Did Michael Landon Play the Fiddle on Little House on the Prairie?

Readers of the Little House books know how the character of Charles “Pa” Ingalls is intrinsically linked to his music and fiddle playing.  Charles played many songs over in the years.

On the Little House on the Prairie TV show, Michael Landon attempted to play the fiddle in many episodes, but as is clear to anyone who knows how to play the fiddle or violin, Landon could not play the fiddle.  He moved the bow and his fingers, but it was not him playing the actual music that was in the show.  The music was dubbed over in the series.

While Michael Landon could not play the fiddle, it was nice to see them keep the music and Pa’s fiddle playing on the TV show, because it was such a huge part of the books.