http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/vintage-gibson-guitar-delta-baggage-leevees-214634001.html

This hurts. Whatever the law says about carrying on an instrument, just don't assume it will be followed. Airlines break guitars.

I haven't carried a dulcimer on an airplane for the past three years, as I have been carrying guitars on those trips. The times I did take a dulcimer, I had no problems at all. They fit into the overhead of every plane I got on, and no crew member ever said a word about it. One or two asked if there would be music during the flight, that was it. Full size dreadnought guitars in plywood or molded plastic cases will not fit the overheads of any except the largest aircraft, but that is off topic. My dulcimer has flown from Cleveland to Oklahoma city by way of Houston, and twice to Hawai`i by way of Chicago. Never a problem. I use a card board case, and that's fine in the overheads. The new law says you are allowed to carry an instrument on board "As long as it fits either under the seat, or in the overhead bin." If there isn't room for it, the attendant may be able to place it in a closet at the front of the plane. My guitars have been placed in closets at on least 5 flights over the past 3 years. This is a good option, and I highly recommend it when possible. If you are in the last few groups boarding, and the closet is full, the overheads are still an option, but if it won't fit, the attendant has no choice but to gate check it for you. Gate checking means it ends up in the cargo hold with the checked baggage, but it goes in on top, because you carry it to the airplane yourself, and hand it over to a flight attendant, after trying the closet/overhead possibilities. It probably ends up on top of the luggage, and it is supposed to be handed back to you as you leave the plane. This avoids the 2 most likely damaging parts of the whole experience: Baggage Handlers and the conveyor/carousel situation. Some airlines will not return the instrument to you at the plane, instead sending it to the carousel. Ask the flight attendant to have it returned to you at the plane with the baby strollers. Those are getting special handling, and will be given to the parents at the door of the jetway, just off the airplane. I never ask about boarding with an instrument, I just carry it to the plane, usually in some type of backpack harness. I use this for guitar/banjo cases: http://www.elderly.com/accessories/items/BACK.htm They make a smaller sized one that might work for a dulcimer case. When I reach the plane, I ask if there is closet space,if not, I put the dulcimer in the overhead. Done. I don't advise using a soft case. If the dulcimer has to go in the cargo hold, it could be damaged. Bing had this problem, there is a YouTube about the incident. No case is completely immune to baggage handler lunacy, but an aluminum gun case is probably as close to immunity as can be gotten. Don't buy a used one in a yard sale or thrift store, if it has had a fired gun in it, gun powder residue will make the bomb sniffing equipment go crazy! Buy a new one and don't use it for your Tommy Guns, keep it strictly for dulcimers or camera stuff. When you buy these cases, you cut the foam lining to fit the gun you are using it with. In your case, you cut it to fit your dulcimer. It's the best protection you can get for a dulcimer. There are very fine flight cases for guitars, but not enough market for a dulcimer version to be made. I don't like a gig bag in the back of my car, let alone in an airplane. You never know who will get on after you, and try to shove "who knows what" into a full bin. Cardboard cases have been OK so far, but it only takes once. It may be worth looking into a smaller sized dulcimer, or an inexpensive travel or beginner dulcimer, if you are still concerned. If you are playing gigs, this may not be an option. You may want your favorite with you.

Paul

Not too much that I can add to this discussion. I haven't flown in many years now. However, when I used to fly about once or twice a year, I never had any problem, but that was a while ago.

I always stowed my dulcimer in the overhead bin and would keep an eye on things to make sure someone didn't try to jam things up against it. But now with tighter regulations and passengers attempting to carry all their gear by carry-ons, it certainly has become a different game.

On one flight I was seated in the mid section of a plane near the front (not first class) and there wasn't enough room, so the flight attendant stored it nearby in another section and showed me where it would be and she was very polite and asked if there was anything else I needed.

