Strings
Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions
Thanks Ron, i'll give them a holler.Bill
Forum Activity for @bill-lewis
Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions
Thanks Ron, i'll give them a holler.Bill
Strings
Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions
I tried juststrings.com, they do not carry ball end strings for Dulcimers. Anybody have a source for them.ThanksBill
updated by @bill-lewis: 06/08/16 09:24:05PM
Strumela do you see who are now members?
General mountain dulcimer or music discussions
Thanks Dennis, it's sweet of you to post this.I too am happy to see dulcimer people of all different levels as members of our community here- running the gamut all the way from the very newest beginner to the most experienced professional musician.
I am finding that the tone and format here at Friends of the Mountain Dulcimer is enabling me to get to know people who for years were merely anonymous names to me before. As I get to know them more as people here, I find I am learning from them in many small unexpected ways. I bet a lot of members are finding this to be true for them as well.
It reminds me a bit of something I wrote in my noter blog back in April of this year, 2009:
"As I look back now over my own limited experiences and see them from the standpoint of having myself been a total beginner not very long ago, I realize that all the musical learning experiences in my journey, the moments and realizations that were most intense and profound, were not learned through books, workshops, & classes. Rather they were quiet and slow and small moments of musical sharing and learning and realizations. Perhaps I happened upon a beginner fiddler sitting alone under a tree scratching out a tune at some festival, and I stopped to play for just a minute with them- and wound up figuring out something amazing and simple in trying to play with them, something that I had never thought of before.
In trying to solve a problem on my own, I learned in a meaningful way...even if I couldn't solve the problem! Perhaps I played a few tunes with someone who was just learning banjo, or with a very old player, and they gave me some fascinating story from their life that forever effected the way I think about music for myself...or perhaps I said something silly about music that really impressed my 9 year old banjo student. And perhaps all these small moments of wonder made me somehow feel like the best musician in the whole world.
When I think about it, all the most memorable and enriching learning experiences in my life as a whole have been during quiet moments of listening or reflection or experimentation, or through non-rushed personal interaction with another person. I think of music as a living thing- it needs to be lovingly nourished, and it needs to breathe."
I too look forward to hearing more from the accomplished musicians we are honored to have as FOTMD members here. But I also look forward to hearing more from every single one of the 158 members here! Even the newest beginner players with absolutely no musical background at all are inspiring me and teaching me new things here every single day . Isn't it wonderful that we can all inspire and encourage each other? thank you Dennis. :)
updated by @strumelia: 02/21/16 09:12:48PM
Strumela do you see who are now members?
General mountain dulcimer or music discussions
WOW 158 members. Your idea of a home for Mountain Dulcimer folk has blossomed and attracted some of the biggest names in the dulcimer world to become members. RF and BF are two of thw biggest. Can't wait to hear what they have to say on this forum.
updated by @dennis-waldrop: 10/27/19 12:02:25PM
Our thanks to "Deputy Mo".
OFF TOPIC discussions
Good deputising there Rod.... however as a pacifist I am uncomfortable with the use of weaponry - couldn't we just have a couple of slavering Rottweilers to see off Spammers please!!??!!
Our thanks to "Deputy Mo".
OFF TOPIC discussions
Thanks for tending to The Bad Spammer, Rod! I hope Strumelia gives you another bullet next time she puts you in charge :-)I'll keep my eyes open for pictures of your new acquisition!Robin
Our thanks to "Deputy Mo".
OFF TOPIC discussions
Yeah the weekend was really good.. picked up a couple custom made noters thanks to harpmaker... a new to to me dulcimer... Jill in a post to me me called it the beast..lol... it was made by Gary Sager... It is a really deep bodied dulcimer with 5 strings.. tuned to D'A'DAd... so you can play 3 strings closest to you as normal, or just top 3 as a Bass, or middle 3 as a Baritone (A'DA - reverse Ionian), or who knows what else,, has been fun exploring the possibilities. I will start thread, when I get some pics...
