Forum Activity For @buckeye67

@buckeye67
06/11/23 04:00:01PM
5 posts

Introduce Yourself!

General mountain dulcimer or music discussions

I suppose this is a reintroduction... I registered some time ago, but haven't participated much on the forum.

I'm an Irish traditional music guy, I play whistle and Irish flute. I have wanted a dulcimer for years, but moving around and having children kind of got in the way of all that.

However, I am happy to report I have finally gotten my very own Mountain Dulcimer. I bought a cardboard kit from Folkcraft, not long ago (which I still need to put together), and not long after that I saw an ad on Facebook marketplace for a like new McSpadden.

The seller was nearby, so I jumped on it immediately. Although it was manufactured in 1996, it is like new. It still had tags attached to the base string. Of course, since Murphy is never lurking far away, I almost immediately broke the base string. So, I bought new strings and thanks to YouTube re-strung it (as a three string) and got it tuned up. Thanks to my venerable Korg CA-10 tuner that I've had for years.

Anyway, I now look forward to participating more because I know nothing about things with strings, 🤪 but am keen to learn everything about this beautiful instrument.

PXL_20230608_221526061.PORTRAIT~2.jpg - 265KB

updated by @buckeye67: 06/11/23 04:01:55PM

@buckeye67
02/13/20 03:41:39PM
5 posts

Introduce Yourself!

General mountain dulcimer or music discussions

Jim Phillips:

Buckeye67,

You are indeed very fortunate! The Dayton dulcimer club is probably one of the best clubs in the US. They have many events during the year. I have contacts that are leaders of the group and have other information about the club. If you want to send a PRIVATE MESSAGE to me, I will send information to you.

Since both of you are military, I am posting some pictures of one instrument that I recently built. A mother here in Ohio had me build this instrument to honor her son as he retired from the USAF. She was having a hard time deciding on sound holes. She decided on the "stars", since they are a prominent part of the USAF insignia.

Please see attached images.

Jim Phillips

That's a lovely instrument! I'll shoot you a PM when I get home from work. :-)

@buckeye67
02/13/20 10:04:39AM
5 posts

Introduce Yourself!

General mountain dulcimer or music discussions

Jim Phillips:

Buckeye67,

Many thanks to you and your wife for serving and protecting us.

I am also a “Buckeye”. I live in central Ohio - play and build dulcimers. I am also from Appalachia. Family was from Buchanan County, VA - maybe 50 miles from Pikeville. I have a son that lives in Cincinnati and I would be glad to send you information about playing. I know players who are involved in string clubs in southern Ohio. I think playing with a club is a great way to learn.

Jim Phillips

Hi Jim,

Thank you! We'll be moving to the Dayton area (WPAFB). I agree completely about learning with a group/club. When I started playing ITM I was fortunate to find Cincinnati's Riley School of Irish Music. I've seen that there's a dulcimer club in Dayton that I was going to check out, but would love info on Cincinnati happenings as well.

@buckeye67
02/12/20 12:08:59PM
5 posts

Introduce Yourself!

General mountain dulcimer or music discussions

Hey everyone,

I'm originally from SW Ohio, served in the US Army and worked in law enforcement nearly all my adult life. My wife is still in the USAF, which has had us move from Ohio to Texas and to Michigan where we currently live. This summer, we'll be moving back to SW Ohio and this September we'll be welcoming our first baby! My mom's side of the family is from Pike County, KY (she was born in Hardy), and having roots in Appalachia, I have an avid interest in the people, culture, history and music of the mountains.

I mostly play traditional Irish music (whistle and flute), but also throw in some Breton, Scottish and Galician tunes as well (Breton tunes would sit very well on the Dulcimer, I think).

I don't own a dulcimer yet, but plan on getting one and getting started learning to play soon. Doing research on them is what led me to the forums here.

Thanks for having me, and I look forward to starting this journey. :)

@buckeye67
02/12/20 11:22:24AM
5 posts

Let's give this a bump. I'm a whistle and Irish flute player. These are my workhorses, my Burke B flat & Low F and my Copeland Brass D.