If you’ve got a sweet tooth, today’s holiday is music to your ears. December 13 is National Ice Cream and Violins Day!
OK. Say what?! I am definitely left scratching my head over this one. We’ve celebrated some odd food holidays this year, but today’s takes the cake. The origin of this holiday is shrouded in mystery, so all we can do is take a stab at a wild guess. There is one possible explanation that at least can’t be completely ruled out. December 13 is widely known as National Violin Day. And on this date in 2010, rock violinist Ben Lee of FUSE broke the Guinness World Record for the Fastest Violin Player by playing more than 14 notes per second. Maybe he went out for ice cream to celebrate afterwards! Whatever the reason, today we pay homage to the sweet duo.
Only…exactly how are we supposed to do so? I have no musical talent whatsoever. I mean, I can play a kazoo if need be, and could probably get by on the tambourine, but a violin is a sophisticated musical instrument that takes years of practice to master. I’m pretty sure if I picked one up and started playing the result would be akin to nails on a chalkboard, not people settling down to enjoy ice cream.
So, we decided on a compromise: we would have a bowl of ice cream while listening to violins. It just so happens we’ve got some CDs by Jimmy be Free, a local violinist who usually hangs out at the Portland International Airport playing music for passersby. Weird gig, huh? He happened to play at a company event a few months ago and so impressed Tara, she bought some of his CDs. We dished up a couple of scoops, hit PLAY, and paid honor to both ice cream and violins.
You can view a video – music and all – of this event on Facebook. Just click on the link!
Related articles
- Love is like a violin… and ice cream (michaelstvtray.com)
- Happy Violin Day to You… (wallyday.com)
Eat My Words 
Have you heard Tom Rigney play the violin? I am sure he would make any ice cream taste better than ever. His version of “The House of the Rising Sun” is fantastic.
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I have not, but I’m intrigued. “House of the Rising Sun” on violin sounds pretty great! Off to YouTube I go…
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After I read your article, I went to one of the bloggers at the bottom of the page because he mentioned a song called “Love is like a Violin”. It was a hit in the ’60’s or ’70’s. Anyway, I went to another version of it on YouTube by Ivactable. It was actually played by a violin, no vocals, and with beautifully graceful sketches. I tried to find the recording on Amazon, but no luck. I guess I will have to join Youtube , which I have avoided this far, so that I can ask her who is playing the violin. Hope you enjoy it as well.
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14 notes in one second? Holy smokes!!
As a person who has played the violin…that is incredible!!
Nice job celebrating both!!
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Definitely one of our more interactive challenges. I’m just thankful we had the Jimmy be Free CDs!
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