In response to Melissa, someway back up the thread.

Even top violinists refer to their instrument as a fiddle, but fiddlers in trad music get very annoyed when called violinists. I'm not a violinist and I don't play the violin. I am a fiddler and I play the fiddle. There is a difference and it does matter.

Because I play traditional music, I need the technique to play that music in that style. This technique overlaps but is not the same as classical technique. You can do both, but many classically trained violinists just seem to learn a few add-on bits of technique. If the music isn't in your head and your heart, you won't be able to play it. If it is, you'll managed, in spite of having been taught the wrong language.