. P. Christeson, both volumes, are available from Amazon!

My order is in.

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## John Flynn

That is great news! That's like the Rosetta Stone for Old Time music. I've seen copies of it, but none for sale under $200. Christeson's widow had the copyright. I know a few OT players who know her and were dropping hints over the years that she should make a publication deal. 

FWIW, you can hear Emily Buckhannon playing a foot-pedal organ that belonged to Christeson on two cuts of the latest Buckhannon Brother's CD. It's a rare OT instrument, sounds really cool.

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## Tripp Johnson

That is good news, important books to say the least.

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## JeffD

I had heard that one of the volume was available if you were "connected", and the other wasn't available anywhere. I even downloaded a gizzilion PDF files of arrangements someone made from Christeson and made a sort of a book out of it.

But I was wandering around the fiddle forum earlier today and heard that reprints were available. So I jumped on it.


OK, yes I have tunebook aquisition syndrome, but this one is important, as you say.

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## JeffD

> FWIW, you can hear Emily Buckhannon playing a foot-pedal organ that belonged to Christeson on two cuts of the latest Buckhannon Brother's CD. It's a rare OT instrument, sounds really cool.


That would be cool. I was at a jam once, at a campsite outside of a festival. Someone wandered by with what looked like a black steamer chest. Opened it up and it was a portable organ. Sounded great and really added to the energy of our jam.

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## Hal Loflin

I have an original hardback copy of the first volume...University of Missouri Press, 1973. What is it worth?

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## John Flynn

> I have an original hardback copy of the first volume...University of Missouri Press, 1973. What is it worth?


There's one used, in "Good" condition on Amazon for $149.95 and one in "Collectible - Very Good" condition for $285.00. My guess is the re-publication might cool the market a bit.

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## CharlieKnuth

No, you were not the last know.  Thank you for posting this, mine copies are now on order and am anxiously awaiting their arrival.

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## JeffD

For those who may not know, I offer the following from http://www.missourifiddling.com/Arti...ons/motune.htm

It is worth a squint.




> The most significant work on Missouri fiddling (or any fiddling for that matter) was based on the collecting activities of the late Robert Perry "R.P." Christeson. I had the good fortune to become acquainted with R. P. in my formative years and he is no doubt responsible for my somewhat hard-nosed and contrary views on fiddle playing and also my preference for solid piano accompaniment. As a lad in Pulaski County in the Ozarks, R. P. was immersed in old time fiddling and square dancing. 
> 
> As a lad in Pulaski County in the Ozarks, R. P. was immersed in old time fiddling and square dancing.  Later in life, as an employee of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, he had occasion to travel the country and observe fiddle and dance traditions in other parts of the United States. He became inspired to collect and thereby preserve old-time fiddle tunes. To accomplish this, R. P. purchased a wire recorder and a surplus folding chaplain's organ and set out to record old-time fiddlers.   
> 
> He hit the mother lode while living in Nebraska when he ran across Uncle Bob Walters. His recordings of Walters, Cyril Stinnett, Bill Driver and many others led to the publication by the University of Missouri Press of two volumes (one in 1973, the other in 1984) of over 400 tunes. Entitled the The Old-Time Fiddlers Repertory and The Old-Time Fiddler's Repertory 2, the books are the absolute best collections of fiddle music ever compiled for a number of reasons. The tunes are all drawn from performances by real old-time players. There was no borrowing from other collections, which is so commonly done. With a few exceptions, the transcriptions are very reliable. Each tune includes a brief text description crediting the source of the tune. The two volumes represent a real body of music that was and is still played in a particular region of the country.  
> 
> Christeson also provided serviceable examples of piano accompaniment.  Coupled with the companion recordings one could make reasonable stab at becoming a Missouri/Midwestern fiddler of the old school.  Even the format of the book was taken into consideration. In long form with two tunes per page it lays out perfectly on a music stand. Now you're probably asking yourself where to get these books. Alas, they are out of print!  You're local used bookseller may help but I have seldom seen them offered.  The first volume was released in paperback and may be found on occasion.



They are not out of print anymore!

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## Nelson Peddycoart

Thanks for the heads up.  I ordered mine!

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## Mandobar

i got the last one in stock

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## JeffD

My books came in today's mail. I just told everyone at work I am taking the rest of today off and tomorrow too. I am going to put up a huge big pot of coffee, put my cup holder on my music stand, turn the volume down on the answering machine, and dig in. 

Any of you who have purchased or already own these tunebooks, I'll probably be wanting to touch base with you and compare notes. But certainly not before next week.

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## SincereCorgi

Ha! "Buy new $29.95. Used $145."

Thanks for answering my what-to-get-for-Father's-Day gift question, Jeff.  :Smile:

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## Fred Keller

Got mine in the mail a couple days ago--been poking around in it and loving it.  Got my fiddle tune book jones assuaged for a little while.

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## bones12

My Aunt Billie ( a violin player) did the transcriptions for the book ( I and II).  I got both a long time ago-- I am glad they are back in print.  Doug In Vermont

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## David M.

Weren't there LP's that you could buy that had playing of the tunes?  I heard someone once say they had the album.

Any word on if it'll be re-released on CD or other media?

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## JeffD

I think I saw one of those LPs once on ebay.

So, is anyone working on that Charlietown Two Step. What a lovely innocent tune. No sad, no drama, just summer picnics and nekko wafers.