I think a major portion of the problem you'll have is on loading. Depending on which section you manage to get in on and how much others have carried on before you, there may or may not be much room left in the bins. And the space breaks up in to smaller and tighter spaces as those overhead bins fill up. There have been a couple of times I know of recently that the last loading section had all their carry on luggage gate checked. No ifs ands or maybes. There was not room in the bins for what they were carrying and it went to the belly of the beast.

If you are travelling on different airlines be sure that the size for a check in bag is the same size. Though as I remember Bing Futch got on one plane and discovered that the bins had all been cut down in size and his instrument didn't fit anymore. Here's part of that story.

http://www.everythingdulcimer.com/discuss/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2...

Hope your travels are better, and that you can find an overhead bin with enough space for your instrument, and don't have any other passenger force their bag in on top of yours. The last trip I took on American to England was a disaster with over crowding. One of the earlier flights had mechanical problems and half of that flight ended up traveling in the evening on mine. Not one seat was free. And bags were being shuffled up and down the plane trying to fit them in. It delayed departure. So be prepared.

I'm sure you will be fine. I've carried a travel guitar (baby Taylor size) and a dulcimer (McSpadden Ginger) on inter-continental flights to Asia and Central America from the UK - and we don't have the benefit of the new US regulations. I would suggest that you actuallyfly with the smallest, lightest case you can for the instrument - a fitted gig bag like the McSpadden one is great.That way itlooks like an instrument to airline staff and security will look certain to fit easily in an overhead. And place it yourself in the overhead bin - just keep an eye on other passengers loading that bin and offer to help them. I never ask permission to carry on - wait until you are challenged and then pull out the new US regs.

A Ginger has proved an excellent option for travelling - it's gig baglooks like a fiddle case and so airline staff are dead scared about its potential value and leave well alone!!!!

Here it is in Costa Rica

If you can try to get into a situation where you can board early and get your dulcimer in the overhead. Then pray that all other bags that will also be shoved into the same compartment don't over fill. I remember one attendant yelling down the length of the plane to a man who just put in the last suitcase in the bin that the bin had to close. She ended up coming down and taking it out. I don't know where she finally stuck that case. It's alright for the government to say that the airlines have to take the instruments but no one has quite figured out how they are going to get all the extra carry on bags in the plane. Several times now family members when traveling have been in boarding groups where their carry on bags weren't even taken into the plane as the plane's compartments were crammed full. Everything for that group of passengers had to be gate checked. Or you could always buy a seat for your instrument and have no problem.

Just a couple of months ago, Congress passed a law on this issue, mandating that all airlines allow passengers to carry on any musical instrument that will fit in the overhead. Check out the New York Times article: http://intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/flying-with-instruments-gets-easier-for-musicians/

Of course it would still be a good idea to garner the support of the flight attendants, but you now have the law on your side.

Whatever you do don't plan on putting your case under the seats. I've yet to see a plane that has a completely obstruction free area under the seats to begin with. Plus the person sitting next to you might seriously object to having what foot room the plane does proved for each seat taken up by your extra long under seat bag. Plus if the flight is of any length, your legs might protest the cramped spacing they'd get if you completely fill the space in front of you with a bag.

If I was going to carry a dulcimer with me, I'd get a gun case or golf club case and pay the extra for check in baggage. But trying to carry it on, nope. Sometimes passengers even end up having to check their carry on bags as there isn't enough room for all the luggage people carry on in the overhead bins. So you'd have to be prepared for that situation anyway.

I'd suggest you go to Psaltery Strings and check out some of the videos and/or audios linked there. As for Rick Long's Psalteries, his page Ringing Strings has all sorts of information as well as lots of videos of his instruments alone and in groups with other instruments. He also puts up a short sound file for each instrument he has listed for sale. I realize recordings don't always give an accurate feel for the true sound of an instrument but that's about the best I can suggest right now.

I have both the tenor and tenor D psalteries from Rick Long. Although I must admit to playing the chromatic tenor more often, the D tenor is very useful for playing with dulcimer, Actually, it's not all that hard to tune the two C#'s down to C so you can play in the key of G as well. Also, remember even on the diatonic D tenor you can play in all the modes associated with the major keys of D and G with only the retuning of the two C strings as appropriate.

