*This project made possible by the New York State Council on the arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. [2026]*

KOEHLER COLLECTION • DEDICATION

This collection of tunes was composed by Gretchen & Rebecca Koehler and is dedicated to the next generation of fiddlers. “It is an honor to be part of a long line of musicians, each shaping the tradition through playing, jamming, composing, and arranging. May these tunes move from our hands to yours, as they have through centuries of fiddlers before us. Make them your own, and pass them forward.“

~Gretchen & Rebecca

WELCOME

Hello friends!

Below find sheet music, audios, performance notes, and stories about a collection of tunes composed by my sister Becky and yours truly! This project is under construction during 2026, so check back every few weeks for updates!

Enjoy!
~Gretchen

INTRODUCTION • THE KOEHLER COLLECTION

This book began with a simple, practical need: my sister Becky and I often forgot how our own tunes went and would joke that we needed to write a book so we could look ‘em up!

Becky has been composing since she was a teenager. Becky is a swift composer finding herself with a little phrase in her head and searching for a piece of paper (or napkin) to scribble down the idea. She tells me deciding the title for her finished piece is the hard part. I, on the other hand, work in reverse. My inspiration begins with a clear title or image, and then I fret as notes seem to come to me ever-so-slowly.

My little sister was not shy about playing her twisty and intricate tunes. She played them at the high level competitions on the Northeast US & Canadian fiddle circuit. Other fiddlers took notice of her great tunes; several musicians have recorded her work on their own albums. I only wrote a couple tunes back in the day and was hesitant to share. In those early years, I fully embraced my role of arranger, writing lavishly 3-5 part harmonies for dozens of tunes. That was where I felt at ease, and never fancied myself a tunesmith.

Both Becky and I were music majors in college, though she took her pre-med studies and continued on to become a dentist, while I became a professional musician and music educator. I was a string arranger for more than twenty-five years when I realized I had not written my own tune in over a decade. To set an example for my students, I began a “tune-a-month” challenge in 2013, and to push myself into sharing, recorded several of them on my albums. Several years later I was commissioned to compose a suite of fiddle tunes for The Orchestra of New York which was a thrill. In 2023 I was honored to receive an Individual Artist Grant from the New York State Council on the Arts and found myself creating a massive composition & film project: Fiddling With Traditions, a new suite of tunes inspired by North Country folk artists. In 2026 I was honored with another Individual Artist Grant from the New York State Council on the Arts as part of “The Fiddlers’ POV” including an online tune bank, arrangements for The North Country Fiddle Orchestra, instructional fiddle worksheets and tune book. I finally consider myself a composer.

This is a wonderful milestone to now share The Koehler Collection with our original tunes! May you enjoy the stories behind this music and the experience of playing these melodies and harmonies with family and friends.

THE KOEHLER SISTERS • BIO

Growing up in New England, Gretchen and Rebecca Koehler began their career steeped in the Old Time style of fiddling. As they travelled, they became well versed in many American, Canadian and Celtic traditions. Both classically trained violinists, Gretchen & Rebecca have bridged the fiddle and classical worlds, performing as fiddle soloists with orchestras in the US and Europe. Settling in Northern New York State, Gretchen has made it her life's work to pass on the tradition-- for which she was awarded a Heritage Award from Traditional Arts in Upstate New York (TAUNY) and inducted into the New York State Fiddlers' Hall of Fame. In addition to fiddling, Rebecca is also an Irish and Canadian step dancer.

The Koehler Sisters have a "sibling synchronicity" that brings duet fiddling to a new level of beauty and intricacy. Fiddling together for most of their lives, Gretchen & Rebecca's special musical bond was recognized in TIME Magazine and syndicated TV series, "On the Road with Charles Kurault" and "PM Magazine" while they were still in elementary and middle school. By their teens, they had won fiddle championships in nine states and three provinces, including the prestigious Duet Class in Shelburne, Ontario, which was broadcast nationally on CBC Radio. As adults, their musical highlight was playing traditional fiddling to the historic workshop of 17th century master violin maker Antonio Stradivari in Cremona, Italy.

