Forum Activity for @dusty

I bought several Intelli Chromatic IMT-500 clip-on tuners fairly cheaply off Ebay and am happy with them. Hunter is correct that if they have trouble picking up a note, they don't with the harmonic. I find with my guitar it can almost never pick up the low E string, but it has no trouble with the harmonic.I used to use a Sabine tuner but never bought the pick-up attachment, so I needed silence to tune. It works great if you are plugged in, for you can just put in in between two chords and follow the lights even while playing. But for acoustic instruments it really didn't function too well.I doubt, however, these cheap little clip-ons are as accurate as the more expensive Korg. It would be nice if Consumer Reports or someone would do a comparison for us.D.T. Hunter Walker said:

I found this too, however, it works like a charm if you use a harmonic.

David Swanson said:

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the little Intelli or Tune Tech clip-on tuners that seem so popular. I have a TT500 and while I prefer my Korg, the TuneTech is very convenient. The Korg works great but the cord is a pain. The display on the TT seems to be slower, and for some reason it is less sensitive to the A string than either D strings (tuned DAdd).

Strumelia said:

Dusty Turtle said:

The hit of the day, though, was the limberjack. He danced around while I sang "There ain't no bugs on me" and the kids couldn't get enough. Whenever I tried to stop they began clapping their hands in unison and chanting "more, more, more." Finally the teacher had to bribe them with blueberry muffins to allow me to escape and get on with my day.

I had the same experience playing my limberjacks at farmers' markets and such.
Yes, there are some small children who seem jaded and uninterested, but then you get the other ones who make it all worth while. Last summer, a group of four children, ranging from age 4 to 7 or so, stopped dead in their tracks and came running over to watch my limberjack dance. You wouldn't believe how HUGE their eyes got, like dinner plates!, and then they all started laughing and pointing in delight, and the more he danced the more they laughed. Then they started trying to dance like the limberjack, and they laughed even MORE, finally collapsing right there on the ground in a heap of child glee and belly laughs. It made me so happy ! I think that was the very best audience i ever had . :)
I love playing my limberjacks. I have five of them, all different. I may wind up with more eventually, I love them that much. Plus, they are way cheaper than banjos! ;D Here are photos of three of them.

Wow, Strumelia, I must admit that I covet your limberjacks. In only have one made of walnut and without any decoration. I, too, adore that little pig of yours. I maintain a fantasy that I'll build some of my own, but that elusive free time I keep expecting has yet to materialize.It is amazing that in this media-saturated age when plastic novelties abound in all sorts of bright colors with lights and computer-generated noise, a simple, centuries-old, clog-dancing doll made of wood can create so much joy.Keep smiling,D.T.

Connecting musically with children is indeed magical, and it sounds like that was the most successful part of Vicki's adventure.Just yesterday I brought my guitar, uke, autoharp, dulcimer, mandolin, pennywhistle and limberjack to my daughter's pre-school class. I did a few story/songs such as the Pete Seeger classics "Abiyoyo" and "The Frog" but also played some of the usual song suspects such as Tom Paxton's "The Marvelous Toy." I thought they would love the chorus ("It went zip when it moved and pop when it stopped . . .") but they were actually clapping excitedly in time with the music while I was still in the first lines of the first verse. I played a kid's song I translated from French that celebrates the diversity of animal life and had the kids acting like the animal mentioned in each verse. When I played the verse about the "snakes who slither in the grass" the kids all began wiggling on their bellies and converged in a big pile in the middle of the floor. The teachers all got a hearty laugh at that sight.The kids were enthralled with the fact that you could play a melody with a single finger on the dulcimer and of course they loved strumming the autoharp (which I have tuned diatonically, by the way, in order to double up on strings and get a fuller sound).The hit of the day, though, was the limberjack. He danced around while I sang "There ain't no bugs on me" and the kids couldn't get enough. Whenever I tried to stop they began clapping their hands in unison and chanting "more, more, more." Finally the teacher had to bribe them with blueberry muffins to allow me to escape and get on with my day.I didn't put out a donation bucket and didn't make any money. But the joy on the kids' faces (especially my daughter's) is worth more than any hourly wage anywhere.Thanks for indulging me; I had to share that fun with some folks I know would appreciate it.Cheers,D.T.

Vicki, you definitely deserve congratulations for gathering the moxie to play in public. I second the notion that you should open up your case for tips. Put a dollar or two and some coins in there as a little nudge in the right direction.And then you might ingratiate yourself with those exercising by putting out orange wedges and playing Springsteen: "'Cause tramps like us, baby we were born to run!"OK, maybe that's not the best song, but on a rails to trails area you might play a bunch of old railroad songs.As folkfan has said, you found a nice place to play where you won't interrupt traffic or anything, but people exercising don't usually carry around spare change, so if you really want to earn a little beer money you might find another spot.Keep up the good work.D.T.

