I don’t care how energetically Johnny rosins up his bow, Karen Briggs will still win that fiddle of gold.

On 8/14/2011 at the Richmond Jazz Festival I looked and listened as Briggs’ magic fingers, piercing eyes, and artesian dreadlocks framed a set of string music that would have won a no mas duel with the devil - a set that included “Shahrazade”: a new tune that charmed the cobra and made the rope climb.

Briggs was among a big lineup of unabashed emotion showcased at the Richmond Jazz Festival at Maymont.