Forum Activity for @steve-c

Paula, I am a member of the Mountain Dulcimer Society of Dayton so don't be surprised if they refer you to me.  I own Chet's Hogfiddle pictured in Jean Ritchies Dulcimer People book.  Ron will be the best resource for you though, as he worked on many instruments with Chet.  There is an article in an old Dulcimer Player News about Ron and he recounts those years with Chet.  

Chet also appeared on the Grand Ole Opry and gifted a dulcimer to Roy Acuff.  

Thanks Strumelia.  

Try looking at these threads... (it depends on if you are trying to add a photo to a discussion post, or to your profile gallery):

https://fotmd.com/forums/forum/site-questions-how-do-i

It looks like to Mountain Dulcimore Society was founded in 1965 I assume the card included in the case with my dulcimer would date my dulcimer to being from sometime around that. I’m not sure at what point the MDS changed their name. So I at least have a broad range of between say 1964 and his death in 1977. 

Wow. So young. Thank you so much Steve for this additional information. I’ll be curious to see if I can determine a date for my dulcimer. I’ve reached out to the dulcimer society of Dayton (the current iteration of the Mountain Dulcimore Society) to see if they have any additional information but I haven’t heard back yet. 

(I’d try to help you with posting pictures but I’m clearly doing something wrong regarding size)

I have photos but can’t seem to figure out how to post them here.

November 26, 1977 dulcimore maker and historian Chester “Chet Hines” (1921-1977) died of a heart attack while on vacation in Florida at age 56. Chet was born on March 21, 1921.

He was a retired physicist and engineer from Wright-Patterson Airforce Base.
Hines helped found what is believed to be the first dulcimer society/club in America, The Dulcimer Society of Dayton. He also founded the Mountain Dulcimer Society of America in 1965. In 1971 Hines represented Ohio at the Festival of American Folklife, held by the Smithsonian Institution.
Hines was first exposed to the dulcimore at age 8. In 1935 Hines learned to play and build

the dulcimore from his grandfather near Chillicothe, Ohio. He started building dulcimers to sell in 1948 and in 1973 published his book on How to Make and Play the Dulcimore.
Hines appeared on the Grand Ole Opry and one of his dulcimores was in the Roy Acuff collection in Opry Land.

What a lovely instrument!  

Don't now how I missed this but, SWEET!!!

That is a beautiful dulcimer. It looks like the case needs a little repair. I'm sure you'll enjoy it when you pick it up. 

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I apologize. I’m not sure why my photos are posting so large. I’m sure I’m doing something wrong. 

Hi Steve!

thanks for the great information. Given how influential Mr Hines was in establishing the Dulcimer Society in Ohio, I’m surprised there’s so little information I’ve been able to find. 

I’m assuming that he’s probably deceased at this point but I haven’t been able to find an obituary. 

I’ll reach out to Ron Ewing and the dulcimer society and see if they can supply additional information. 

the dulcimer came in a homemade wooden casket case and had several business cards with it. 

I still haven’t seen the dulcimer in person as I live in Europe now. I had it delivered to my in-laws house in Texas  I’ll pick it up when I’m next in the US  

hopefully I can find a date or serial number inside  

thanks again,

paula

Both days are permanently on my calendar.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I have a ton of information for you.  Chet Hines was born in Chillicothe, Ohio and built his first Dulcimore with his grandfather in 1935.  He wrote one of the early books on the history and building of the Dulcimore.  Published in 1973.  Ron Ewing was his assistant.  He also started the American Dulcimore Society in the 1960’s. It eventually became The Mountain Dulcimer Society of Dayton, Ohio the longest continuous and likely the oldest dulcimer society in the country.  

@janis-lewman Hope you'll be able to participate!  

That event is a new one to me.  Glad I noticed.  I was only aware of the International Play Music On the Porch day which is always last Saturday in August each year.  Thanks for the nudge.

Several years ago I asked McSpadden for a cheat-sheet for their model numbering codes.  Their response is attached:

McSpadden model codes.pdf - 150KB

Damon, I enjoyed hearing that music you created and watching your fishing video where you put the two together. Nice work.

The first instance of the dulcimer comes in at 9:38.

Thanks, these modular synths go all the way back to the atomic bomb experiments. After the war someone had the bright idea to turn all those oscillators and such into musical instruments. Therefore, modular synthesizers developed at about the same time as the revival/contemporary mountain dulcimer, circa 1940s for so.

Yeah, the dulcimer comes in much later. It's all meant to be integrated so that you can't really tell what instrument is playing.

Wow,I couldn't hear the dulcimer so much-the synth part was great,tickled my ears.I'm the rowboat generation (yeah,pretty old) ...enjoyed that.

...

I recorded this about a week ago. It's an original composition of mine where I experiment with using acoustic instruments for control a modular synthesizer. I also use these tracks in my fishing videos on YouTube:

Complete track: Music for Kalimba, Dulcimer and Modular Synthesizer

Here how the music is used in my fishing videos:

Indeed, it is, @dusty !

I hope to see folks from many countries celebrating an instrument we all love! 

How could we ever forget? It's the best day of the year!

Just a little reminder about International Appalachian Dulcimer Day.  

This dulcimer was sold outside this forum. 

Nice looking dulcimore Paula. I know you enjoy it immensely.