Dearest Folkfan and Vicki,First, there is no doubt that any kind of gathering on the streets can become a nuisance, but street performers are certainly no more guilty of causing problems in that regard than is anyone else. Lousy drivers, for example, are much more of a hazard, I would argue.I lived in Chicago one summer in the 1980s and discovered a guy playing sax on the street as I walked with thousands of others to Grant Park for the Blues Festival (it might have been the R&B festival, since I attended both that year). He was playing a jazzy version of "Rubber Ducky" from Sesame Street and was just twisting and turning that tune in every direction possible. He played all by himself but really had some pep in his step and a bunch of us were dancing around him. He was far better than any of the big-name, high-priced acts we saw on the stages at the festival.If anyone wants to hear a celebration of that kind of performance, check out Joni Mitchell's "Real Good For Free": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PljZrArrb3k In my mind, you have to put up with the occasional inconvenience if you want the chance to discover those diamonds in the rough. The problem folkfan describes is genuine, but it is not a problem with busking; it is a problem with a lack of consideration of others that permeates our culture.To answer Vicki's question, in some cities and some neighborhoods, you do indeed need a license to perform. In Faneuil Hall in Boston, for example, there are elaborate auditions for a limited number of licenses to perform in the summer. The competition is high as is the quality of the entertainment. A friend of mine did a juggling act there (Peter Panic if any of you have seen him or are on your way to Boston) and he made enough money in the summer to support himself all winter long.Maybe there is a difference between that and busking, but he still passed around a hat for his pay (actually, he rode a unicycle while someone chosen from the audience sat on his shoulders holding a hat for tips).I think anytime you rely on tips for your performance for your income, it is pretty informal.Now, to work out Rubber Ducky on the dulcimer . . .D.T.

Yes, that line would work great, especially with a rim shot or other quick musical exclamation point right at the end. Strumelia said:

Dusty Turtle said:

As others have suggested, making a joke about not playing a request is probably the best route when you really don't know the material requested.

Dusty,
Having to do with that, one of my favorite things to say between tunes when we are playing out in public is:
"We've had a request from the audience.....but we've decided to keep playing anyway." Always gets a good laugh! :D

Andy,There's an old kids' song [meaning an old song for kids, not a song for old kids ;)]by Tom Paxton about the "Marvelous Toy," the chorus of which isIt went zip! when it movedAnd bop! when it stoppedAnd whirr! when it stood still.I never knew just what it wasAnd I guess I never will.It might be cool to make up a song about the mystery instrument and sing that whever people ask what you are playing.D.T. Andy Huffman said:

I am dying to know what people in New England would request from someone busking with a dulcimer. Probably along the lines of "an explanation of what the heck that thing is???"

I just found this thread and realize you've all probably moved on, but I do have a story to share.I used to play mandolin in an informal trio (guitar, bass, mandolin) of friends. We had a very limited repertoire. We used to play the Dylan song "You Ain't Going Nowhere" until the guitarist wrote an original tune the rhythm of which sounded just like the Dylan tune, so we stopped playing the Dylan tune. Once we were asked to entertain at a small barbeque in the Berkeley hills and in about a half-hour had run through all the songs we had worked on. But just as we were about to tell everyone we were done, someone requested "You Ain't Going Nowhere." With smiles on our faces we broke into it right away, milked it for all we could, each taking a few solos, singing all the lyrics two or three times through, and then finally lifting our instruments in the air at the end as we said goodnight before any more requests could come our way.It was a great climax to our short set and until now we were the only ones who knew that the song requested was the only song not part of our set that we could possibly have played!When you play in public, in fact, you don't need a large repertoire because most folks only listen while they are waiting for their bus, as they shop for vegetables at the market, or whatever. They are not expecting to sit down and be entertained for 90 minutes straight. I would think the idea of learning some of the songs that are likely to be requested would be all that you need to play with confidence in public and not be afraid of a request.Then again, on one of his live albums, Loudon Wainwright III is asked to play a song and responds, "Perhaps I'll play that another time. But my therapist has encouraged me to be more assertive with women. So I'm sorry, but no." As others have suggested, making a joke about not playing a request is probably the best route when you really don't know the material requested. It is another example of Strumelia's axiom about smiling at your public rather than screwing your face into weird contortions as you stare at the fretboard.I've never seen a dulcimer player busking, but if I do, I'll empty my wallet.Cheers,D.T.