Gunnar Nelson: More Than Fiddlin’ Around

Ancient Roman philosopher Seneca said, “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” 

Preparation has been the catalyst for many of the “lucky” events in local musician Gunnar Nelson’s life. Take, for instance, his appearance at the Earl Scruggs music festival in Mill Springs, N.C., in August 2025.

Nelson and his bandmate, Jake Rozier, entered the festival’s  Battle of the Banjos contest, which was based on public voting on Instagram and Spotify. “Over the course of several weeks we went from the top 10, to the top eight, to the top six and ended up winning,” Nelson said, with some surprise. “It was a bit intimidating playing on the same stage as the likes of Allison Krause and Sam Bush, but it was a fantastic experience.”

Preparation, in the form of practice, has been a mainstay in Nelson’s life since he began learning Irish Dance. At 8 years old, Nelson’s parents drug him, along with his younger brother, into Deirdre Abeid’s Irish Dance studio in Kettle Falls. “There we were, two little boys in a sea of tutus,” he recalled. 

That uncomfortable beginning started the long road of preparation culminating in opportunities afforded only a “lucky” few. In the decade of practice and performance that followed, Nelson placed in the top 10 at several of the World Championship Irish Dance Contests held in Quebec, Scotland, and Ireland. The year before competing in Quebec – at the age of 17 – he’d been tapped by Michael Londra, lead singer for the Broadway show, Riverdance, and current producer of Celtic Fire, to be a dancer in the national touring show. Nelson said he started as the youngest dancer in his troop and eventually became the oldest dancer with added responsibility of “Dance Captain.” Nelson said, “I had world champion Irish dancers under my supervision, which is still insane to think about.”

Not long after those early dancing lessons began, Nelson said his dad challenged him to start learning how to play the fiddle. Reluctant at first, he was soon taking lessons from local teacher, Fiddlin’ Red, and following along with the VHS-taped video lessons recorded by the young brother and sister duo, Luke and Jenny Anne Bulla. Later, Nelson said he studied with Andrew Wilson, who introduced him to a number of Irish fiddle tunes. “Whenever he gave me one of those, I would learn it with no effort. I actually wanted to practice those tunes,” he said.

Around the time of his early 20s, Nelson had also completed all the prerequisites necessary to enter nursing school. With application deadlines only six months away, he said he had hoped to catch a break musically and not have to pursue a nursing career.

“When I framed it to myself like that, I decided that that was ridiculous, and that if I really wanted to play music that much, and if I was willing to put in that much time, then I should just pursue music – so I did.” 

That decision led to multiple collaborations with other local musicians and the formation of the bands Cross Current and Fire Bottle Brothers. “I started playing at the open mic at the Pub and Grub with a longtime friend, eventually meeting more people there that played music. We ended up forming a little group that became the six-piece Fire Bottle Brothers band,” Nelson explained.

With that renewed commitment to music, practicing took on a life of its own; typically around four hours a day practicing not only the fiddle but guitar, voice, and piano as well, Nelson said. Once again, preparation was rewarded when Londra called again, this time in need of a lead fiddle player for a Saint Patrick’s Day show in Boston. “I didn't get to practice with any of them in person, so I just learned the recordings by ear,” Nelson recalled. “I had anxiety every single day for like a month, but if I practiced, the anxiety would go away. So I practiced every single day, every single song. I flew to Boston and we ran through the whole show the day of,” he said. “And I did a good job. They told me I had definitely done my homework. Since then I’ve done five shows in five different states, and I am now the backup fiddle player for Celtic Fire.”

Seeking to expand his musical influences and stretch his comfort zone even further, Nelson said he began attending the exclusive annual Live Oak Fiddle Camp near Hallettsville, Texas. With other fiddle teachers such as Hanneke Cassel and Bruce Molski in attendance, he said, “It’s hard not to be intimidated, but at the same time I relish every tidbit of technique they offer.”

Now, teaching his own students, Nelson said he brings his years of personal and professional experience into every lesson. “Teaching has been a massive learning curve,” he said. “To begin with, I didn’t really know what I was doing, but I definitely feel more confident now. It’s always a matter of seeing what needs to improve and then filling that hole. By studying and talking to other musicians, especially teachers, my awareness expands.”

In addition to teaching approximately 45 students in guitar, fiddle, piano, and voice, Nelson said he started providing group lessons, which have morphed into a “student band” with about eight of his students. The group meets every two weeks at a local church for practice, and performed at the 2025 NE Washington Fair. Nelson said, “I just want to provide the opportunity for them to learn new songs and play them together. I saw a lot of growth and a lot of effort from them when we were working toward the Fair performance.”

He added, “The goal for the group performances is to work on half-hour sets, with maybe five songs in a set. I’m in charge of the open mic at Fired Up Brewery in town (Colville), so that creates further opportunity for both solo and group performances for them. 

“These guys are pretty talented,” Nelson continued. “So right now, the opportunity is the open mic but with this current plan of, ‘Hey, you're going to learn half-hour sets within about two or three months,’ we should have at least an hour-and-a-half of material. Then I can reach out to venues and set up some actual gigs, which would totally be the goal. But I also don't want to throw anybody into the deep end of a pool and then watch them sink. I want it to be pretty comfortable for everybody all the time.”

For more information contact Nelson at gunnargnelson@gmail.com.