Black Fiddlers

Black Fiddlers is a documentary film exploring the legacy of African Americans who contributed to shaping the cultural landscape of American folklore. The film traces the personal and family stories of violin players of African descent in New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia, Texas, Missouri, and as far as Oregon during the Indian Wars and the Gold Rush.

Inspired by the legacy of Joe & Odell Thomson, director Montes-Bradley resorted to performers Rhiannon Giddens and Justin Robinson from The Carolina Chocolate Drops, and old-time fiddler Earl White to reconstruct three-hundred years of Black music with the help of local historians, academics, and award-winning authors like Kip Lornell and John J. Sullivan.

Black Fiddlers is the result of one year of uninterrupted research, on the road and on location. The result is a compelling one-hour documentary film carefully designed to inform and entertain while presenting the audience with a diversity of arguments never explored before on film.

  • Eduardo Montes-Bradley
    Director
    Alice: At Home with Alice Parker
  • Eduardo Montes-Bradley
    Writer
  • Rhiannon Giddens
    Key Cast
    Carolina Chocolate Drops
  • Justin Robinson
    Key Cast
    Carolina Chocolate Drops
  • Kip Lornell
    Key Cast
  • John Jeremiah Sullivan
    Key Cast
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Feature, Television
  • Genres:
    Documentary, History, Music, African America, Black History, Class and Race, Jazz
  • Runtime:
    60 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    February 1, 2022
  • Production Budget:
    139,800 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Distribution Information
  • Heritage Film Project
    Distributor
    Country: Worldwide
    Rights: All Rights
Director - Eduardo Montes-Bradley