Rick is the only maker that I know of that makes the D psalteries. All the makers usually make chromatic versions...which have pegs/strings on both sides. The one side are your natural notes, like the white keys of a piano and the other side are your sharps/flats, like the black keys of a piano. The D psaltery would be very easy to learn, but limited to playing in the key of D. My chromatic, from Unicorn Strings is nice in that it comes with clear plastic note guides that show the note of each string. It really helps learning, put you have to know how to read music. They can be removed later on as you get better or you can leave them on, as they are not obtrusive. I love the idea of its being chromatic, so I can play in any key.

Rick makes fine psalteries. I have a Unicorn Strings 2.5 octave chromatic psaltery. They are fun to play, sound beautiful and accompany the dulcimer nicely. They are great portable instruments. Good luck in selling your dulcimer.

DT -- many dulcimers can't use fine tuners because there just isn't room (even for a bead-type fine tuner, not to mention a violin-type fine tuner) aft of the bridge and before the strings turn over the end to the string pins. Especially one the older style instruments with nut and bridge at the extreme ends of the box.

I can't speak to the difficulties folkfan has using zither pins with arthritic hands. But in general I find that although zither pins are harder to tune than geared tuners, they stay in tune much better. Some folks who teach dulcimer to kids prefer zither pins because the kids can't mess with them and put their instruments out of tune.

On my autoharp (made by my uncle at Paw Print Autoharps) he uses not only zither pins but fine tuners similar to those on violins. I am surprised more dulcimers don't have fine tuners.

Jerry, Are you asking about the zither pins on my courting box dulcimer? If you are, then my answer would be that I don't play it as much as I do other dulcimers I have that use geared guitar type of tuners. I have arthritis in my hands. There are times that I a just can't get the zither pins accurately tuned using a wrench. Just gripping the wrench can hurt.

Here's a photo of a smaller instrument I have that uses zither pins.

http://mountaindulcimer.ning.com/photo/img4887-1?context=user

I'm ready to trash this one as I can't tune the pins on it at all. Good day or bad they are so tight and stiff that controlling the wrench is just too awkward.

Barbara, that is cool! Thanks for sharing it.

Folkfan, love your courting dulcimer, how does it sound? It's on the order of the Sweetwoods Travel Dulcimer.

The only one I can share is a picture of a dulcimer where the sound holes are actually natural holes in the wood. Not real unusual to some, but it isvery neat.

I think that one takes the cake and puts the icing on it. My first thought was a great instrument to play "Pistol Packin' Mama" on. The next was to wonder if the alien finger picks???

My courting box dulcimer is about the most unusual dulcimer that I have a photo of. It has it's own removable lid.

David Mitchell, Howie's son, and the publisher of his classic 1960s book

The Mountain Dulcimer -- How to Make and Play It (after a fashion)

have just made the book available to the dulcimer building and playing public as a pair of downloadable PDF files.

The book has long been out of print and only available through libraries - although the publisher says they have a few copies on hand for sale... Find the links and discussion here:

http://www.everythingdulcimer.com/discuss/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=28295&p=344973#p344973

The slightly different 1962, predecessor pamphletis available here:

http://www.everythingdulcimer.com/discuss/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=28278

These are not only fabulous resources for wannabe dulcimer builders, but also for players. Back when I got started playing, this and Jean Ritchie's Appalachian Dulcimer book were about all that were available.

I have worked in a nursing home for 24 years and an assisted living for the past year...I havewitnessed the power of music in so many ways. Before I started playing the dulcimer I tried to teach myself to play the keyboard. I would play at work (PAINFULLY slow to start!) you could never have a more grateful and encouraging audience...we would played name that tune ...if they could tell what I was playing then I knew I was getting better...if they couldn't tell they would say how wonderful it sounded anyway! Same thing with the dulcimer today...and when my dog sings along they love it even better! I would encourage everyone to play at least once.

