People used to say Iris Bowen was beautiful, what with the wild weave of her red hair, the high cheekbones, and the way she carried herself like a barefoot dancer through the streets of Ranelagh on the outskirts of Dublin city. But that was a lifetime ago. In a cottage in the west of Ireland, Iris--gardener and mother to an adopted daughter, Rose--is doing her best to carry on after the death of her husband two years before. At the back of her mind is a promise she never intended to keep, until the day she gets a phone call from her doctor. Meanwhile, nineteen-year-old Rose is a brilliant violinist at the Royal Academy in London, still grieving for her father but relishing her music and life in the city. Excited but nervous, she hums on the way to an important master class, and then suddenly finds herself missing both of her parents when the class ends in disaster. After the doctor's call, Iris is haunted by the promise she made to her husband--to find Rose's birth mother, so that their daughter might still have family if anything happened to Iris. Armed only with a twenty-year-old envelope, Iris impulsively begins a journey into the past that takes her to Boston and back, with unexpected results for herself and for Rose and for both friends and strangers. Intimate, moving, and witty, Christine Breen's Her Name is Rose is a gorgeous novel about what can happen when life does not play out the way you expect.

Describes the author's passion for the fiddle and how learning the craft helped awaken her love of life and become connected to a nationwide community of teachers and artisans.

Hugo the dog becomes the star of an all-animal band after learning to play his best friend Hector's fiddle, and despite Hector's jealousy, remains grateful to the man who gave him his start.

GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK! • Ray McMillian is a Black classical musician on the rise—undeterred by the pressure and prejudice of the classical music world—when a shocking theft sends him on a desperate quest to recover his great-great-grandfather’s heirloom violin on the eve of the most prestigious musical competition in the world. “I loved The Violin Conspiracy for exactly the same reasons I loved The Queen’s Gambit: a surprising, beautifully rendered underdog hero I cared about deeply and a fascinating, cutthroat world I knew nothing about—in this case, classical music.” —Chris Bohjalian, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant and Hour of the Witch Growing up Black in rural North Carolina, Ray McMillian’s life is already mapped out. But Ray has a gift and a dream—he’s determined to become a world-class professional violinist, and nothing will stand in his way. Not his mother, who wants him to stop making such a racket; not the fact that he can’t afford a violin suitable to his talents; not even the racism inherent in the world of classical music. When he discovers that his beat-up, family fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, all his dreams suddenly seem within reach, and together, Ray and his violin take the world by storm. But on the eve of the renowned and cutthroat Tchaikovsky Competition—the Olympics of classical music—the violin is stolen, a ransom note for five million dollars left in its place. Without it, Ray feels like he's lost a piece of himself. As the competition approaches, Ray must not only reclaim his precious violin, but prove to himself—and the world—that no matter the outcome, there has always been a truly great musician within him.

They say blood is thicker than water. It could be true or it could be false. The Kansas Roses are put to the test. Will they be able to stay together as a family, or has bounty hunting torn them apart?

Mel Bay's Complete Fiddling Book is a compilation of arrangements of traditional tunes by several outstanding practitioners of the art of fiddle playing: Craig Duncan, Bill Guest, Dave Reiner, Frank Zucco, and Joe Castle. From The Arkansas Traveler to The Yellow Rose of Texas, over 300 colorful fiddle tunes populated this book's 205 pages. Scant on text or historical notes, but long on musical content, the Complete Fiddling Book is a great resource for any fiddler or teacher in search of a delightful, toe-tapping repertoire. Although most of the tunes are written for solo fiddle, the last ten pieces are arranged as fiddle duets. A masterful solo collection presenting a vivid assortment of fiddling styles and repertoire. On the companion DVD, fiddler Craig Duncan and guitarist Robert Bowlin perform 34 favorite tunes which are played at a slow and medium tempo to demonstrate many fiddling techniques. Split-screen filming features close-up angles of both the left hand and the bow. This DVD is the perfect companion to the Complete Fiddling Book, bringing the teacher right into your living room. Compilation of arrangements of traditional tunes Over 300 colorful fiddle tunes populate the 205 pages Most for solo fiddle, but the last ten pieces are arranged as fiddle duets Intermediate to advanced in difficulty Split-screen companion DVD of 34 tunes performed by Craig Duncan and guitarist Robert Bowlin.