About Fiddleheads and Me, Owner Rhiannon Nachbaur

Operating since 1997 (over a quarter of a century in business) by an award-winning professional symphony violinist/fiddler, Fiddleheads Violin Studio is an eco-responsible and award-winning woman-run business specializing in quality stringed instruments with customers around the world.

Rhiannon sitting in a red dress with her violin

My penchant for red ballgowns earned me the fun moniker "The Lady in the Red Dress"

Fiddleheads' Owner

I'm Rhiannon Nachbaur (she/her, age=as old as disco) and I am the award-winning businesswoman and violin specialist behind the service marvel that is Fiddleheads. An experienced and sought-after violin/fiddle instructor since 1994, I am also a multi-award-winning classical musician.

Until health issues saw me needing to reduce my activities in 2020, I served as a section player in a professional symphony and Concertmaster (head violinist) in two other Kamloops orchestras and was a professional member of the American/Canadian Federation of Musicians, local 145. I previously served in other Concertmaster roles and in a variety of bands (rock, metal, pop, folk, country, Klezmer) in my youth.

Blessed with perfect pitch and self-taught on the violin since age 12 in my native San Diego, California, I later majored in Violin Performance in a Jazz-focused Canadian music school under the Berklee College of Music syllabus. I possess a remarkable skill set that qualify me to provide sensible expert advice and conscientious service to my many customers.

As a symphony violinist and violin teacher for over years, I recognize the importance of having good "tools" with which to work to achieve the best results in our playing. Growing up in poverty conditions in the southwest United States and now as a parent myself, I also respectfully understand we are all constrained by budgets and want to give my customers the best possible value for their dollar.

Though my customers are served over the Internet, they are treated as if they are receiving paid specialist consultancy in person and without the usual pushy sales tactics or gimmicks. My loyal customers swear by my consistent reliability and honesty. I love making people happy, which you will see is continually reflected throughout my service, articles, products, violin playing and in my many other creative endeavours.

In addition to running this thriving business since 1997, I was, until 2020, a section musician with the professional-level Kamloops Symphony and as Concertmaster with the Brandenburg Orchestra (Baroque and Classical music in period dress) and the Thompson Valley Orchestra (Pops and Classics). I am featured on various independent artist albums and won numerous awards for my musicianship. I also served for five years as the founding President of a non-profit violin group which hosted coffeehouses and provided loaned violins, hosted workshops and provided scholarships to young violinists.

I am also the wife of a wonderfully kind and hard-working HR/Accountant husband Don Anderson, formerly of TQM Consulting and am a devoted mom to our brilliant, Philosophy Major daughter and creative, arts school son. When asked how I balance it all I can say I humbly possess astonishing drive and a passionate heart for helping. I use my ever-growing skill-set and creativity to develop efficiency systems, including building 99% of this incredible website myself, to manage a diverse range of projects and tasks simultaneously.

Violins and cases laid out over a bed and couch, taking up every inch of space

Simple origins: Violins were laid out on a bed comforter as new shelving was installed in the music studio

 

History: The Shop's Humble Beginnings and Impressive, Sustainable Growth

After graduating from a contemporary Canadian music college with honours as the program's first ever violin major in 1997, followed by two solid years working as a busy gigging and teaching musician, I settled down in the tiny rural village of Canoe, BC, Canada. There I started raising a family while simultaneously building up a positively thriving violin school.

Like most string players I had a hard time finding good quality violins from honest dealers for myself, and also for my students. I was downright frustrated by inexperienced (even rude) music shops, so-called luthiers operating violin chop-shops, and fly-by-night salesmen literally selling questionably-sourced and overpriced violins literally from the trunks of their cars. Already blessed with a natural ability to play and teach violin at a highly proficient level, I took it upon myself to master an authority understanding in the complex mechanics of the violin in order to source the best possible instruments for my students.

I developed my own novel and brilliant component in my fledgling home-based business: an ethical consultancy and trusted master source for quality instruments at modest prices.

By eliminating middle-men and working directly with the finest violin makers, she established a relationship where she had a direct say in the construction and qualities of my violins, as well as the opportunity to provide the best value, quality and prices anywhere.