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## John Flynn

> Weren't there LP's that you could buy that had playing of the tunes?  I heard someone once say they had the album.
> 
> Any word on if it'll be re-released on CD or other media?


Yeah, there is a volume 1 with 23 tracks and a volume 2 with 18 tracks, so not nearly all the tunes, but they are still pretty cool nonetheless. They are actually field recordings of some of the great fiddlers, mostly Bill Driver and Bob Walters, but a few others are in there also. It would be great if they were re-released.

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## Phil Vinyard

Good article about Missouri fiddlers in Mizzou Magazine http://mizzoumag.missouri.edu/2009-s...ddle/index.php 

I have the privilege of playing mandolin with Howard Marshall and John White at the monthly Hallsville Square Dance (tomorrow night, as a matter of fact). Vesta Johnson is even known to show up once in a while. Their style has influenced me greatly and I tend to play mandolin with a lot of fiddle licks and double stops.  

Howard and John both have recordings available on Voyager records http://www.voyagerrecords.com/catse.htm along with some other old Missouri fiddlers. Voyager also has the reprint of the book "Now That’s a Good Tune: Masters of Traditional Missouri Fiddling" http://www.voyagerrecords.com/goodtune.htm that Howard edited. 

I have also transcribed a few of John's songs off his CD: Nine Miles, Dry & Dusty, and Evansville, and would be glad to share those.

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## yankees1

I have the original book that I bought new in 1973!

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## yankees1

Old Time Fiddlers Repertory in classified for sale! Yes, its mine!  :Smile:

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## JeffD

Lots of good rags. I have been in drinking it all up.

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## Randy Smith

Yesterday I learned from Beth Chandler at the University of Missouri Press that a cd of the original record will becoming out very shortly.

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## JeffD

Thats great.

It would also be very cool if some accomplished fiddler were to cut a CD of just playing through the books, just solo fiddle. I would purchase that CD in a heartbeat.

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## Jim Garber

I believe that Charlie Walden plays a bunch of those tunes. One of his recordings was recorded at Bob Christeson's house according to his site. 

I wonder if the OTFR books are really still worth that inflated price after they were re-printed and easily available. I have both books in hardcover, one I bought new when still in print and the other was a gift -- some friends of mine found a bunch at a flea market and bought all of them as gifts.

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## John Flynn

> Thats great.
> 
> It would also be very cool if some accomplished fiddler were to cut a CD of just playing through the books, just solo fiddle. I would purchase that CD in a heartbeat.


Jeff:

That would be great, but it would not be the same. Those recordings have a tone and an energy that to my ear, sounds much different than OT fiddlers I hear today. I'm not saying the old guys were better, though. In many ways the modern fiddlers have better technique. But those OTFR recordings have a quality to them that is raw and earthy, but at the same time joyous. I have not heard anything quite the same from modern fiddlers.

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## JeffD

Certainly it would be different than the recording at the time. I am not sure it would be as different as you suggest, but I know what you mean.

But in playing through many of the tunes I think how touching and beautiful many of them are, and how a fiddler could bring them to life.

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## Randy Smith

CDs You Might Enjoy If You're Interested in the Tunes Transcribed in Christenson's Books

1. Bob Walter's, *The Champion.* 80 cuts from recordings of Dwight Lamb, Clarence Lamb, and Christeson.  Nebraskan Walters' was an incredible fiddler,  the smoothest Christeson says he ever met.  Walters' tunes dominate the Repertories.  
2. Dwight Lamb, *Old-Time Classics in the Missouri Valley Style.* Lamb's a very good fiddler who plays most of Walters' repertoire.
3. Lamb, *Danish and American Melodies.* Lamb's also an excellent button box player. On this cd he plays both Danish tunes and some Missouri tunes on the button box, some with Bob Walters on fiddle.
4. Lamb, *Joseph Won a Coated Fiddle* and *Hell Agin the Barn Door.*  Both cds on Rounder, both have many Walters/Christeson tunes. 
5. Lonnie Robertson, *Lonnie's Breakdown.*  R.P. Christeson: ". . .[Robertson] was the best Missouri fiddler I ever heard." 
6. *Three Fiddlers from the Show-Me State*. These are Lyman Enloe, Casey Jones, and Cyril Stinnett.  Great performances of tunes in Christeson as well as a few more generally known (St Anne's Reel, Durham's Bull, some others). This is County CD 2739.
7. Fiddler Nelson, *We Didn't Make This Up.* Enjoyable young South Dakota string band doing lots of tunes and some songs. Dwight Lamb joins the band here.
Last but certainly not least. . .
8. Charlie Walden *Draggin the Bow* (with John Stewart, guitar).  Nice Missouri style fiddling by one of this state's best current fiddlers of traditional tunes.  Charlie's also done quite a bit promoting Missouri fiddling at many levels. See charliewalden.com to see if you can still get Charlie's 1987 *Traditional Fiddle Music of Missouri,* which is great and consists virtually of tunes all in Christeson.

1,2,3, and 7 are available from  Missouri Valley Music
                                           511 South Pleasant St.
                                           Canton, South Dakota 57013
missourivalleymusic@sio.midco.net

Except for #7 you won't hear any mandolin on any of these records.  (And you won't hear the mandolin stand out on that cd.) But if you're interested in how the tunes in Christeson's Repertories sound, you might like hearing these cds.

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