Jacie Sites, national fiddle champion, discusses her passion for fiddling, performing and returning to her hometown on July 3, 2025, inside her home in Pendleton.

PENDLETON — Jacie Sites doesn’t just play the fiddle — she commands it, dazzling listeners with her speed, skill and love for traditional music.

The renowned fiddler took first place June 19 in the Adult Division at the 2025 National Oldtime Fiddlers’ Contest and Festival in Weiser, Idaho, cementing her status as one of the country’s premier traditional musicians.

This year’s win marks her third victory in the Adult Division, plus a previous virtual title when the contest went online during the pandemic.

“I’ve played in the adult division three times and won three times, so I’ve had a pretty good track record,” Jacie said. “They had one year where it was online, and I won that, too, so that was kind of fun. I’ve had my fair share of second-place finishes, fifth or not placing at all, but it’s pretty sweet, especially at nationals.”

Precision and performance

Before each competition, Jacie said she went through long, focused practice sessions. She and her husband Joe, who plays guitar and fiddle, would get together to jam, but their rehearsals were intense and highly structured. They worked through every note and chord..

Still, Jacie said, once she stepped on stage, she had to let go and perform naturally. To center herself before playing, she focuses on a specific point on her fiddle — the spot where her bow meets the strings.

“I just stare there real solid and that seems to focus me,” she said. “I hear the music inside and make sure my bow stays in that sweet spot where the best sound is.”

In fiddle contests, she explained, players usually perform three songs: a fast tune known as a hoedown, a slow waltz and then another hoedown to finish.

“I was always really good at the waltz part because I’m more expressive,” she said. “That’s my favorite type of tune.”

Jacie learned that contest scores weigh heavily on the first song — the hoedown. A strong opening could make or break a performance.

“If you get a 90 on that, you’re probably going to get within a couple points of that on your waltz,” she said. “So even if I played a beautiful waltz, my score only went up a couple points.”

Because fast tunes didn’t come naturally to her at first, she put in the work to improve, focusing on technique and timing to raise her hoedown scores.

“I was a late beginner,” Jacie said. “But now that fast stuff is one of my key things.”

A living tradition and art

Jacie said one of her favorite details about playing fiddle is how the tradition carries a kind of musical genealogy often lost in classical music. In classical settings, she noted, musicians typically rely on written sheet music and learn many of the same pieces.

“You love your teacher and learn to play, but that teacher isn’t in the music itself.” she said.

In contrast, fiddle music preserves a personal legacy.

“You leave a part of yourself in that tune,” she said. “When we’re gone, that legacy stays behind.”

Joe called it DNA — putting a piece of yourself into a song that other players can pick up as they learn from one another.

“There are great fiddle players all across this country who don’t even know they have my DNA,” he said. “And they’re fiddling, because I hear my stuff in what they’re playing.”

Jacie said competitions pushed her to strive for perfection, but she came to realize perfection is subjective.

“That’s the thing about competitions,” she said. “They drive you to get everything perfect — but you can’t know what perfect is in everybody’s eyes. I tried so hard to win by playing what I thought people wanted. Everyone said I played too fast, so I tried to slow down. But I couldn’t play my best trying to hold back. I was playing for the judges instead of for myself — and I still didn’t win. Once I stopped caring about winning and played in a way that felt authentic to me, that’s when I started winning fiddle contests.”

Jacie has competed in fiddle contests across the United States, including in Texas, Tennessee and Idaho, but said she never had a problem playing in front of a crowd.

“I just feel like I’m making art up there,” she said. “If I can make myself happy and make the audience feel my music — that’s my job.”

Full circle in Pendleton

In addition to performing, Jacie and Joe owned and operated Sites Violin Shop in Idaho Falls, Idaho, where they spent years teaching and encouraging hundreds of students to learn their instruments.

Now back where it all started, Jacie brings national recognition home — not just as a champion, but as a teacher and torchbearer for traditional fiddle music.

“I grew up here,” she said. “I’m originally from Pendleton. My folks live in Pilot Rock, but the roots are here.”

The couple plans to continue teaching music to young students and are working to organize a fiddle competition in the area.