Being a forward-thinker optimizing my time, she posted select violins to my school's website for my compliment of students to view. Before long, other online customers from far and wide discovered the praiseworthy one-woman violin shop in the boonies of Canada run by a symphony level violinist who really KNEW the instrument inside and out.

After my first few online customers experienced my unrivalled service and benefitted from expertise one would usually have to pay to receive, word spread, my reputation grew, and the business expanded. In 2015 Fiddleheads and I relocated to Kamloops, BC, which increased my orchestral options and improved the level of service I could provide to my customers.

Fiddleheads carries the finest, hand-picked selection of new student to professional violins in its corner of the world. Much of my offering consists of dependable exclusive brands I developed and improved over the decades mysel, and which cannot be purchased anywhere else. The site has literally thousands of pages and its growing content, including my published magazine articles, has attracted millions of visitors. This widespread following has enabled me to have personally served thousands of elated customers across Canada, the USA, and around the globe.

Undoubtedly, Fiddleheads offers the most honest and qualified violin expertise thanks to my work as a former teacher and symphonic musician. Coupled with my person-to-person support and service, I has developed a violin shop experience that cannot be replicated or bested. [Read customer testimonials]

Rhiannon and a mom help children try the violin for the first time in a park

I hosted a violin experience introducing kids to violin at a "Discovery Days" event in 2003

Personal Experience and Trusted Advice

Think of shopping at Fiddleheads as walking into a local violin shop. As the owner and everything to this business I am happy to take the time to personally serve you.

Having the best possible violin shop on your side is just as important for your musical development as an accomplished teacher or a prized instrument. I know you can buy a violin pretty much anywhere, but you choose Fiddleheads and remain loyal because I fill a much deeper role in your music life: that of trusted advisor and specialist.

Running the shop like a specialty boutique, I personally select and only sell limited products which I believe, as a professional musician and experienced teacher, are best for my customers' budgets and needs. Choosing a violin is easiest at Fiddleheads, not only because of my service, but also due to the fact I have eliminated all the duds and lemons, focussing only on a top violin model or series in any given price range.

My experience in finding the best possible products makes me able to expertly guide mycustomers in their purchases and sell the same accessories and materials which I use myself and in lessons. Fiddleheads' customer loyalty stems from the positive and enjoyable experience customers have dealing with me. I offer distinctive and unparalleled expertise rarely seen in the string world. I guide and educate each unique customer in ways other shops simply cannot compete.

My customers are incredibly pleased and bowled over by personal service and myprompt, complete replies to their emails. I take the necessary time to assist all customers in making informed decisions and it shows. The direct assistance from the owner and expert herself is so informative and beneficial that customers feel as though they are enjoying an in-person consultation with a top contemporary violin connoisseur.

There will be many times you will need something to advance your craft, well beyond that first or second violin, and you can count on Fiddleheads to guide and serve you well over the long-haul. This fantastic service has earned Fiddleheads and myself several business awards and many other nominations on top of over 1200 sparkling customer testimonials to date.

Ethics and Honesty

You will see all my prices and policies are posted online so all information is open and there are no catches to our business dealings.

Fiddleheads and I never pay teacher kickbacks or commissions for the sale of instruments. It is unethical to pay teacher commissions. I do encourage students to pay their teacher for their time (chocolates do the trick, too) when asked to assist them in finding an instrument. It is very prudent to ask your teacher or local shop if they pay or accept commissions if you do not want to participate in a corrupt payola structure.

Read the Strings Magazine article, "An Elegy for Ethics," (archived here) to discover how, unbeknownst to most buyers, many music teachers receive secret cash commissions for sending their students to unscrupulous shops. You may also glean info from customer testimonials on my ethics and my countless published articles.

Man and woman in a violin shop holding a violin and smiling

Customers say shopping conveniently from the comfort of their own homes on my site feels like working with me in person

The Instruments

I commission, direct from the workshops and master makers, a very choice selection of instruments crafted to her specifications so every tone quality and price range is represented. Many products are made exclusively for Fiddleheads, such as her Bellissima violins and Voxy bows. I only sell instruments with the best tone qualities for the price and many of her name-brand instruments are special "Fiddleheads Exclusive" editions with added improvements over the standard lineup.