Just seen this story on FOX News. on how some Hospital and a growing number are using Music therapy.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/04/22/little-music-goes-long-way/?test=latestnews

Thank you for sharing this video! I have felt the power of music, myself, and feel it's as necessary to life as air and water.

Phil, it's a great organization! Thanks to you for drawing our attention to it. And Melody, who works with the organization doing these programs, has now joined FOTMD as a member too! Melody says she loves dulcimer music and has some on her playlists.

Music is such a part of my life that is hard for me to imagine that people don't have access to music twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Music is indeed very powerful and allows us to express our inner soul, whether we are young or old, music makes us feel. It reminds us of moments in our life, helps us heal, and brings a smile to our faces. Thank you for posting this Phil, it reminded me of the true power of music and our responsibility to bring that joy to others on a daily basis.

Strumelia Thank you for adding this to my post. I wish I had this information when I received the link from a friend.

Phil, great discussion title. Music has been VERY powerful in my life. When I finally hit bottom 8 years ago, God drew me up out of the pit through music and I finally put my trust in Jesus. I haven't played in a nursing home yet, but have seen how music affects children, sometimes calms them and sometimes winds them up

Phil, that is something very, very special that you are playing for your mother now.

I have been going to the nursing home and playing for my Mom. I don't think I am that good yet on the dulcimer but it sure seemed to draw a crowed around her door last week. I normally play my flute or guitar for her. I have been learning a lot more of the old hymns for her.

Hi, John! Your point about young people and music is right on the mark.

It's fascinating to me how in the video, it seems it was the singing and enjoyment of music when he was a younger man that caused hearing the music on the iPod to trigger something in the gentleman's brain. As Strumelia wrote about classical music being such a joy to her mother and continuing to be even as her body weakened. . . The languages of music can speak, move us in mysterious ways. I'm awed by this.

John E. Wood said:

Having played in nursing homes, I've experienced this. Music is really a powerfully moving force. I'm not in the healing profession but I know there are studies going on regarding the healing effects of music. And I firmly believe that encouraging young people to MAKE some kind of music has to have some upbuilding effect on their lives. The mountain dulcimer is one of the instruments well suited to making music easy for many folks who have neither the time nor the financial resources or talent to master a more complicated instrument. I'm glad to be a part of the mountain dulcimer community. Best wishes to all.

Phil, what a WONDERFUL video to watch....brought tears to my eyes this morning. Everyone should watch this to the end of the video- gets better and better.

My mother spent her last 2.5 years in a nursing home near me, and I made sure she had her classical music radio station playing all day in her room, every single day. I would make sure and check that the nurses turned it on every day. It played while I sat with her as she died, too. Classical music was my mother's biggest joy in life. (Aside from spending time together the two of us, that is.)

Phil, this video is powerful! Music, whether 'live' or recorded, has the power to move mountains. Recorded music-- music that sounds just as (or much like) what the older person heard when younger-- could trigger something buried in the mind. Miraculous.

Thanks a million for posting this link! I'm going to have Mark watch this video.

As musicians we sometime don't realize how the music we make may effect someone else life. If you have ever had the opportunity to play in a nursing home you can see it upon the face of the peple that live there.

I was not sure where to post this video. but it truly show the power of music.

(Strumelia edit):

Here is a link to Music and Memory , a non-profit organization helping the elderly through music, where you can find out more about their wonderful programs and you can help!

http://www.musicandmemory.org/

Thanks for the link phil,

'Gum Tree Canoe' I mentioned earlier is No 10.

john p

if I may be so bold I would like to post a link of John Hartford. here is a quote from the person that posted this series of video.

"Shot in a studio with TV cameras, and no audience, John sings many favorites on this video.
Never released on DVD, and no longer produced on VHS, this OOP video is getting harder to find.
I was lucky enough to obtain a sealed copy and encode off the 1st play of the tape."

