Fiddlers Frolics

A talented group of 20 fiddlers from across the country showcased their skills in the Gone to Texas segment of the 54th Annual Fiddler’s Frolics, held this past Saturday on April 26 at the Hallettsville KC Hall. Competitors traveled from places as distant as Oregon and Tenneseee, facing off in three rounds. The top three finalists advanced to a freestyle round, where they performed five different styles of fiddling music.

“It’s unbelievable the level and quality of fiddle playing in this contest,” Fiddlers Frolic MC Wes Westmoreland said. “This is the best group of fiddle players I’ve seen in my entire life.”

The competition, named after the Lone Star State, was fierce from the start. In the opening round, each of the 20 contestants performed two tunes back-to-back, consisting of a breakdown and a tune of their choice. Nat Copeland from Asheville, North Carolina, kicked off the round with a lively performance of “Dusty Miller” and “Cotton Patch Rag.”

The next player was Kerry Varble from Salem, Ohio. She was previously a 2024 Kentucky State Champion.

You could tell fiddle playing ran in the blood of some of these folks as one player, Dan Everts from Yuma, Arizona had his granddaughter and daughter accompanying him.

“That’s what I love to see at this contest,” Westmoreland said. “Three generations speaking the same language through music.”

The first round truly showed all fiddle players giving it their all.

Only six of the 20 players advanced to round two. Folks from California, Missouri, Minnesota, Colorado, Oregon, and Oklahoma competed in the second round.

Some of these players are notable, including Trustin Baker from Birch Tree, Missouri. He has a band with his family members that plays all over the country. He has won the out of state division at least three times. Tashina Lindley Clarridge from Mt. Shasta, California also made it to the top six. She was actually last year’s 2024 Gone to Texas winner.

All of these players had to play a tune of their choosing in round two. After each player serenaded both the audience and the judges, the waiting game for the final three began.

Round three was the most challenging round of them all. Advancing in the top three were Luke Price from Portland, Oregon, Ziri “Bubba” Hopkins from Spavinaw, Oklahoma, and Jesse Quintana from Lakewood, Colorado. Quintana was the youngest of the bunch, making it to the top three after facing these seasoned veterans as just a teenager.

Each of these players had to play improvised tunes with specific fiddling styles.

In the Round Robin portion of the finals, each fiddler took the stage with poise, leading their accompanists in a performance of their choice, as long as the selected song fit within the designated category.

The genre styles for the competition were determined by drawing a domino, a process carried out by Kenneth Henneke, one of the three founding members of the Hallettsville Fiddlers Frolics.

“This Round Robin goes quick, the players go back-toback, and it’s of high intensity,” Westmoreland said.

The first genre drawn was a waltz. Price began that round performing the “Morning Star Waltz.” He truly had charisma and charm. Hopkins closed off the waltz round playing the “Wednesday Nights Waltz.”

The next genre drawn was the lively sounds of polka music. After that came a reel followed by a breakdown, and, lastly, a horn pipe. A horn pipe is often described as having a “jaunty” or “walking” quality, setting it apart from faster reels or jigs.

As judges submitted their final scores, the competition ended with all three players playing together. This is a tradition which shows good moral character from each of these competitors because, in the end, each player is all friends.

As this concluded the playing of the evening, the final results were then announced. In third place was Price, second place was Quintana, and the winner of the contest was Hopkins, who accepted the title with pride.

“I feel very honored to be in first place out of 20,” Hopkins said. “It’s been about four years since I’ve been down here. All of my fellow fiddle comrades did very well.”

Hopkins took home the prize of $1,400 and a rose gold belt buckle with honor.

Guitar contest had 13 competitors from six states, senior round. Most were from Texas, barring the who won from Oregon. TEXAS state Champion Fiddlers, which requires that you reside in Texas in order to compete, had 21 fiddle players vying for bragging rights. Carl Hopkins, of Porter, the past repeat winner that Ludiker bested last year, took third in 2025 contest. Newcomer Ridge Roberts of Granbury took home a second place finish in his first outing at the Hallettsville state championship.

On a side note, Daniel Jasek of Moulton competed once again in the senior championship. At 93, he’s the only man alive who played in every contest Frolics ever hosted. He walked away with fourth place finish Sunday, behind Gordon Townsend (71) of Point Blank, TX, and retired fireman Brad Riley, 69, of Waller.