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WESTERN OPEN JUDGES
CONTACT US: Mailing Address: PO Box 101, Red Bluff CA 96080 Phone: (530) 527-6127 Fax: (530) 528-0431 MAP to the Red Bluff Elks Lodge
Cody Stadelmaier Cody Stadelmaier began playing her Grandpa's fiddle at age 10. She instantly fell in love with the instrument. She grew up in Casper, Wyoming playing old time tunes in the local fiddle club. From there she started competing in contests and went on to win the Junior Wyoming State title, followed by the Grand Champion title. In 1992 she moved to Fort Collins, CO to study music at Colorado State University. It was during that time she was introduced to Texas Style Fiddling. Under the guidance of Dick and Lisa Barrett, she went on to win several Colorado State Championships and National Adult Champion. In Fort Collins, she has her own studio and loves to teach.
Eileen Walter I have enjoyed fiddling, teaching, jamming, performing, competing, and judging since I first heard fiddle music upon moving to Oregon in 1971. I’ve judged many contests in Oregon, Washington, California, Idaho, Oklahoma, and Nevada. For the past five years I’ve served as the director of the Oregon State Open Contest which is held each year on the third Saturday of March. I am a former Oregon State and Northwest Regional Adult and Senior Champion, and am the current Washington State Senior Champion.
Randy Warner Randy is a semi-retired veterinary surgeon from Washoe Valley, Nevada. He took up the fiddle after he and his beloved wife, Liz, attended the National Fiddle Championship in Weiser. Since then, he has competed in local, state, regional, and the National contests. He is a 5- time Nevada State Champion. Randy has judged local, state, and regional contests. His judging philosophy is that intonation and timing are the most important things he is looking for from a contestant. He also believes that if a contestant is having fun playing, it will come through in their play. If he could give one bit of advice, it would be: while you are on stage, have fun and enjoy the moment.
Danita Gardner Danita was for many years a private violin/fiddle instruction originally from Boise, Idaho, and now living in Atherton, California. She spent four years in Huntsville, Texas; competed in many contests; and received her undergraduate degree in Violin Performance from Sam Houston State University. Danita moved back to Idaho to get her Masters Degree in Violin Pedagogy from Boise State University. She has won the Grand Masters in Nashville, Tennessee, and the Grand National in Weiser, Idaho, three times each for a total of six national trophies.
Tallon Sandoval Tallon has studied classical violin and Texas style fiddle music for over eighteen years, alongside the piano, guitar and viola. He feels privileged to have studied under such recognized musicians as Kathy Kampschmidt, Nicki Carlisle, Johnene McDonald, Alex DePue, Danita Gardner, Megan Lynch-Chowning, and Matthew Hartz. Through the course of his career, he has placed highly at many regional, state and national contests, including the California, Nevada, Idaho, and Wyoming state contests, the Western Open Fiddle Championships, the National Old-Time Fiddler’s Contest and Festival and the Grand Master Fiddler Championships. In addition, he, in collaboration with Johnene McDonald, David Johns and John Brand, produced the well-received 2012 album, “Collide,” he had the opportunity to perform for His Holiness the Dalai Lama himself at a private charity event held at the Ritz Carlton in San Francisco, California in March of 2014, and in early 2017, he participated in a humanitarian trip to Cambodia, Laos and Thailand, where he performed at orphanages, schools and fundraising events to help increase donor engagement for a charitable foundation. Tallon recently graduated with honors from Dartmouth College with dual degrees in Government (Comparative Politics track) and Hispanic Studies. He is currently a graduate student at University of California San Diego’s School of Global Policy and Strategy, where he is pursuing a Master of International Affairs degree with specializations in Economics, International Development & Nonprofit Management, Spatial Analysis and Latin American Politics.
WESTERN OPEN JUDGES
CONTACT US: Mailing Address: PO Box 101, Red Bluff CA 96080 Phone: (530) 527-6127 Fax: (530) 528-0431 MAP to the Red Bluff Elks Lodge
Cody Stadelmaier Cody Stadelmaier began playing her Grandpa's fiddle at age 10. She instantly fell in love with the instrument. She grew up in Casper, Wyoming playing old time tunes in the local fiddle club. From there she started competing in contests and went on to win the Junior Wyoming State title, followed by the Grand Champion title. In 1992 she moved to Fort Collins, CO to study music at Colorado State University. It was during that time she was introduced to Texas Style Fiddling. Under the guidance of Dick and Lisa Barrett, she went on to win several Colorado State Championships and National Adult Champion. In Fort Collins, she has her own studio and loves to teach.
Eileen Walter I have enjoyed fiddling, teaching, jamming, performing, competing, and judging since I first heard fiddle music upon moving to Oregon in 1971. I’ve judged many contests in Oregon, Washington, California, Idaho, Oklahoma, and Nevada. For the past five years I’ve served as the director of the Oregon State Open Contest which is held each year on the third Saturday of March. I am a former Oregon State and Northwest Regional Adult and Senior Champion, and am the current Washington State Senior Champion.
Randy Warner Randy is a semi-retired veterinary surgeon from Washoe Valley, Nevada. He took up the fiddle after he and his beloved wife, Liz, attended the National Fiddle Championship in Weiser. Since then, he has competed in local, state, regional, and the National contests. He is a 5- time Nevada State Champion. Randy has judged local, state, and regional contests. His judging philosophy is that intonation and timing are the most important things he is looking for from a contestant. He also believes that if a contestant is having fun playing, it will come through in their play. If he could give one bit of advice, it would be: while you are on stage, have fun and enjoy the moment.
Danita Gardner Danita was for many years a private violin/fiddle instruction originally from Boise, Idaho, and now living in Atherton, California. She spent four years in Huntsville, Texas; competed in many contests; and received her undergraduate degree in Violin Performance from Sam Houston State University. Danita moved back to Idaho to get her Masters Degree in Violin Pedagogy from Boise State University. She has won the Grand Masters in Nashville, Tennessee, and the Grand National in Weiser, Idaho, three times each for a total of six national trophies.
Tallon Sandoval Tallon has studied classical violin and Texas style fiddle music for over eighteen years, alongside the piano, guitar and viola. He feels privileged to have studied under such recognized musicians as Kathy Kampschmidt, Nicki Carlisle, Johnene McDonald, Alex DePue, Danita Gardner, Megan Lynch-Chowning, and Matthew Hartz. Through the course of his career, he has placed highly at many regional, state and national contests, including the California, Nevada, Idaho, and Wyoming state contests, the Western Open Fiddle Championships, the National Old-Time Fiddler’s Contest and Festival and the Grand Master Fiddler Championships. In addition, he, in collaboration with Johnene McDonald, David Johns and John Brand, produced the well- received 2012 album, “Collide,” he had the opportunity to perform for His Holiness the Dalai Lama himself at a private charity event held at the Ritz Carlton in San Francisco, California in March of 2014, and in early 2017, he participated in a humanitarian trip to Cambodia, Laos and Thailand, where he performed at orphanages, schools and fundraising events to help increase donor engagement for a charitable foundation. Tallon recently graduated with honors from Dartmouth College with dual degrees in Government (Comparative Politics track) and Hispanic Studies. He is currently a graduate student at University of California San Diego’s School of Global Policy and Strategy, where he is pursuing a Master of International Affairs degree with specializations in Economics, International Development & Nonprofit Management, Spatial Analysis and Latin American Politics.