On May 10th in 1984 the Oklahoma State Legislation sent my 79 yr. old daddy an official letter, requesting him to come & play his fiddle (not violin) for them. They were wanting to choose an instrument to be our State Instrument for Oklahoma. He stood before them all & played THIS song. SOLO!!! No orchestra, no accompaniment, just him & his fiddle. He raised the roof!! My daddy was self taught, could NOT read a note of music. For 67 yrs. he played ONLY by ear!! Needless to say.... The "fiddle" to this day, is Our State instrument!! Thank you daddy & thank you Oklahoma!!
This performance is one of the very few I have ever heard where the fiddler actually plays the melody as it is written and even hits all the notes! Mark O'Connor is a masterful player and does an excellent job with this song.
@@spick1923 you had better not spill whiskey on a $100,000 violin. Will disolve the varnish off it and likely destroy the sound characteristics. Oh, and tchaikovsky and vivaldi’s ghosts got a kick out of it too. He was a star In Nashville at age 13 where he won the national fiddling championship. Don’t be fooled by terminology. Itzak Perlman and Jascha Heifetz could play a mean fiddle. Too bad that there are no public recordings of them.
Mr. O'Connor... you should be proud! Sure you are.....How wonderful. Went to a performance last night. They finished with this.. the audience was on their feet...
I love old trains and have had the opportunity to ride some great ones in western North Carolina over the past decade or so. This song is a wonderful tribute to the sounds of these old trains. Great performance.
Mark , incredible performance , absolutely awesome , A close second to Randi Fishnfeld and the Klezmer company Orchestra though . I've watched many videos of this music , there are three on my number one list : Randi Fishnfeld and the Klezmer company Orchestra Tom Rigney and Flambeau and now you , Mark O'Connor & the Boston Pops . Thank you .
I have heard a lot of people and groups perform Orange Blossom Special but none this version is definitely unique. He even threw in a bit of the themes from Bonanza and The Flinstones. :)
Mark, every time I listen to your music you bring joy into my day! This piece is absolutely joyous!! Thank you SO much for bringing your wonderful skills and music into our lives!
woah! absolutely amazing..riveting..and wonderful to hear this JOYful song as it was originally intended to be hear.. along with all the fun & beautiful variations . thank you Mark, for sharing your magic with us.
That's simply amazing, marvelous playing. I love to watch Mark - he might not draw the bow ( in classical style) but wow feel he's actually so far ahead of the game!!! with what he can make the fiddle do!
Mr O'Conner, At 48 yrs old I just heard the best version of The Orange Blossom Special ever. Thank you very much for sharing this great work with us all.
What I find fasinating is here is a conservative audience probably used to listening to strict classical music giving him a standing ovation at the end!!!
"Mr. O'Connor, I want you to know that my grandfather, Ervin T. Rouse, wrote the Orange Blossom Special. And of all the people my family has heard, play that song......you are the best. Thank you for doing an awesome job on this song." -Desire' Meyers Orange Blossom Special like you never imagined! Mark O'Connor & the Boston Pops
So did he really retire down by everglades city I won't mention the old town or the road it is on or the bar as it no longer remains. Heard he lived off the royalties and supported the entire town either way cool to imagine him just playing in the swamp for his friends
Hahahahahaha.......... I bet Ervin T Rouse and Chubby Wise could never imagine their music being played by the Boston Pops..... The genius of Mark O’Connor. I was 13 yrs old and scratching up Mark’s Soppin the gravy album. I’d go to contests and hear other fiddlers playing his arrangements note for note. Bart Trotter could play Mark’s Tennessee Wagoner note for note. That impressed me greatly. I never got to see mark play in a contest and that was as close to seeing how he did it as I got. Bart played a super hot, I don’t love nobody in C where others played it in A. The year was 1984, I was playing a contest in Muleshoe, Tx.... when we got news that Ricky Turpin, one of our great local fiddlers had finished 2nd at Weiser. Give you one guess who finished #1....... the unbeatable... Mark O’ Connor! I got to help judge the older division at the muleshoe contest......Weldon Turpin (Ricky’s dad), Bartow Riley were some of the greats that played that day.....
WOW, I MET MARK, BELA, SAM AND THE ONE AND ONLY JERRY DOUGLAS 35 YEARS AGO ! THEY WENT TO DIFFERENT FESTIVALS AND DIDN'T EVEN KNOW IF THEY WOULD MAKE ENOUGH FOR THEIR GASOLINE EXPENSE.. I am so glad for their successes. (Sorry , didn't know I had caps on.)
