Just a Little Fiddling Around

 

Brothers Bernard Steinman, Charles Steinman, Lester Steinman, 1980.

APRIL 01, 2021

Polaroid photo of Charley Steinman playing his violin and John Wise playing his guitar, April 1984.

Polaroid photo of Charley Steinman playing his violin and John Wise playing his guitar, April 1984.

While I didn’t personally inherit the musical gene in the family, it certainly existed in the tree! The Steinman branch became synonymous with lyrical talent, due to Charles Edwin Steinman’s gift with violins.

Week 13: Music

---

After suffering an accident in his childhood, Charles Steinman (1920-2014) learned to work with a disabled arm and use it to his advantage. He began fiddling at the age of 4 and then went on to handcraft fine violins from a variety of hardwoods and specialize in their repair.

Black and white photograph of Esther Stroh and husband Charles Steinman in front of a vehicle, 1941.

He continued to perform for the rest of his life, and especially enjoyed playing for dances and parties, making frequent appearances at The Prairie Peddler Festival near Butler, Ohio. This ability was all in addition to his farming, welding, and electrician skills! His style of music would now commonly be referred to as bluegrass, but without a banjo.

Here’s an example of one of his masterpieces, gifted from him to my grandparents (he was my grandmother’s 1st cousin on her mother’s side of the family):

Kira D. Foltz, photo of violin handcrafted by Charles Edwin Steinman which was gifted to her grandparents The Millhouses who were his first cousiin, 2021, Thousand Oaks, California. Violin now in the possession of Gary and Beatrice Foltz.

And this advert from North Haven, Connecticut’s Illustrated Current News in the ‘70s, highlighted his expertise in trick violinist skills. The article was also reprinted in newspapers across several states:

Illustrated Current News, Inc., “Tricky Fiddles,” 3 December 1979, North Haven, Connecticut, No. 10,261.

It’s easy to see from these images that Charley clearly spearheaded what eventually became the “hipster” movement. Before the term was even coined, he was already sporting the thick-rimmed glasses and handlebar mustache and hanging out with the likes of the artisan community. But what made him particularly stand out from that easy-going crowd, was the fact that he honed his craft and never rested on his laurels.

John Harris, “Craftsmen Delight Crowds With Skill,” 22 August 1976, Coshocton, Ohio, The Tribune; online database with images, Newspapers (https://newspapers.com : accessed 1 Apr 2021) > US > Ohio > Coshocton > The Tribune > 1976 > Aug > 22 > Page 1.