Our thanks to "Deputy Mo".
OFF TOPIC discussions
Playing dulcimer is always a good reason! ;DHey how come you don't post a thread telling us about your new dulcimer- I didn't even know you had one! Rod Westerfield said:
Glad to have helped out, just sorry didn't catch it sooner but I was playing my dulcimer (new one that is)...
Our thanks to "Deputy Mo".
OFF TOPIC discussions
Glad to have helped out, just sorry didn't catch it sooner but I was playing my dulcimer (new one that is)... any time I still got a spare bullet left.... lol
Our thanks to "Deputy Mo".
OFF TOPIC discussions
I just wanted to give a public thank you to our diligent FOTMD moderator, member Rod Westerfield , otherwise known as "Deputy Mo" for his gracious assistance in overseeing our community here during the past two weekends while I was away from my computer on vacation.Thanks to Deputy Mo, things kept running smoothly while I was gone, minor every-day crisis on the site were attended to in a timely manner, and he even got to use his single bullet to kick an Evil Spammer from our midst this weekend.Three cheers for Deputy Mo!! :D
updated by @strumelia: 01/13/19 05:09:18PM
Randy Adams said:
Aha! SO pencil marks are a clue to your genius then Randy!!Fretless dulcimer works for me b/c I seldom play above the 4th or 5th fret....& almost never above the 7th....& play across the strings..with a noter....tuned DAd most of the time but also DAde, DAdf#, DF#Ad or DGBd.
It is difficult to play the melody up & down the melody string...starts sounding like one of them slide whistle things.....I need to bounce off open strings. I have ordered another fretless box dulcimer from Gary Sager that will have frets 4 thru 8 under the melody strings only and think it will open up new ways to play for me.
I actually prefer the sound & playability of a fretless dulcimer & with a little practice ...& a pencil mark or two.. : )...where the notes are comes automatically.
Fretless dulcimer works for me b/c I seldom play above the 4th or 5th fret....& almost never above the 7th....& play across the strings..with a noter....tuned DAd most of the time but also DAde, DAdf#, DF#Ad or DGBd.It is difficult to play the melody up & down the melody string...starts sounding like one of them slide whistle things.....I need to bounce off open strings. I have ordered another fretless box dulcimer from Gary Sager that will have frets 4 thru 8 under the melody strings only and think it will open up new ways to play for me.I actually prefer the sound & playability of a fretless dulcimer & with a little practice ...& a pencil mark or two.. : )...where the notes are comes automatically.
I suspect that frets were originally intended to make noting more precise without having to actually place your finger in exactly the same spot every time. For example, placement of your fretting finger between two frets in a space of roughly an inch or more will push the string down against the desired fret. The vibration of the string is also less muffled with the fret than it is without.On a fretless instrument (fretless banjo) or an instrument inwhich the frets may be serving as position markers only (dobro or slide guitar), one often hears the sliding sound of a finger or slide as it glides from a lower or higher pitch ending on the desired pitch. This is a different, yet very pleasing sound in its own right. But it is a little less precise especially for someone starting out on the instrument. Frets make the instrument a little easier to play in the beginning stages.Luthiers once and still do make fretless instruments with frets in-laid flush with the fingerboard to assist with finger placement. Although this becomes unnecessary with more experience, it can be very beneficial to someone in the early stages of learning to play a fretless instrument. The frets are simply an aid in getting your fingers in the right location. I suspect someone probably started by making marks on the fretboard of some ancient instrument at some point to help with finger location and this evolved into the frets as we know them today.Greg
Hi Cynthia,It's great fun and a learning experience to experiment on a fretless instrument. Likely you won't hit 'just the right spot' for a while, but if you approach it with a relaxed frame of mind and decide you don't have to sound perfect to have fun , well then you will get a lot out of it. You might not want to inflict your very first attempts upon others, though! ;D Cynthia said:
...the sound will just have a different quality than if there were a physical fret there...assuming you were able to hit the right spot,,, I have seen some youtubes of people with finger slides on cigar box instruments, and they look like a lot of fun.
