Forum Activity for @robin-thompson

I am thankful for the comfort, solace music has brought me, most especially, over recent years.  And for FOTMD friends and our own Strumelia!  

I use MobileSheets Pro on a tablet. It's for Android and Windows. I don't know that it will do all of that but it'a great for music.

Notebooks? IPad?  Help!  I have a DAAA notebook; a club Notebook in DAD.  A beginning book with paper clips and extra tunes I’m learning.  Then there is my addiction to books with lessons and others with tunes.  Argh!

IF YOU ARE RIGHT HANDED, then (usually) the tuning head is on your left, and the melody string(s) are closest to you.

IF YOU ARE LEFT HANDED, the (usually) the tuning head is on your left, and the melody string(s) are closest to you.

The exception is a true Tennessee Music Box replica, which has the tuners at the strumming end of the instrument, not the fretting end.

I have just (almost completed) my strum stick cane dulcimer and was left wondering which way to string it. I set it up with DAD tuning with the high D or small string at the top. I figure once it is given away, my 91 year old Dad can decide if he wants to play it in his lap or like a guitar. I'll swap the high and low strings if he wants to play it like a guitar.

It is playable at the moment but lacks the last coat(s) of tung oil finish and the cane tip. Otherwise, I'm really happy with the build.

Anyway, I just crossed this bridge myself... trying to decide which way to string it and do believe you will want the high string at the belly if you play it laying on your lap.

Thank you, Dusty and all of our dulcimer family.  My dulcimer is my refuge and happy place.  

Tummy..those are the melody strings

Thanks to Dusty for writing his heartfelt feelings 8 years ago, and Lisa for bumping it up to present day. I began my dulcimer journey 04/2012. Not sure, but I think I discovered FOTMD around 06/2012. It's been a wonderful journey. Changed my whole life. I have often pondered what singular word best describes this journey. "Peace". Always comes to mind. There is something about playing a dulcimer ever so gently, very softly, that just transfers you to another zone. Life is indeed good, with a dulcimer in my life

It is a cool-looking dulcimer and probably has a sound to match yet the asking price does seem steep.  

Strumelia mentioned vintage Lapidus dulcimers being in a different universe. . . From the few instruments  I've seen from her (vintage or no), I understand her statement.  (On JLapidus's latest recording, her Pelican dulcimer sounds so good!) 

That's a great kit-- makes a great dulcimer.

Finishing up a sweet song mcspadden

Yes, I'm thankful as well that Jeannie has emerged from the ashes of Paradise even if she lost her home and nearly everything they owned.

Vintage Lapidus dulcimers can sell for 3 to $4,000, but that's a whole different universe. 

I think this dulcimer on MandoCafe would more realistically sell for half its asking price.

Never hurts to ask.  Besides, won't mandolin players pay any price for an instrument?  Heheehee

That sure is a nice-looking dulcimer, though.  I wouldn't mind if a clerical error put it on my doorstep this Christmas.  I sometimes wonder if we MD players sell our instruments (and ourselves) short.  I know we're a smaller market, but asking $2 grand for a vintage handmade guitar or even an ukulele is not at all unusual.

"Oh my" is not my reaction to that price. My first thought was "no &^R#ing way!"

I like Howard and his dulcimers as well, but I've never seen a price even close to that for a Capritaurus.

I found this  listed  Capritaurus dulcimer for sale at Mandolin Cafe. I like the work that Howard Rugg does in building dulcimers, but I wonder if this is a realistic price.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thankful that I saw "Jeanne in Paradise" and her husband are safe from the Cali fires.  They lost their house and her dulcimers to the flames, but that can be replaced...

I thought I'd bump up this 8 year old FOTMD thread that @dusty-turtle posted while pondering Thanksgiving and being thankful.  

The Summer of 2019 will mark FOTMD's tenth year since its humble beginnings.  I'm serious when i say that every single day I continue to feel thankful for being able to 'know' all the wonderful members on this site (and also ones I initially knew prior to that, on the now-gone Everythingdulcimer site). 
Knowing FOTMD members who have been here from the beginning, those dear members who have passed away, those who may come and go, and those who arrive new and full of enthusiasm each week...  it's an honor to know you all and count you as Friends.

Dusty said " it seems reasonable to ask what someone likes about the one dulcimer they identified in response to this forum question."

'Way back at the beginning of this thread I said I like the "high silvery' sound that many traditional dulcimers give.  Like my John Knopf-made Uncle Ed Thomas replica, my Bobby Ratliff Sow model Virginia Hogfiddle, and the Ozark Walking Stick that I built a couple years back.  All of these are narrow (less than 6") and shallow (under 1.5" deep) with tall fretboards for playing Noter & Drone.

Shape doesn't mean anything -- the three mentioned above are all different shapes.  I honestly couldn't pick one except in a "moment of truth" with my boat sinking and my arms full of survival supplies.  Then it's whichever one I can reach fastest/easiest just before I roll over the railing into my dinghy.  Any one of those could be my "one" dulcimer...

