Forum Activity for @diesel

Travels of a Plectrum Handcrafted Fyhrie Dulcimer

Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions

Long Suffering Wife and I have passed by the Plectrum Dulcimer shoppe in Laguna Canyon every Summer since we got married (1984), on our way to the Laguna Arts Festival.  A couple of years ago we drove in to see if it was still there; the wooden sign out front is, but the shop wasn't.  But I've been hankering for one of their dulcimers since and I finally got one today on Ebay.  A nice, early on, late 1970's looker with a different headstock from the others I've seen, more of a curve to it.  Anyway, if you google Jim Fyhrie you will come up with a couple of very nice pieces on Jim, including a write-up in the LA Times.  I'm only sorry we didn't stop in earlier.  Jim sounds like a good guy to know.  

I like it!  Very musical.  And I like the connection to your grandmother.  Thats what makes our instruments special to us.

As we all are eventually.

Different strokes for different dulcimer folks.  I just think of my instruments as having a soul of sorts; released as they get played in and attuned to me.  Names personalize that feeling for me.  And just for the record, I name my tools also.  My screwdriver is named Lucille and I call my hammer Trigger; with apologies to B.B. King and Willie Nelson.

I have always named my instruments for the simple reason that, as space in the house is limited and accidents will happen, they live in their cases in thee olde musick closet unless I take them out for a stroll.  All black cases.  All black, identical cases...  So I write their names on paper luggage tags and attach them to the handles of their respective cases.  Makes it a lot easier to find the one I am looking for.  As for names, the last in was the circa 1890-1910 home-made baby I posted about a week or so back.  When it arrived I took a long look at it and thought 'Ohio' for provenance, but no good name came to me - though I considered 'Buckeye'.  But then we were watching an old Andy Griffith rerun Friday night in which Andy had a scene with the old codger named in this episode Jubal, Jud in others, and I thought "thats it!"  I looked up Jubal on the internet and found that he was a descendant of Cain and is credited as being the "father of all who play the harp and flute".  As I am also learning to play the fife, I knew I hit this one on the head.  Serendipity strikes!

How does your pet react to your Dulcimer playing?

OFF TOPIC discussions

Our last cat (of the four we adopted 20 years ago) sleeps quite peacefully on our bed most days, but when I tune up, she yells to beat the band and gets up.  She is a sweet girl, but at over 100 in human years, a bit of a crank...