Randy is a great fretless dulcimer player! He's also a great fretted dulcimer player! When he plays fretless, it's a very blues-y sound he gets out of his cigar boxes. His old-timey (and classical!) music is, I believe, generally played on a fretted dulcimer.I guess what I'm trying to get at is the idea that a fretless dulcimer and a fretted dulcimer are two different critters and each has inherent strong qualities and limitations.Robin
I'm in the "accuracy and repeatability of sounds with ease of use" camp. Anyone who has tried to fret a fiddle, or play a trombone or other "positional" instrument knows how much work it is to get those notes right every time (or even once!). Whether the frets are made from tied on gut (lutes and early guitars), carved from wood, bone or the carved out of the fretboard itself (early ukuleles and nordic fretted zithers, any sort of 'string stop' is better than none!
Roger L. Huffmaster said:
Yep that is it in a nutshell. A string with no frets is capable of producing any note within its range from one end (nut) to the other (bridge). In western music our ears are trained to hear whole notes (called tones in formal music theory) and half notes (semitones). (Other music traditions have quarter and eigth notes and maybe more- in Persian classical music they have 12 different steps between our half notes -i.e. 12 different versions of A ranging between A and A flat!!)Western music relies on these more limited steps in the infinity of musical possibility because it is easier to harmonise, and so it is important to play those half notes and whole notes accurately, especially when playing with others. So frets or position markers are an easy way to show the player where the notes are. The dulcimer does this the most simple way by having the frets positioned to give a "Do Re Mi" scale as you go up the frets, made up of whole notes and half notes. Most other more modern string instruments (guitar, banjo, mandolin etc) have their frets laid out in semitones rather than a pattern of tones and semitones.I used to play double bass, which is fretless,and the hardest thing was learning all the left hand positions, and the precise distances between my fingers in order to get the semitones accurately.Of course they get closer together the further up the neck towards the bridge you go, so I had to learn how to make the necessary adjustments to my hand position as I moved to higher positions. Frankly, it was much harder work than the guitar and I never progressed very far. Besides, it aint the most portable of instruments to just casually take along to a party or jam session!Frets are not necessary, but I do believe it makes an instrument easier to play, plus the fretboard lives much longer if the strings are not constantly wearing it from contact.
Roger
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).
I really really like my little Profile PT-2700 . Just works. Can work in either clip or microphone mode, and is adjustable in what it considers an A, but it's really simple to use.
The Korg CA-30 has an accessory clip-on. The GA 30 has trouble because it's made for the dynamics of the guitar rather than a range of smaller instruments.
Buzzing Strings
Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions
Thanks Lisa... good idea! When I bought the dulcimer, it had the standard set of McSpadden strings on it. I called my guru "The Dulcimer Doctor" and he sold me a set of strings that he thought were better, with the melody string being .10 ga. and at the time, I wondered if that would suit me, I kinda like heavier melody than the others in my group (I think it's cause I'm bolder!). I'll get back with him soon to see if perhaps that will cure my problem. He's easy to talk to.
Buzzing Strings
Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions
You might try the next up string gauges- just one size heavier all around- string buzz can come from the strings being a bit to floppy combined with low action. A slightly heavier set of strings will tighten the tension a little bit and keep the strings from moving so much when they vibrate. Its a cheap fix that's worth a try before paying a luthier for stuff.