@d-chitwood , try reading this thread in our "Stie Questions...How do I..." forum:

https://fotmd.com/forums/forum/site-questions-how-do-i/32804/how-to-add-an-audio-mp3-or-soundcloud-clip-to-fotmd

Not sure how to do that on here, @gale-a-barr. 

Great information, Dusty, thanks for sharing. I don't think this has moved us away from the topic of this thread. I appreciate the details about your McCafferty. I hope to be able to try one out at a festival, where he or Steven attends.

 Yours is gorgeous! 

@D-Chitwood , sure would like to hear a sound file from your new Bella dulcimer....

@dusty-turtle, I did see the dulcimer Tony Vine made for Aaron. He had it displayed cause all the other dulcimers got sold and there was just a row of empty stands, LOL. I think Tony did say something about Aaron's being custom made. Tony's guitars are like masterpiece works of art and the dulcimer Billy got...man, oh man...I've never seen anything so beautiful! 

I stayed up late last night playing around and the Ron Ewing capo was working fine and keeping the tune spot on. So for now, I'll stick with that. I did speak with Tony and he said to hang tight that he was making a capo and it would be ready in a month, so I can use it then. 

@D-Chitwood and @Brian-G, in addition to a radiused fretboard, Aaron O'Rourke's dulcimers also have what he calls a "reversed flare."  The strings are 1" apart at the nut but .8" apart at the bridge.  That might compensate for what Brian refers to as the difficulty fretting on a radiused fretboard up high.

Susie, if someone asks how many dulcimers you need, the right answer is "one more."

I don't want to go too far astray from the original goal of this thread, but it seems reasonable to ask what someone likes about the one dulcimer they identified in response to this forum question.

I bought my McCafferty before he was making radiused fretboards, so I can't speak about that attribute.  Terry's dulcimers all have a loud, round, well-balanced tone.  The tone resembles a guitar more than the high silvery sound of a traditional dulcimer.  The action is excellent and the intonation is superb.  One feature of McCafferty dulcimers that I love is the extended strum hollow.  Most of us end up strumming over the upper end of the fretboard, and that extended strum hollow allows us to pick and strum there without clacking against the fretboard. Terry uses K & K Sound twin spot pickups inside, and although I don't have too much experience with this stuff, I find them to be phenomenal pickups that provide plenty of amplification without distorting the acoustic tone of the instrument.

Mine is the shortest of the three options Terry offers.  The body of all his instruments are the same size, but he makes three different VSLs: 28", 26.5", and 25".   I think it is inevitable that you lose a little sustain with a shorter VSL, and were I to buy the instrument now, I might get a 26.5" model. On the other hand, I've already gotten use the shorter VSL and have arranged a few tunes that require stretches I wouldn't be able to make on longer fretboards.

I did have to make one adjustment to the instrument before I felt comfortable flatpicking.  The strings are pretty far apart. that works well for fingerpicking and for playing slow tunes, but I found it difficult to flatpick with any speed.  I use a single melody string, and the first thing I did was to move that single string to the inside groove on the nut.  I then made an extra groove for the bass string that was the same distance away from the middle string.  My bass and melody strings are now about 1" apart.  I have thought of making a new nut and bridge with grooves that are even closer than that, but for the moment I am doing OK with that distance.  

If you go to my video page , you'll see that five of my last six videos were made with my McCafferty dulcimer.  And here's a picture of the top. The back and sides are figured cherry and the top is redwood.  The inlay is a wolf in front of a full moon with little stars for position dots.

Hi Dana,

Thanks for the quick response!  Yes, a 10" radius fretboard is still pretty flat, so what you've written doesn't surprise me. 

As for the reason for coming up with the idea - there are certainly good reasons for radius fretboards, but like pretty much everything else you can choose to do on an instrument, there are trade-offs also. I mentioned bending earlier, but moving across strings, especially higher up the fretboard, is another example of something that's generally considered easier with flat fretboards.

But it sounds like in this case, at least, any trade-offs were minimal and well worth it. :)  And I certainly can't argue with how that instrument sounds.  Love it!

Hi Brian,

It is 10" fingerboard Radius according to the dulcimer specifics and a 25.5 VSL. I don't know about compound radius.

So here's the thing. I can't feel any type of curve, nor does it look different. All I do know is that the action is low and smoothe and after an intensively insane class with Aaron O'Rourke on flying finger licks, Cindy ran a flying finger test on the fretboard and her eyes flew open wide and she said, "OMGOSH did you see that!? That was so easy on this fretboard!!"

It has the most comfortable feel to it of any dulcimer I've played and I do use all five fingers in chording and barring and whatnot.

I did find out Terry McCafferty also does a radius fretboard. 

Again, I can't see it or feel it. I'm sure there was a reason Tony and Aaron came up with the idea. All I know is my fingers don't hurt at all and I don't find myself wishing the action was lower. 