Dude! You ROCK!!! Met you at the Wheeler in Aspen back in around '94 or '95, showed you my invention, the Cellocaster... you picked it up, put it under your chin and said, "boy, this is heavy..." You Sir, ARE CORRECT! But I haven't given up! I have plans to redesign it in a shorter scale, and lighter, hollow-body design. I will keep you posted. Thanks for the inspiration!
8.7.17 .. That was "crazy" .. I'll never be able to move my fingers half the speed just scratching my head, without having to play a tune. I have heard others, all excellent, because I can't play the darn thing.
I have never heard a bad version of OBS, because I would never listen to an amateur play it. I have heard some great versions and would not want to rate them. Each player has his unique style.
Aw, ya oughta try listenin' to an amateur now and then. Ya might be missin' out. This 14 YO kid's not too shabby.... th-cam.com/video/eCAFfX_va_I/w-d-xo.html
Is this the same song on Music Of The Heart where that fiddle scene came on, I was looking for that song, if its it, I can't hear the violins like I do in that movie, I can't tell if it's the same song.
Just had to comment again- if I played the violin/fiddle (which I don’t), I wouldn’t be able to play the wrong notes that fast, let alone the right ones lol 😂🤩
Fantastic on the violin, but I'm sorry, I kept waiting for the actual Orange Blossom Special song to start. Had to wait until the 4 minute mark to hear any semblance of the true OBS song. Look up Roy Clark and Jimmy Henley performing it to see how the song really goes. Aside from that, you are a very accomplished violinist and deserve praise and much credit for that. ---Just not for doing this song, or at least not this arrangement of it, which I assume may have been done by John williams.
On May 10th in 1984 the Oklahoma State Legislation sent my 79 yr. old daddy an official letter, requesting him to come & play his fiddle (not violin) for them. They were wanting to choose an instrument to be our State Instrument for Oklahoma. He stood before them all & played THIS song. SOLO!!! No orchestra, no accompaniment, just him & his fiddle. He raised the roof!! My daddy was self taught, could NOT read a note of music. For 67 yrs. he played ONLY by ear!! Needless to say....
The "fiddle" to this day, is Our State instrument!! Thank you daddy & thank you Oklahoma!!
Phew!!!! I'm knackered after watching this.
Mark is unbelievable. He is a great inspiration to me.
I would say this was one of best moments ever on Evening at Pops during its historic run on PBS
Pretty amazing to have John Williams as conductor too..
Never heard anyone play fiddle like that !!!!!!!!!! I'm surprised it didn't burst into flames !!!! Mark, YOU ARE AMAZIN' !
Marc O'cconer & John Williams! Two masters of musical talent!
I grew up in the North Carolina mountains this guy is one of a kind and one of the very best fiddle players I've ever heard
This performance is one of the very few I have ever heard where the fiddler actually plays the melody as it is written and even hits all the notes! Mark O'Connor is a masterful player and does an excellent job with this song.
Bob Warren Was that a fiddle or violin?
It depends...if u're playing classical music, it's a violin! If country...it's a fiddle!
@@chrisgorgas1929 you spill whisky on a fiddle. That's the difference
@@spick1923 you had better not spill whiskey on a $100,000 violin. Will disolve the varnish off it and likely destroy the sound characteristics. Oh, and tchaikovsky and vivaldi’s ghosts got a kick out of it too. He was a star In Nashville at age 13 where he won the national fiddling championship. Don’t be fooled by terminology. Itzak Perlman and Jascha Heifetz could play a mean fiddle. Too bad that there are no public recordings of them.
Bob Warren - I’ve seen you leave a similar comment on a couple other fiddlers’ videos. Are you a bot? Lol
i've heard countless versions of 'orange blossom special'.
this one is something else.. the orchid in a sea of buttercups.
Mr. O'Connor... you should be proud! Sure you are.....How wonderful. Went to a performance last night. They finished with this.. the audience was on their feet...
That was awesome playing and an awesome arrangement as well. Thanks for sharing.
I love old trains and have had the opportunity to ride some great ones in western North Carolina over the past decade or so. This song is a wonderful tribute to the sounds of these old trains. Great performance.
I expect that bow was liquid cooled! INCREDIBLE poor fiddle was smokin at the end!
Mark , incredible performance , absolutely awesome ,
A close second to Randi Fishnfeld and the Klezmer company Orchestra though .
