Forum Activity for @sunvalleylaw

Wow, cool!  Thanks for that!  In the limited learning regarding technique I have done so far, it has been sort of in a Joni style, using a guitar pick, and a percussive type of stroke.  Kinda guitar oriented in the mechanics, but on a different plane than an guitar with the strings oriented away from the body.  I am a long time guitar hack so that feels natural for me. @robin-thompson Hard to describe other than that for me.  Tim Hanseroth has a little video of him woodshedding his part on All I Want on Instagram, but I cannot figure out a way to share it here.  His nice, compact wrist action, without too much elbow, keeping it in time back and forth across the fretboard is what I am shooting for.  Not that I have that down in any way.  ;)

Will be interested in that lesson if the timing works out!  I have Joellen’s book too!

The Hindman Dulcimer Homecoming is coming up soon!  It looks to be a great fest and can be attended from the comfort of your own place.  I inquired as to whether one could sit in on a class just as a listener-- this is how I absorb information best-- and was assured it wold be fine.  

@sunvalleylaw, you will enjoy your Blue Lion!  And, yes, Janita is great to work with.    

I'm not a great player so measuring whether my skills were good enough to own a BL wouldn't have worked for me.  Yet I own two and enjoy them ever so much.   

In a couple weeks, Joellen Lapidus is going to be teaching online at the free Hindman Dulcimer Homecoming and will, I think, be teaching a percussive technique with the mountain dulcimer.  Information for "attending" the fest can be found here:

https://troublesomecreekguitars.com/2022-hindman-dulcimer-homecoming/  

Awesome, be sure to post pics when it's done. You deserve it!

I probably am not good enough to have done so, but ordered a nice one.  Blue Lion, AJ (Acoustic Jam) size, Redwood back and sides, spruce top, redwood fingerboard, Scroll head, strung with 4 strings in 3 positions, but with nuts cut to go equidistant if I ever wanted to, Strings attach with acoustic guitar style pegs and holes in the bridge, rather than on metal pegs on the end, fretboard will be Chromatic, LR Baggs pick up, Heart/F style sound holes, gloss finish. Janita has been amazing throughout the shopping and ordering process.  

Will be used in folk/folk rock music played in a somewhat percussive way, Ala Joni, I having been originally inspired by Tim Hanseroth of Brandi Carlile Band covering Joni’s “All I Want.”  

Again, probably too expensive given my skill set, but receiving a little inheritance allowed me to spend on something nice for my arty side. And I may consolidate some other gear/sell some stuff I am not using, also.   And I think my Mom (and Dad, having been gone nearly 11 years now) would be fine with that.  

Should be ready in about 4 or 4 and a half months.  

Honestly, Richard, if I knew what I was buying I would have gladly paid way more for it. ;-)

What a wonderful find Canadian Dulcimer Boy. Enjoy playing your find.

Hi Lois, if/when I buy a new super deluxe dulcimer, I will certainly be sharing my original find. ;-)

Oh my, Dulcimer Boy, your journey to loving dulcimers sounds so much like my own.  Had even said it was an instrument I'd skip since I, too, have a background with others.  Found what I call "the Orphan" & the rest followed.  I'm always willing to loan it to a beginner nearby since I now have several, including Tennessee Music Boxes.  (Like John Knopf I'm in that trick area north of the Ontario border.)

Thanks, John, Robin, Dusty. :-)

Thanks.  It appears dulcimer construction has a lot in common with banjo building...  You never know exactly what tone you'll be getting out of your choice of woods, design, hardware, strings and any number of other variables.  It's the combination of all the variables that determines tone.  In other words, it's like a box of chocolates.  Thanks again! 

As Ken says, it depends on who you talk to.  The idea is, more or less, to free up more top to vibrate and also reduce the overall mass of the fretboard, thus enhancing the sound.  Some of us arch the fretboard, many more of us cut a channel down the length of the inside of the fretboard.  Both work, or or less, depending on the impact of the many other design variables.  "Ya pays yer money an ya takes yer chances".

Welcome to our little group, eh? from a dulcimer/dulcimore builder north of the Ontario border (suburban Detroit).  

We hope you'll have fun and learn some things from us.  That's a nice find you have there! Thanks for letting us know.

Good to have you here, @canadian-dulcimer-boy!  Enjoy that new-to-you mountain dulcimer!  

Welcome to FOTMD, @canadian-dulcimer-boy, and congratulations on your find.  The best dulcimer journeys begin with a unique discovery like yours.

Hi Folks, I stumbled upon a weird wooden instrument covered in dust, with a couple of old, floppy strings in an antique shop in Ontario, Canada. I was told it was a dulcimer and the shop keep said it was going for $40. I snatched it up in a heartbeat. I hade no idea what a treasure I had until I cleaned it up, put on some fresh strings and headed to Youtube to find out how to play it. (I already play bass, uke and a bit of guitar/banjo so my learning curve wasn’t too steep.) Anywhoooo…I’m in love with this instrument. I look forward to leaning from you all and sharing some tunes with ya

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Well, it depends on who responds. The theory is that with less contact with the fret board, the top is freer to vibrated thus enhancing the sound. There are so many variables to what effects the sound of the dulcimer and this is just one of many.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

So happy you had a great experience  and it turned out beautiful  for you. I had one of his years ago, a Birdseye Maple. It was very pretty, but the intonation  was off up the fretboard. My Luther did his best to correct it, but it still wasn't right. I parted ways with it. I probably just got a bad one, because so many people are happy with Ron's dulcimers.  I have another builder lined up, but thanks.