Hi all, it’s been a while since I posted here. We moved to to Portugal several years ago and I has sold my dulcimer before we left. (I seriously had to this the herd!)

im getting ready to have a visit back to Texas and that led me to taking a look on eBay to see if there might be an interesting MD to pick up to bring home with me when I return to Portugal. 

i ended up bidding on (and winning) this “dulcimore” by Chet Hines. I think at some point I had borrowed a copy of his book “How to Make and Play the Dulcimore” (1973) from the library. He was also the founder of the Mountain Dulcimer Society in Dayton, Ohio. 

other than that I haven’t been able to find a huge amount about him or his instruments. I’m assuming my dulcimer is from the ‘70s. 

Any additional information anyone might have would be appreciated. I haven’t actually picked up the dulcimer yet. I’ll be retrieving it from my in-laws in Texas in April. 

thanks,

paula

Price drop to $420.

Listed locally, too.

The MD is a ' Modal ' based instrument, not a ' key ' based one. I think theory has 'diatonic scale' [and its naming conventions] being based on the Ionian Mode and the remaining modes being a reordering of the the Ionian mode. The nut/zero fret sets up the Mixolydian pattern. Fret three sets up the start of the Ionian pattern. Each fret sets up another mode. 

This leads me to conclude that, basically:

CDEFGABC is a diatonic scale with its attendant naming conventions, and

DEFGABCD is a modal scale [Dorian] without the naming conventions. I'm wrong probably, but it keeps things simple for me.

Addition of the 6 1/2/13 1/2 permits the Ionian mode to start at the nut/0 fret.

"3 mm is ok., 2,8 or 2,9 mm too."

Adding the metric measurement is good. We should remember that "The Appalachian Dulcimer" covers the world today, and that we should routinely mention both American and SI units.

Many of us are used to thinking 1/4 inch plywood is 6mm and 3mm ply is 1/8 inch.  Actually 1/8 inch is 3.175 (3,175) mm, so "by eyeball" we are talking about the same dimension, making 2,8 mm a bit narrow for some of us.

I just reread this 2 year old thread from the beginning- it's got so many wonderful points of view and insights from knowledgeable folks. A good read!

3 mm is ok., 2,8 ou 2,9 mm too.
If too large between the 2 strings, they can move away from each other when playing

@overdrive, please note that your description of frets and scale positions only holds true if the open string is the tonic.  In traditional dulcimer playing, different tunings are used for different modes, and the tonic changes depending on the tuning.  So yes, in DAd (mixolydian) the tonic is the open string. But in DAA (ionian) the tonic is found at the 3rd fret.  In DAC (aeolian) the tonic is found at the 1st fret.  Basically, the pattern of whole and half steps in the scale or mode determines where on the fretboard you find the tonic.

I suspect that the 6+ fret was added so that you could get the two "major" sounding modes (ionian & mixolydian) out of a single tuning (1-5-8 or DAd).  I doubt people started tuning more in DAd than DAA simply because they wanted to play a small number of mixolydian tunes all the time.

And as people started playing chords and fretting across all the strings, DAd offers a greater melodic range (three notes worth!) out of a single chord position than does DAA.  Chording in DAA sounds more concise and coherent to my ear, but it requires a lot more hand movement to play in a basic chord/melody style.

I've been thinking about the fret numbers we use as it relates to the diatonic tuning that comes on a dulcimer.

Each fret is essentially a scale degree, so the nut is 1, tonic, not zero. "Fret 1" is the major second. "Fret 2" is the major third, "Fret 3" is major fourth, and so on.  A "6.5 Fret" gives us the major seventh of the Ionian. Our "Fret 6" is the flat seventh for Mixolydian. 

Is it too late to rename the frets?  Why was Mixolydian the standard scale?  Because Old Joe Clark? Has anybody fretted up a dulcimer as a dedicated Dorian instrument?  That would be a beautiful thing!  The extra fret would make it work for Aeolian tunes.

I guess a lot also depended on what tuning the person liked to use... as to whether a 3.5 fret would be useful? We can't just assume they tuned 1-5-8 or 1-5-5.

A 3+ fret might have been used to play ancient or Eastern European tunes which have different ascending and descending scales. I think I've run across tunes where either a 3+ or 4+ was needed in DAA. Dulcimers can be highly individualized, and a "one-off" by a home builder is a possibility..

Additional photos....

(Plus there's one more photo in My Photos under my user profile here.)

I'm selling my beautiful McSpadden all walnut dulcimer!

I ordered it made new in 2018. It is in excellent condition (both the dulcimer and the case). It comes from a smoke-free, humidity-controlled home. I have been playing stringed instruments since 1973. I have always been meticulous in the use and care of all my instruments. I've sold and shipped many instruments over the years, so it will be well-packed.

 - $450, which includes FREE UPS ground shipping CONUS, with tracking and insurance

 - 4FH26WW-M (Jim Woods)

 - 26" VSL

 - flat head, set up for 4 strings (currently strung with 3 strings)

 - Micarta fretboard

 - McSpadden blue gigbag included

 - 2 new sets of McSpadden Squeakless 26" VSL strings included

 - 1-1/2 fret, along with the standard 6-1/2 fret; but NO 8-1/2 fret

 - PayPal friends and family

 - no returns

 - see additional photos in second post to this thread