or perhaps you could take up teh nyckelharpa
which is in essence a fretted fiddle as it
is played with keys which land on the same spot
on the string every time! Of course you still
have to tune the thing, but with the keys you can
be sure you are hitting the right note without
haveing to worry or wonder if you are putting
your finger in the right place, as long as you
are hitting the right key!
Other name for this instrument is Key Fiddle.
search in teh threads and you will find some
references with links to web sites, etc.
It is a Swedish instrument.