I've watched many videos of this music , there are three on my number one list :
Randi Fishnfeld and the Klezmer company Orchestra
Tom Rigney and Flambeau and now you ,
Mark O'Connor & the Boston Pops .
Thank you .
I have heard a lot of people and groups perform Orange Blossom Special but none this version is definitely unique. He even threw in a bit of the themes from Bonanza and The Flinstones. :)
This was ASTONISHING. Incredible! Mr. O'Connor, you are a virtuoso. Bravo, a million times!
Mark O'Conner one of my favorite fiddlers.
gotta love it, john williams & the boston pops!
Mark, every time I listen to your music you bring joy into my day! This piece is absolutely joyous!! Thank you SO much for bringing your wonderful skills and music into our lives!
I am sure I seen smoke coming from those strings lol, what an awesome medley.
I love this! Awesome performance!!!
Simply a master at work...WOW! WOW! And hes just as good on guitar...
woah! absolutely amazing..riveting..and wonderful to hear this JOYful song as it was originally intended to be hear.. along with all the fun & beautiful variations . thank you Mark, for sharing your magic with us.
Took away my breath! What a 'fiddler!' 🤠
So cool to see you collaborate with JW!
That's simply amazing, marvelous playing. I love to watch Mark - he might not draw the bow ( in classical style) but wow feel he's actually so far ahead of the game!!! with what he can make the fiddle do!
He’s what’s called a “classical Americana fiddler” or an “Americana traditional violinist”
💜💥He fiddled-faddled that 🎻 Awesome ♡
Mr O'Conner, At 48 yrs old I just heard the best version of The Orange Blossom Special ever. Thank you very much for sharing this great work with us all.
I wouldn't want to be on that train!
a literal once in a lifetime experience, provided you survive it
Nice train sounds.
This is phenomenal!
Oh My Goodness!! How incredibly original and unexpected! Thank you! I love this!
met the Rouse brothers at Zeke Clements office 1968 they played and were very good and very nice,
Amazing Mark!!!!!!!!!!!
Stunning !!
Fantastic job especially for the full version. Most people are only used to the short version !
Speechless..............
That's a MUSICIAN!
I heard the cosmic pulse of Bach!
What I find fasinating is here is a conservative audience probably used to listening to strict classical music giving him a standing ovation at the end!!!
I love a good Train Song, and this is my number one favorite next to the Wabash Cannon ball.
It Takes my breath away
Excelent
What a performance! Check out his appearance at Jazz at Lincoln Center with Wynton Marsalis.
amazing great wonderful
Saw this when it first aired on PBS. Went out and bought all his records.
"Mr. O'Connor, I want you to know that my grandfather, Ervin T. Rouse, wrote the Orange Blossom Special. And of all the people my family has heard, play that song......you are the best. Thank you for doing an awesome job on this song." -Desire' Meyers
Orange Blossom Special like you never imagined! Mark O'Connor & the Boston Pops
Best I've ever heard, always enjoy the ponderosa insert.
Mark O'Connor Where can I purchase the sheet music for this variation?! I would love to learn it!
-Elle
Mark O'Connor Where can I purchase the sheet music for this variation?! I would love to learn it!
-Elle
Mark O'Connor l
No
Yes
So did he really retire down by everglades city I won't mention the old town or the road it is on or the bar as it no longer remains. Heard he lived off the royalties and supported the entire town either way cool to imagine him just playing in the swamp for his friends
the fiddle played right reaches deep.
INSANE...WOWWWW
Insane!
Hahahahahaha.......... I bet Ervin T Rouse and Chubby Wise could never imagine their music being played by the Boston Pops..... The genius of Mark O’Connor. I was 13 yrs old and scratching up Mark’s Soppin the gravy album. I’d go to contests and hear other fiddlers playing his arrangements note for note. Bart Trotter could play Mark’s Tennessee Wagoner note for note. That impressed me greatly. I never got to see mark play in a contest and that was as close to seeing how he did it as I got. Bart played a super hot, I don’t love nobody in C where others played it in A.
The year was 1984, I was playing a contest in Muleshoe, Tx.... when we got news that Ricky Turpin, one of our great local fiddlers had finished 2nd at Weiser. Give you one guess who finished #1....... the unbeatable... Mark O’ Connor!
I got to help judge the older division at the muleshoe contest......Weldon Turpin (Ricky’s dad), Bartow Riley were some of the greats that played that day.....
