Our History

The Vermont Fiddle Orchestra was founded in 2003 by Sarah Hotchkiss. Sarah served as the Music Director from 2003 to 2013, and during this period Sarah’s husband John Mowad served as the Assistant Director; John also arranged most of the music played by the orchestra during this period. David Kaynor took over as the Music Director in September, 2013 and Peter Macfarlane took the reins in January, 2020. Peter arranges most of the music played by the orchestra, and he has composed some of the tunes as well. Susan Reid began serving as the Assistant Director in 2020; Susan has composed and arranged some of the orchestra’s music, coached ensembles of the orchestra, and lead some of the summer gigs played by ensembles.

Over the years we have had the great pleasure to work with a variety of guest soloists including:

  • 2003 – Spring Concert – Adam Boyce
  • Summer Concert – Pete Sutherland
  • 2005 – Winter Concert – Scott Campbell
  • 2006 – Spring Concert – Ron West
  • Summer Concert – Spencer Lewis
  • Winter Concert – Sarah Blair
  • 2007 – Spring Concert – Susannah Blachley
  • Summer Concert – Fiddlers Three (Adam Boyce, Franklin Heyburn, John Mowad)
  • Winter Concert – Iain MacHarg & The Highland Dancers
  • 2008 – Spring Concert – Neil Rossi
  • Winter Concert – Susannah Blachley & George White
  • 2009 – Spring Concert – Hillary Barcomb & Cloggers Dance Team
  • Winter Concert – Andy Stewart & Mary Jo Slattery
  • 2010 – Spring Concert – Sarah Hotchkiss
  • Winter Concert – Roger Perreault
  • 2011 – Spring Concert – David Kaynor
  • Winter Concert – Beth Telford
  • 2012 – Spring Concert – David Gusakov
  • Winter Concert – Donna Hebert
  • 2013 – Spring Concert – 10th Anniversary – Susannah Blachley, Adam Boyce, Scott Campbell, David Gusakov, Franklin Heyburn, Donna Hebert, Sarah Hotchkiss, Spencer Lewis, Harold Luce, John Mowad, Roger Perreault, Beth Telford, Ann Whiting
  • 2014 – Spring Concert – Mary Lea
  • Fall – VFO joined others in accompanying Sian Phillips
  • 2015 – Spring Concert – George Wilson
  • 2016 – Spring Concert – Randy Miller
  • 2017 – Spring Concert – Pascal Gemme & Yann Falquet
  • 2018 – Spring Concert – Gretchen Koehler
  • Winter Concert – 15th Anniversary – Sarah Hotchkiss & John Mowad
  • 2019 – Spring Concert – Katie & Corie Pressley
  • Winter Concert – Peter Macfarlane
  • 2022 – Spring Concert – Tim Cummings
  • 2023 – Spring Concert – Katie Trautz
  • Winter Concert – 20th Anniversary – Sarah Hotchkiss & John Mowad; Susan Reid & Leeds Brewer.

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David Kaynor

David Kaynor was the VFO’s Music Director from September 2013 through the 2019 autumn concert when health issues forced him to retire. We were overjoyed to hear that he was recently honored by the Country Dance and Song Society with its 2021 CDSS Lifetime Contribution Award.  Read about David and the award.

Sadly, David passed away in 2021 but he was still composing tunes even while almost completely paralyzed by ALS.  He kept giving us new tunes using an eye-gaze computer, text-based musical notation, and the help of friends to play passages.  Here are some of his last tunes.

David began playing fiddle in 1974, and started calling local contra dances in Western Massachusetts around 1980. Over the last three decades, he became increasingly involved as both fiddler and caller in the New England and national contra dance scenes. He has been on staff at Northern Week at Ashokan, taught at Contra Dance Musicians’ Week at the John C. Campbell Folk School and the Northeast Heritage Music Camp in Vermont many times. He has also played for and taught dancing at Pinewoods, Buffalo Gap, Mendocino, the Lady of the Lake, Ogontz, Summer Acoustic Music Week, Suttle Lake, Wannadance Uptown, the Summit School, and myriad other camps, workshops and music events around the country.

The Vermont Fiddle Orchestra produced this video celebration in David’s honor:

A group of VFO members played David’s Montague Processional during David’s hospitalization:

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On the occasion of the orchestra’s 20th anniversary in 2023, founder Sarah Hotchkiss wrote the following brief history:

For a wonderful full length documentary by my daughter and filmmaker, Elizabeth Rossano, you can learn about how the orchestra began and grew during the first ten years, culminating in a lively tenth anniversary celebration featuring many of the soloists from the first decade. I was Founder and Director (2003 – 2013) and my husband John was Assistant Director who wrote most of the brilliant arrangements and led the rhythm section: Watch (mediafactory.org). The documentary is called, “No Audition Required: The Vermont Fiddle Orchestra’s First Ten Years.”  It’s a great story about how I built the orchestra and is a wonderful testimony about how transformative music can be no matter what age you are when you first start making it.

In 2013 the VFO board and I passed the leadership over to my friend and colleague, David Kaynor ( Director 2013 – 2019), a much beloved director who took the orchestra to many new heights and helped the orchestra grow greatly in numbers due to his tremendous popularity, amazing skills, and a great sense of humor.  This video gives a great introduction to his work: Vermont Fiddle Orchestra Celebrates David Kaynor. David’s first encounter with the Orchestra in 2011, David Kaynor with the Vermont Fiddle Orchestra 2011 is captured in this video I made for David before he sadly passed away in 2021.

The VFO has had great fortune to be now under the direction of Peter Macfarlane (2020 to present) who at the beginning of the pandemic brilliantly kept them all going online until they were finally able to play in person again.  Like all before him, he writes beautiful arrangements for the orchestra and the group keeps growing and growing under his wonderful and inspiring leadership.   He is assisted by Susan Reid, who also writes beautiful arrangements and has very capably led the orchestra in many events as well as taught them a tremendous repertoire by ear.

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The Spring 2024 Concert:


The Winter, 2023 VFO 20th Anniversary Concert:

The Spring 2023 VFO Concert Featured Guest Fiddler Katie Trautz:

The Vermont Fiddle Orchestra presented its Spring Concert at the Barre Opera House on Saturday, April 8. The concert featured guest artist fiddler Katie Trautz of Montpelier who brought swinging Cajun music from Louisiana to the orchestra’s program, complimenting its more usual traditional jigs, reels, waltzes and old-time tunes from Ireland, Sweden, Quebec, France’s Breton region, the Shetland Islands, Appalachia and Vermont.  Artistic Director Peter Macfarlane contributed a composition of his own, as well as two tunes by well-loved musician Pete Sutherland, who passed away in November.  A full-length recording of the concert is available here.

The Fall 2022 Concert:

The Orchestra presented its Fall Concert on Saturday, December 10, 2022 at the Barre Opera House, directed by Peter Macfarlane.  A full length audio of the concert is available here.

The Winter 2021 concert: Select Full Screen mode at bottom-right of the YouTube screen for the best experience.

During the two seasons when Covid restrictions prevented us from rehearsing and performing in person we continued learning tunes together via Zoom., One tune from each season was recorded  with individual members contributing remotely and assembled electronically into a complete performance by Peter Macfarlane.   Hear them now:

OUR GUIDING STAR, a beautiful air composed by Robin Russell and Cynthia Thomas as a tribute to David Kaynor.

and LAMENT FOR THE DEATH OF REVEREND ARCHIE BEATON, from Scotland, an air composed by John Mason in honor of the minister of Dundonald Parish Church, Ayrshire. A champion of Gaelic culture.

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