In addition to performing with her sister, Gretchen plays traditional Irish/New England repertoire with NYC jazz pianist, Daniel Kelly and plays old time music with fiddler Don Woodcock in Northern New York, and is often joined by her son Syl Foisy on fiddle/step dance. Rebecca has worked as a studio musician with folk singers including Dar Williams (The Honesty Room) and performs with her husband, guitarist Brandt Kronholm in their home in Southern Texas.

Big Wave Beach
The Boss Potato
The Boy & The Blackbirds
Castle Wheel [GDGD]
Crazy Weasel 1-2-3!
Crown & Bridge
Double Horn Anvil
Fiddling With Traditions
First Crush
First Crush (harmony)
Fog Horn Reel
Fox’s Wedding
Frosted Hinges
Gaétan’s Reel
June in the North Country [GDGD]
June in the North Country [standard]
Parking in Boston
Portrait of the Gunks
Pulling Paper
Punky’s Reel
Reel De La Calavera
Rock Island Reel
The Sap Bucket
Shakes, Rattles & Rolls

WALTZES & AIRS

Performance note: Airs are always hard to commit to sheet music. Let the rhythm be your own.

Performance notes: This is a powerful piece I wrote in response to my friend’s words. To read more about the collaboration between us, read my blog.

Performance note: I often take this at a slow waltz tempo, not rushing the experience. To learn about the tune’s origin, read my blog.

Performance notes: Since the melody of this waltz does not have a strong downbeat it is helpful to have the accompaniment to provide a strong down beat. This allows the melody to breathe a bit. For more about this tune, read my blog.

JIGS

Performance note: To hear the full jig and read the story of this tune, visit my blog.

Performance notes: This tune was featured in my Sit By the Fire- music & poetry. Read more in my blog.

REELS

Performance note: To learn more about this tune, visit my blog.

Performance note: I have not recored this tune yet, but my son is very chill and I think a laid back approach would match his personality.

Performance notes: To read full story about the creation of this tune, read my blog.

Performance note: On my album with Daniel Kelly, we took an R&B approach. With my single with Jeremy Rusu, he expanded the tune into a big band arrangement. Click here to read about it.

Performance note: There are more parts to this tune! Read the story.

Performance note: I often stomp my foot in the quarter rests in the B part. Feels powerful and helps keep time.

Performance Note: I find this to be a great contra dance tune.

Performance note: I really lay into the fog horn sound with a full bow in m11, m15. At our premiere with The Orchestra of Northern New York on the beautiful green at Thousand Island Park, a young man in the audience couldn’t help but mimic pulling an air horn by pumping his arm up and down every time the fiddle and brass section hit those measures. It was brilliant! To read more about the Song of the St. Lawrence, read my blog.

Performance note: I usually perform this quite slowly, but it could be played at a faster tempo. For the story behind this tune, visit my blog.

Performance note: I think of the bowed triplets as my arm shivering, lol! Great contra dance tune.

Performance notes: This tune works well at many tempos. I often start it off solo, slow, free tempo and then let it naturally pick up speed until I reach a steady quick tempo.

Performance note: To learn more about the behind the scenes of this tune, visit my blog.

Performance note: Since this is a tune about a tricky hike, I add lots of accents to highlight the difficult footing.

To read more about the creation of The Song of the St. Lawrence - read my blog

Performance notes: Measures 15-16 open themselves to lots of improvisation. Have fun!

Performance notes: This tune was written as a companion tune to Pulling Paper, though it can certainly exist on its own. To read the inspiration, visit my blog.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I took on the role of transcriber for this collection, handling the layout, graphic design, and chord choices. Rebecca was my trusted note checker, with additional eyes from my fiddle students, The Madstop Fiddlers. Pianist Daniel Kelly and guitarist Brandt Kronholm looked over the chords, and Joel Foisy was on hand to help edit the writing.

We are deeply grateful to Traditional Arts in Upstate New York [TAUNY] for their advocacy for fiddling in the North Country. The Koehler Collection (part of The Fiddlers’ POV project) was supported by the New York State Council on the Arts with funding from the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

~Gretchen

THE KOEHLER COLLECTION