Buzzing Strings
Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions
Well... I'm fortunate enough to live within spitting distance (actually, about 35 miles) of "The Dulcimer Doctor", Joe Shelton. I'm sure if I take my instrument to him, he'll do something like that too. I have another dulcimer, lovely instrument which was built specifically for me...) and it had some tone issues, which Joe fixed. I do like this McSpadden, though, and would like that small fault to not be there. The mellow tones just call to me. I'll give him a call, see if I can take my dulcimer down to him... he's always wonderful to visit with and his studio is something to behold.I see you live in Myrtle Beach... we have a friend in N. Myrtle and my golf friends and I go to Ocean Isle for occasional outings so, I'm relatively familiar with the northern extremes of your area.Thanks, Carson Carson Turner said:
I had some string buzz on one of mine and my string-things friend adjusted my frets (with a little hammer - I was so worried watching that) and sanded down the bridge some and it fixed it right up. Lowering the action really helped with finger-dancing too.
Then he worked on the sides of the frets - seems they were hanging over the edge a little and was causing some discomfort since I do mostly noter and use my finger to guide along the side of the fretboard. Spent about an hour with a fine file on those.
Oiled my machines, conditioned the fretboard, totally tweaked it up for me. Cost me a dinner is all.
Your mileage may vary though - I trust this guy to know his stuff. You need a tweaks strings-things friend.
Buzzing Strings
Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions
My McSpadden dulcimer sometimes has a problem with the strings "buzzing". I already posted this to the dulcimer builders but thought maybe someone here may have the same problem. Seems there should be a cure for it.
updated by @sally-pena: 06/08/16 09:24:05PM
Kendra! England COOL??? Now that IS a quote to pass on to my grandkids. We all see things in different ways I suppose, which is good! I once took a very nice lady from the USA (called Maddie) to Castle Coombe, a small village in the Cotswolds, not far from Bath. It was twilight when we arrived, there was soft yellow light shining from house windows,the smell of Ash logs burning on hearths in those houses, no traffic, and no people except us. She thought that it was some sort of theme park I recall !!! As for the car park,you were lucky to find space in one in Bristol! It would be great to see you busking over here, just don't TAKE MY SPACE. No, you're OK, I,m getting a bit old for it now!Best wishes,JohnH Kendra Ward said:
Ha! Ha! John Henry!
No the Bobbies did not leave us a tip!!!! :-(
We always busked in Bath because that was the best place and Bob's family was there. We once heard a great Bluegrass band playing and we went to hear them and talk to them thinking they were American's because they were playing "Grandfather's Clock". When they stopped they had the English accent-we were surprised because they sang with an American accent! Hahaha
Gosh! We love England! It's been too long since we have been there!
Another funny story is that I broke some strings on my HD and I forgot to bring my extra strings with me! We went to a piano store in Bristol to get some extras but they kept breaking too. I had enough from them to keep up, but the funny thing was we couldn't find our car! We were so lost and turned around! We parked in a "car park" but found out there were lot's of them with the same name in Bristol and we were so confused and turned around!!!!! It took us about 4 hours to find the right "car park". Hahahaha
Bob's family came from England (Bath) and we visited them and had a wonderful time! I love it there! We are considering moving to England for a while because of the crap that is going on here in the states with OBAMA. I guess we would just have to rent our farm here???
Anyway, we love England and it's very cool!
Oh yeah! I will have to tell you about the time we were almost arrested in a laundry mat in Oxford for changing strings while we were waiting on our laundry. I was called a "tory!" :-)
Kendra
Ha! Ha! John Henry!No the Bobbies did not leave us a tip!!!! :-(We always busked in Bath because that was the best place and Bob's family was there. We once heard a great Bluegrass band playing and we went to hear them and talk to them thinking they were American's because they were playing "Grandfather's Clock". When they stopped they had the English accent-we were surprised because they sang with an American accent! HahahaGosh! We love England! It's been too long since we have been there!Another funny story is that I broke some strings on my HD and I forgot to bring my extra strings with me! We went to a piano store in Bristol to get some extras but they kept breaking too. I had enough from them to keep up, but the funny thing was we couldn't find our car! We were so lost and turned around! We parked in a "car park" but found out there were lot's of them with the same name in Bristol and we were so confused and turned around!!!!! It took us about 4 hours to find the right "car park". HahahahaBob's family came from England (Bath) and we visited them and had a wonderful time! I love it there! We are considering moving to England for a while because of the crap that is going on here in the states with OBAMA. I guess we would just have to rent our farm here???Anyway, we love England and it's very cool!Oh yeah! I will have to tell you about the time we were almost arrested in a laundry mat in Oxford for changing strings while we were waiting on our laundry. I was called a "tory!" :-)Kendra
Kendra! Tis' is no wonder that I am not so well received when I play in Bath these days!!! LOL. (More likely cos' I'm getting old and don't like sitting on a plastic milk crate for long spells) It is the nearest tourest place after my home town, where I tend not to play for fear of 'the Neighbours' passing me by!!! Did our 'bobbies' put money in yer hat?Regards, JohnH Kendra Ward said:
Hi ya'll,
I love to busk! Bob and I have been busking many places.