I then ensure every single instrument is properly set-up to her specifications with her luthier before they are put up for sale. Each instrument then is tested and played by me personally before they ship out. If I think it could sound or play better, back to the luthier bench it goes. I also personally "play-in" some new master level instruments (as time allows) so their tone has begun to open up before going out to their new owners.

Instruments are stored and shipped from her optimized studio in the high-desert city of Kamloops, BC, one of the driest locations in Canada, ensuring the woods will cure properly and provide the absolute best tonal maturation possible. This is far superior than operating in a humid region, such as the deep south of the United States, which is hard on new instruments' tonal and physical maturation.

*I strongly caution her customers against purchasing instruments stored in and shipped from humid climates as her customers have reported many issues down the line with instruments purchased from sellers at such locations before being played in other climates.

Informed Online Purchasing Environment

My 14+ day in-home instrument and accessory trials are also encouraged and welcome to allow customers to make the best decisions possible. I put much effort into seeing the customer feels as though they are here in the room with me testing out the violins, but from the comfort of their own home and at their own pressure-free schedule.

As a private and group lessons violin teacher since 1994 I see that my customers are educated every step of the shopping experience. I spent over 2 years creating this new website to see much of my extensive knowledge uploaded from her brain into these pages. My product pages include more detailed measurements, specs and search tools than any other shop online. Combined with other online resources such as my sizing chart, Glossary of Terms, FAQs, and hundreds of articles results in a phenomenal learning environment where customers make well-researched, self-serve buying choices possible.

Convenient and Safe Cart System

The online shop accepts a variety of payment methods to make shopping easier and more secure for everyone. Some items are shipped for free and many items can be combined with other items to ship efficiently cost-wise and environmentally. Nearly every item is placed on a permanent sale price, and I have a number of incentives and money-saving measures for my customers.

This new website, launched June 7, 2021, is hosted on my own dedicated server and operates via the sophisticated and secure Magento 2 platform, which is utilized by Fortune 500 companies. This also ensures your precious personal data and purchase history is not in the hands of merchant platforms like Shopify, which is used by most competing violin shops and is sadly responsible for an increasing number of scam sites.

Imitation Isn't Always flattering

Fiddleheads has earned such a solid and enviable reputation that knockoff, similarly-named websites providing inferior products and service have spawned with hopes to capitalize on my efforts and good name. Even some large and popular shops (who should know better, tisk tisk) have mirrored my product offering and plagiarized my text, policies, and intellectual property.

Please shop carefully and make completely sure you are shopping with the original, award-winning Fiddleheads Violin Studio by Rhiannon Nachbaur.

Rhiannon's hand holding a fiddlehead fern with a photo of planet Earth in the background

Forward Thinking "Green" Eco Policy

Fiddleheads supports many local events and charitable causes has been involved in many community projects.

As a dedicated environmentalist, I implemented a strict and comprehensive "Green" eco policy for the business in the early 2000s, the efforts of which saw Fiddleheads as the first business in my formal city to win a "Green Business Award" in 2007. Fiddleheads since won the comparable "Environmental Leadership Award" with the Kamloops Business Excellence Awards in 2021.

[Read customer testimonials on the subject of Fiddleheads' eco policy]

pride flags behind statue of a cellist

Inclusivity & Benevolence Policies

Fiddleheads' focus on professionalism and fairness sees me constantly striving to provide courteous service to all customers and prospective customers.

I strive to provide a safe and warmly supportive place for all customers to shop, regardless of their race, gender, sexual orientation, beliefs systems, or neurodivergence. Insensitive or inappropriate remarks from cranky-pants and bullies are not tolerated.

[Read Full Policy Here]

 

Thank You

Thank you for your interest in doing business with Fiddleheads Violin Studio and please contact me with any requests you may have in your quest for an instrument.

Rhiannon public signature

- Rhiannon Nachbaur (she/her), Owner Fiddleheads Violin Studio

 

*The business was previously known as Rhiannon's Violin Studio (1995-1999) and Fiddleheads Violin School (1999-2016).