John Hartford - Learning To Smile

One of my favorite John Hartford albums is Hamilton Ironworks. He does a fair amount of talking on this album, partly about the people he learned from or played with growing up, partly about the songs. He sticks to fiddle on this album, leaving the banjo to Bob Carlin, a fine clawhammer player. I like the stories almost as much as the songs. Try listening here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/recsradio/radio/B00005NNKU/ref=pd_krex_listen_dp_img?ie=UTF8&refTagSuffix=dp_img

I also like Johns Steamboat songs a lot.

Paul

"Really all it's about is an offset from whatever tonic key you're playing in, itself very often somewhat questionable when you're playing something pentatonic, for example. It's easier to describe the offset from tonic and the key."

If you play chords, the correct chords for the mode are made from the scale that contained in that mode. If you use drones, they come from the scale that the mode contains. The drones are nearly always the root and fifth, but the chords created from the scale will use notes not available in all closely related modes. This is the misunderstanding that I referred to. And it comes in great part from the belief that extra frets and capos can give us any mode in the same key in any tuning. Which is why many players use an A7 chord where they should be playing a C. And why I have seen some players play DAA tabs in DAD tuning, ignoring the fact that they are playing the melody in G, but the drones are in D. It grates on the ears like nails on a black board, and they don't grasp the difference. Because someone told them the extra fret makes it work. The fact that the pentatonic song doesn't use all the notes doesn't change the fact that the harmonies depend upon a certain modal scale. The harmony may require notes not contained in the melody. Chromatic instruments are less bound by these dictates, as the notes are always available, and as chromatic players, we don't focus on what tuning will give us the missing notes. As diatonic players, if we ignore this body of knowledge, we rob ourselves of the ability to use this knowledge to make our music sound good. When we choose between the use of drones or chords, this is a conscious decision, dictated by our tastes. When we choose not to learn, we hamper ourselves from making other conscious decisions.

Paul

Randy, Thanks for posting this video. Mostly I don't listen to mountain music on the fiddle, but Mr. Hartford playing gives a sweet sound to this tune. Mostly I tend to associate the fiddle with a screech (guess I haven't heard many good fiddle players or the right tunes). I'll have to do a search and see if I can find more of his work.

Truth to tell, in the past, Ashokan Farewell is the only fiddle tune that I've listened to and really enjoyed. Thanks again.

Not necessarily true. Modes as simple descriptors in the way that dulcimer players use them are very useful. Whenan OT session goes to the key of A the fiddlers may use AEAE forBuffalo Gals, Old Joe Clark and Cluck Old Hen etc. However, we need 3 different A tunings for those 3 tunes (ionian, mixolidian, dorian) - so it is pretty handy to have our own descriptors (and to some extent be able to hear the scales) to be able to place the root A on the right starting fret through re-tuning. It saves a lot of time and confusion to be able to call modes. And they are not an offset from the tonic key on the dulcimer as you cannot add a flattened 3rd for this or a flattened 7th for that - we don't have the semitones! You have to physically move the start point of the scale on the instrument through re-tuning.

Thosemodal names are bloody useful for traditional playing styleswhere you have touse a lot of different tunings.

Jeremy Main said:

Mostly because the Victorians made it complicated and then added an extra layer of nonsense by adding those quasi-mystical Greek names. Really all it's about is an offset from whatever tonic key you're playing in, itself very often somewhat questionable when you're playing something pentatonic, for example. It's easier to describe the offset from tonic and the key.

It sounds like A mixolidian - like many Irish derived tunes (Red Haired Boy etc). Try A',A,A or A',A,d with a 6+

Loved this guy and his presentation.

One of my treasured videos is of him singing 'Gum Tree Canoe' on an empty stage. I shall have to go see if I can find it again, it's on one of my old machines or a CD somewhere.

I think it's Dorian Randy, but I've come across these Appalachian fiddle players before and they aren't too fussy about modes. They seem quite happy to play something in between if they can't make up their mind whether it should be a major or minor interval.

john p