Awsome ty
WOW, I MET MARK, BELA, SAM AND THE ONE AND ONLY JERRY DOUGLAS 35 YEARS AGO ! THEY WENT TO DIFFERENT FESTIVALS AND DIDN'T EVEN KNOW IF THEY WOULD MAKE ENOUGH FOR THEIR GASOLINE EXPENSE.. I am so glad for their successes. (Sorry , didn't know I had caps on.)
You just gotta Love it , to get to where Mark has gotten. It is like his Fiddle is an extension of his hand....Nobody better or even close...
HOW ABOUT "DOUG KERSHAW' ??????
serious good time, love it👍
Phenominal
Awesome !!!
Fantastic, amazing, brilliant, Mark you must have some Irish blood in there somewhere, you have an Irish head! Best wishes from Dublin.
Barnacle9 O'Connor--irish blood...nah
Dude! You ROCK!!! Met you at the Wheeler in Aspen back in around '94 or '95, showed you my invention, the Cellocaster... you picked it up, put it under your chin and said, "boy, this is heavy..." You Sir, ARE CORRECT! But I haven't given up! I have plans to redesign it in a shorter scale, and lighter, hollow-body design. I will keep you posted. Thanks for the inspiration!
Hello !!!!! Happy New Year,Mark !!!!!Thank you very much for wonderful music and performance!!!! Respect !!!!
Più buttato sul jazz, very technical O'Connor
Orange Blossom Special like you never imagined! Mark O'Connor & the Boston Pops
Celebration Saturday - Feelin' It!
Thank you this is Great
Maravilhoso 👏👏👏👏🇺🇸🇧🇷😘
you are so jenius!
Bravo! That’s all
8.7.17 .. That was "crazy" .. I'll never be able to move my fingers half the speed just scratching my head, without having to play a tune. I have heard others, all excellent, because I can't play the darn thing.
Wow
Excuse me while I catch my breath. And he plays guitar as well.
He earned Teen National champ status on the Mandolin as well, twice, I think
You're one bad mamma jamma!
Wow!!! About as good as it gets
WOW
Flintstones meet the Flinstones they're the modern stone age family 🎶🎶
I'll never escape the collateral meme damage Silvagunner has implemented into my mind
Just skip to 1:40 where it begins
Day-um!
Dang!
A Modern Mozart he will be studied for,many moons to come, ranks with Chubby & Vassar
❤️❤️
The guy is sure a very sophisticated violinist - yet - is he a good fiddler ?
42
I have never heard a bad version of OBS, because I would never listen to an amateur play it. I have heard some great versions and would not want to rate them. Each player has his unique style.
Aw, ya oughta try listenin' to an amateur now and then. Ya might be missin' out.
This 14 YO kid's not too shabby.... th-cam.com/video/eCAFfX_va_I/w-d-xo.html
Wow omg haha, fantastic. Amazing how fast is this possible to play?
By udz m....
Yaba daba do!
Yes! The best one "Orange blossom..." ever heard.
Is this the same song on Music Of The Heart where that fiddle scene came on, I was looking for that song, if its it, I can't hear the violins like I do in that movie, I can't tell if it's the same song.
Like I heard Michael Martin Murphy once say, "Country meets Culture!"
Don't get no better than that!
He aint purty but he shore can saw that thang. All kidding aside O,connor is one of the greats.
Honestly, perfect.
3:14 HIGH QUALITY RIP
the title runs true
Just had to comment again- if I played the violin/fiddle (which I don’t), I wouldn’t be able to play the wrong notes that fast, let alone the right ones lol 😂🤩
Just how a train song is supposed to be played, FAST.
Didn't the announcer mean to say, "Mark O'Connor on fiddle."
Just get on with it!.
It doesn’t feel right without the sound of people cheering.
Fiddle sticks !!!!
Fantastic on the violin, but I'm sorry, I kept waiting for the actual Orange Blossom Special song to start. Had to wait until the 4 minute mark to hear any semblance of the true OBS song. Look up Roy Clark and Jimmy Henley performing it to see how the song really goes. Aside from that, you are a very accomplished violinist and deserve praise and much credit for that. ---Just not for doing this song, or at least not this arrangement of it, which I assume may have been done by John williams.
I have to agree. I can't believe the theme for The Flintstones was mixed in there. lol
I would be surprised if that wasn't Mark himself who arranged it. He is an excellent composer too. Not exactly John William's style.
🦇
Ooooooo