I wanted to share my best all-time busking story with you. It's pretty funny!
Bob and I were on tour in the British Isles and busking is a big deal there. Me, having red hair and being very Irish, and Bob having family in Bath, found that if we did not open our mouths we were thought of as natives. (all the rich Americans would throw us money haha)
Anyway we were busking in this little town in northern England, doing a pretty good job of collecting money, and we noticed the local "bobbies" (policemen) were watching us closely. While we were playing they seemed to get a little closer and a little closer. We were sure they were going to make us quit or ask for a permit or something, so we were getting a little nervous.
Finally they walked up to us and said, "You are better than the usual lot that play here!" and walked on.
We were really relieved and thought that was one of the funniest things that ever happened to us.
We were mostly playing the "other" dulcimer that you play with hammers, and guitar, but we did have the mountain dulcimer and played it some as well.
Thanks for reading,
Dulcerina aka Kendra
Hi ya'll,I love to busk! Bob and I have been busking many places.I wanted to share my best all-time busking story with you. It's pretty funny!Bob and I were on tour in the British Isles and busking is a big deal there. Me, having red hair and being very Irish, and Bob having family in Bath, found that if we did not open our mouths we were thought of as natives. (all the rich Americans would throw us money haha)Anyway we were busking in this little town in northern England, doing a pretty good job of collecting money, and we noticed the local "bobbies" (policemen) were watching us closely. While we were playing they seemed to get a little closer and a little closer. We were sure they were going to make us quit or ask for a permit or something, so we were getting a little nervous.Finally they walked up to us and said, "You are better than the usual lot that play here!" and walked on.We were really relieved and thought that was one of the funniest things that ever happened to us.We were mostly playing the "other" dulcimer that you play with hammers, and guitar, but we did have the mountain dulcimer and played it some as well.Thanks for reading,Dulcerina aka Kendra
Yep, acoustic busking is the way to go - if possible! If you are quieter then folks feel happier coming closer, and tips are more likely. Also, I like to work closer in the same way that Lisa mentioned the intimacy of playing off-stage.I've yet to busk with my MD (although I've played it at gigs and open sessions loads of times). I play Galax style with a noter - so getting the volume from my MD is not a problem. Also, I'm not sure if I would be too inclined to work solo with an MD, as my playing method only tells half the musical story, I need another instrument to complete the sound. Hence the plan to work with Chris this summer to play as a Galax dulcimer and mandola/tenor guitar duo.If I was playing MD solo in chord/melody then maybe I would consider a small battery amp (one of the good quality ones) just to fill the sound out a little.There are regulations in some areas against amplified noise - but acoustic busking is OK.The only time I have used an amp while busking was when we went out as 4 piece one afternoon to the local high street to get some practice time in before an evening gig!!! On that day we used a 15 watt battery amp placed behind us (for balance) just for a vocal mic to lift the voices a bit across 3 resonator guitars and a double bass! The singers would have been straining to get above the instruments in the open air - not good when you have a gig later that day. Carson Turner said:
some people would say that playing a dulcimer through an amp is nothing short of blasphemous.
Strumelia said:
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.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.