 I've only had the Mcspadden, Folk Root, Gibson, Gallier, Sweet woods, Modern Mountain & Blue Lion to compare to. So many have hurt my fingers. This just feels ...gentle and easy. I will say one thing...the sustain on the harmonic is insane. I think I heard it still going after I went to bed. 

Dusty,

I need another dulcimer/instrument, like I need a hole in my head. That said (haha), I've told myself, if I were to get one, it would be a McCafferty. I'm happy to see your response, that that would be your choice. Can you post a pic of yours? He makes beautiful dulcimers!

Hi Dana,

I have a couple questions for you, but rather than ask them privately I figured I'd do it here in case anyone else was wondering also.

1) Do you know the radius of your new dulcimer's fretboard in inches?  (and if it's a compound radius fretboard, do you know the radii for each end?)

2) Do you like it (not the dulcimer itself, which sounds fantastic, but the fretboard specifically)?  I'm familiar with the general advantages of curved fretboards (eg, more easy to barre and chord) as well as their disadvantages (eg, can't usually get action as low as with flat boards, more prone to buzzes, especially when bending notes or hammering) and I can understand the desire for curved fretboards on, say, a guitar, because of how they are played. But given the way a dulcimer is played, it doesn't seem to me that it would make much difference for playability.  My guitar playing is mostly limited to classical guitar (those have flat fretboards) so my experience with curved fretboards is limited.

Thanks for any insight.

Brian

I'm glad this is only a hypothetical discussion.   Yesterday alone I played three different dulcimers and two different guitars. 

As Dusty mentions, there are a number of makers of "Spider-like" capos other than Spider-brand.

Dana, I was just going to respond to your personal message, but I saw this forum, so I'll respond here instead.

More and more luthiers (including Folkcraft as an option) are making radiused fretboards, but the truth is that unless you barre with a single finger like Aaron O'Rourke or Stephen Seifert, it doesn't really offer an advantage.  Then again, if more of us had radiused fretboards, perhaps more of us would barre with a single finger!

I bought a dulcimer from Terry McCafferty, but it was before he started offering the radiused fretboard as an option.

If the Ewing capo works, then you have your solution.  The Spider Capo should work once you get the hang of it.  Ideally you would want a capo with the exact same radius as the fretboard.

David Beede provides a radiused capo with his models that have radiused fretboards, so you might contact him and find out if he can sell one separately, but unless the radius is exactly the same as the Bella, I am not sure it would work.  According to the website, Bella dulcimers have a 12" fretboard radius.  Terry McCafferty used to sell capos that matched his dulcimers in design, but I don't know if he's started making radius capos. You might send an email to both of those luthiers and see if they can help you.

This is all pretty new.  If more luthiers begin making radiused fretboards and that exact radius becomes standardized, then I'm sure someone will start making radiused capos to match.

It's walnut with butternut soundboard. The fingerboard overlay is wenge and the VSL is 25.5. My friend got one of the fancier ones (I think he sold out every single one he brought) and honestly, it was the most beautiful dulcimer I've ever seen. The sound...unlike anything I've ever heard. It made me cry when I played it. It made. me. cry. I looked up at my friend, and her eyes were filled with tears. Yall. The dulcimer made us both cry. 

It will be my keeper for the rest of my life. The tones are stunning. He sells $20K guitars so the man knows high quality stringed instruments. He did something heavenly with his design, gracious alive. 

Several instructors were lucky enough to order or buy one. 

It was a once in a lifetime find. 

But that spider capo, it can go suck an egg as far as I'm concerned, LOL. I'll find which capo works best and go with that. So far Ron Ewings is doing pretty good. 

A Spider type capo would have been my suggestion.

Wow!  I would sure like to see a photo of that Bella.....I just checked Tony's website and those are some amazing instruments.

Hello all!

 This past weekend I got to go to Unicoi festival and it was fantastic! I bought a new dulcimer from Bella Dulcimers and it's the best sounding thing I have ever heard, Lordy mercy! The action is low and so comfortable and the sound...ohmyheavens, it's like angels singing! I have never heard anything like this before and I've owned a gallier starsong which to me, was a gorgeous sounding instrument!

This Bella Dulciner has a radius fretboard, like Terry McCafferty's dulcimer. Tony Vine the luthier (you may be familiar with his guitars?) suggested I use a spider capo and gave me one. I'm struggling on the best way to use it. If anyone else has a radius fretboard, what do you use?

I did put on one of Ron Ewing's capos and it seems to work fine actually. Just wanted to know what yall use if you have one! Thank you!

A TAB-ee, eh?   

David, your Sally reminds me a bit of our Ellie... who lived a long very happy and healthy life... and passed away peacefully at age 20, nine years ago.

Here's a picture of Ellie when she had just turned 20. In this photo she was clearly elderly... but when she was young she looked a lot like Sally!  

Does this mean Sally is a "tabby"?

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