Enjoy your gem!

Is there an advantage to fret boards that are scalloped on the bottom so they only contact the instrument's top at a few points?  

Susie, I can't recommend Ron enough. Very good to work with and talented.  Megan, Thank you so much!

Looks beautiful, Dave! I love those custom soundholes and the wood choices! Clearly a lot of care went into your design and I'm glad Ron brought it to life for you. 

As far as I know, there were folks from 5 or 6 different countries who participated in IADD-- yay!  It has been a joy to see so many deriving joy from playing Appalachian dulcimers.  

Beautiful  and a great honor to your mom. Priceless!

I'm thinking about doing something special with another builder, to honor my dad and the farm property where we live and produce Maple Syrup, which was settled in 1889 (I'm 4th generation  and only descendent  living here). My dad died last year at 86 too. 

Well, Friends. After a short wait, it finally came yesterday. Ron Gibson built me this beautiful instrument. She's a six string Chromatic, with a Birds eye maple top and walnut sides and back. The fret board is Birdseye maple and walnut, with Grover tuners. She's also a little deeper than normal as well, and she has a beautiful voice, I could not be happier!

The sound holes are special as well. Back in October I lost my Mother, she was, as Jimmy Buffet says "86 years of perpetual motion", a single Mom of three at 30, she went on to become one of the first female sheriff officers in Morristown NJ, became the first female detective, after her retirement, became involved with the International Association of Women Police, and was awarded their highest honor at Faneuil Hall in Boston.  When she retired to Deer Isle in Maine, she spoke often about two things her beloved dog, Bear and her home, which has four iconic pine trees lining her driveway.   

I'd been looking for a way to honor her, she loved my music, so I contacted Ron with my idea and I think he executed it flawlessly. Thank you Ron for helping me honor my Mother and challenging me with something new. If you're thinking about having one built, I can't recommend Ron enough. His experience, craftsmanship and passion for these fine instruments are reflected in his work.

Thank you for allowing me to prattle on.  Now I have to go build a stand...

Dave

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So I put the new steel strings on the banjammer and it sounds GREAT!  I did have to adjust the bridge a bit but it was easy.
I wouldn't have had the confidence to tackle this without the feedback here….Thanks again!

Well done everybody! Greatly enjoyed the videos. 

@macaodha Val, I hope you had opportunity to make music to celebrate International Appalachian Dulcimer Day!  

Best wishes to all on this International Appalachian Dulcimer Day.

Wow, @dusty-turtle you had a great group for IADD!  And your cover of Lucinda Williams's Lake Charles is so good!

@slate-creek-dulcimers Your Hand to the Plow is just right on that pretty instrument you made!  And your singing sounds old (you know I mean that in a good way).

@steve-c So good you could share the good word of the joy of Appalachian dulcimer music-making!   

It was so fun to wake up here on the west coast and find so many people had already been posting such good music on the first ever IADD. Thanks @robin-thompson, @ariane, @gordon-hardy, and @slate-creek-dulcimers, for sharing good tunes on our favorite instrument.

My online dulcimer club met today. We were over 20, and several mentioned that they had already posted something for IADD. We played 5 songs together: Green Grow the Lilacs, Harlequein Air, Marche Nuptiale, Rickett's Hornpipe, and Southwind. 

And separately I also posted a cover of a Lucinda Williams tune: Lake Charles .

Here's a screen shot one of the participants sent me:

My little contribution to dulcimer day:

https://www.reverbnation.com/virginiahogfiddler/song/33226972-hold-on-keep-your-hand-to-plow

Just finished playing dulcimer at our local antique store.  Introduced the dulcimer to people wha have never met her…😊

Yes- the v is 'down'. The v^ is down,up.  By 'down' I mean the dominant direction that you tend to strum in- some folks strum inwards towards their body on major notes, others have an outwards dominant direction, away from their bodies. Thus, my v means your dominant direction strum. Easy to think of it as 'down', while the ^ is strummed as you go in the return direction of the strum. For more on this, use the blog's right lower keyword search feature and choose 'strumming' for various posts on strumming tips.

Are the little v and upside down v another way of saying down up down

All good suggestions. I am interested to hear how you replace this tuning pin. Like others here in over forty years of working with autoharps and hammered dulcimers I've never seen that happen to a pin.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a new song."

This is good music folks! Thanks for sharing you talent on IADD.

Ken

"The dulcimer (and its players) sing a sweet song."

On reflection, a screw driver bit on a 1/4" socket wrench would allow greater downward pressure and torque than any regular screw driver. An extension would help, too.

How I enjoy seeing music from lovers of the Appalachian dulcimer from places near and far!  Wonderful music, friends!  

To mark International Appalachian Dulcimer Day here is my version of The Leaving Shanty