The vast majority of fiddle tunes( using the term in in its broadest sense) I play in open position. For variations and such I move up the neck quite often but for the basic tune it's almost always in open position. When the tune has a high B there's a small shift up the neck to reach the B . One exception I can think of is my rendition of Ed Reavy's ''Shoemaker's Daughter'' where I move up to the 7th fret for the first four bars of the B Part of the tune. You can see it here in this YT clip: youtube.com/watch?v=koYPPTmfItY . Near the end of the fourth bar of the B Part I utilise a couple of open notes to get back to open position. In this particular case I find it a bit easier to play up the neck but this is most unusual. The tune itself is the subject of Lesson 89 of my Irish Guitar Podcast: irishguitarpod.com/lesson-89-s...daughter/ There are commercial elements to the website but you can listen to the lesson without registration or login.

Hi Tony,
Thank you for responding. I've seen your videos before, in particular I used your recordings of the Paddy Marsh polkas to help learn those tunes if I remember correctly. I'm primarily coming from Irish tenor banjo, which I think you also play. For flatpicking in open position on guitar, when going from a lower note to a higher note in a fiddle tune such as going from 2nd fret E on the D-string to a G note I'll sometimes pluck the 5th fret G of the D-string rather than the open G of the next highest string. This keeps it on the same string. And when going from a higher note to a lower note such as going from the 4th fret B to a G, I'll play that G as open string note. This also keeps it on the same string. Basically, fewer open strings when playing a scale from strings 6 to 1, and almost always open strings when playing a scale from strings 1 to 6.

When sliding to or from a note, you would probably play the fretted note (or I would anyway).

Here are the first couple of bars of Black Mountain Rag.  I play most of the B and E notes as fretted notes rather than open strings.  I think it's easier this way.  Sorry for the sloppy tab, but supper's almost ready.