Introducing the electric fiddle !!!

An electric violin is an amplified violin that sends out a signal through an electrical pickup device. There are several different models of electric violins. Some are standard acoustic violins with an electric pickup added to the bridge. Other types of electric violins are designed differently and only work properly when plugged in. Electric violins are often used to play different types of music than standard acoustic violins.

The pickups of electric violins are important. Since electric violin strings are usually made of metal, either magnetic or piezoelectric pickups are used to transmit the sound to the amplifier. This system is similar to the way electric guitars work.

Some people add an electric pickup to a standard acoustic violin so that it’s signal can be transmitted to an amplifier. The problem with putting a pickup on an acoustic violin is that acoustic violins have a hollow wooden body that can create feedback when it is played electrically. The resonance of the sound vibrating in the violin’s body interferes with the sound made by the strings and can cause annoying, high-pitched squealing noises to come out of the amplifier.

Most electric violins have a solid body design. The solid body keeps the instrument from feeding back. Also, any necessary electrical equipment, such as any wiring or batteries, is housed in the body. Since the electric violin is a relatively new invention, it has no standard body shape or design, and makers are free to experiment and invent new ways of designing the instrument.

Electric violins are usually used in different situations than acoustic violins. An electric violin is viewed as an experimental instrument and is not found in classical or traditional music, but is often used in avant-garde music. Guitar effects like reverb, chorus, and distortion can be used to give the electric violin a unique, otherworldly sound.

Electric violins are unique instruments with a sound all their own. Electric violins are perfect for musicians and composers who want to have their own individual sound.

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Electric fiddler site

Of course the alternative for a trad fiddler is to amplify their instrument.. Fishman pick ups are great for this:

Fishman originally built its reputation by developing pickups that literally changed the way acoustic stringed instruments were heard and experienced in live performance situations.

Now the company introduces a new line of premium pickups for Violin, Viola, Cello, Mandolin and Resophonic Spider-style guitar.

A result of Fishman's special expertise in the field, an intensive R&D effort spearheaded by company founder Larry Fishman, and today's most sophisticated transducer technologies, these new pickups offer an extraordinary level of performance, tone quality and accuracy for stringed instruments.

The new piezo-ceramic Concert Series pickups for Violin, Viola and Cello are preinstalled in a high quality Despiau bridge to provide the ultimate performance in terms of a precise and perfectly balanced tone from string to string.

Specifically designed for two-piece Archtop and Flat Top style Mandolins and Spider-style Resophonic guitar, the new Nashville Series premium pickup models also feature an integrated installation in a high quality bridge that enhances the overall tonal character of the instrument.

In addition to an exceptionally clear, true and natural tonal response that reveals the true character of the instrument, these new pickups sound remarkably consistent every time they are played.

The new stringed instrument pickups are also optimized for use with the Fishman Aura Imaging Pedals to provide a higher level of sound quality and added sonic versatility in live performance. Violin, Viola, Cello and Mandolin pickups include a Carpenter jack, while the Resophonic pickup includes an endpin jack.

An impedance-matching preamp for these pickups is recommended, but not required.