Forum Activity for @sleepingangel

Oh I think you will LOVE it. I learned how to read the Nakai tab and it opened up a world of music that's available. Plus I love his voice and how he teaches. I've conversed with his wife and she was so wonderful. After I purchased the second installment and then a different book on jazz for the NA flute (also by him) she send me his cd as a gift. (I had put the book on my videos to show people where I got the music from and she gave me permission to record his songs that he wrote) and I guess she was happy that I did it etc..I was so surprised. And it's a wonderful cd. It's called Remembrance. I have it in my car and listen to it over and over!!! I wish I could have thanked him. He passed away in 2010 but his wife is keeping his memory alive and I'm so glad...

Take care

Maria

Me too Lisa, I got one last fall in Williamsburg. Haven't got a good tune down yet. Guess I will stick with building dulcimers. LOL

Well I am of course a beginner to all this pipe/whistle stuff which makes it a challenge, but I found the metal pennywhistles to be very difficult for me to get clear notes on, and not so at all on my plastic tabor pipe, which has a nice clear warm tone.

So as an experiment I ordered two plastic/polymer Dixon penny whistles instead to try- in the keys of high D and low A. (there's a substantial size difference between the two keys).

They arrived today and I am finding them much easier to get good notes on than the metal PWs.  Not sure why but the plastic ones make clearer notes and warmer tones for me.  Perhaps when i get better I can make the metal ones sound better, who knows.

I was delighted to discover that all my diligent tabor pipe practice is helping me here-  the learning curve for these new pennywhistles is way less steep than when i first started tabor pipe.  I can already play some of my favorite simple tunes, with only a few mistakes here and there.... so fun!!

I'm not one for playing lots of Irish tunes, but I can play my favorite renaissance and medieval tunes on these, and also some early folk/country dances from various European countries.  I'm working on some simple French branles, also things like Nonesuch.

Congrats on the HS flute. I know exactly what you mean because I felt the same way with the dulcimer too!!

and I'm sure this will be the first of many flutes for you as well. So far I have three HS and they are all very beautiful and unique in their own way!!

enjoy and if you need a good resource besides the YouTube videos from HS their is book/cd that taught me so much and is simply amazing. It's called "understanding the gift" by the late John Vames. I could just listen to the cd all day and he not only plays the examples but gives verbal instruction and encouragement!

take care 

Maria 

Jennifer, congratulations.   Big moment in your life.

YEAH, it's fun to get a HS flute in the mail. Enjoy!

Thank you Salt-Springs and Strumelia.  Your suggestions and encouragement are just what Anne and I needed.

Nice, looking forward to hearing how it sounds. enjoy!

Linda, we will learn together!  :)  Bob, I do love getting 1,000 versions from YouTube!!!  Being TAB dependent I am finding that when I do work out something by ear I remember it much more easily.

I have never really understood how I memorize music.  It's a thing that I have done since I began playing piano as a child.  In fact, reading music has been harder for me than playing by ear, which comes kind of naturally.  I would only read music until I had it in my head. I don't know if I have ever successfully learned a tune on dulcimer from tab, but maybe I haven't really tried.  

For me, the learning process starts with listening to a tune until I have it in my head.  YouTube is a great resource for finding various interpretations of songs.  I usually will listen to several different recordings when I am learning something.  I also learn the music first and put the words to it later.

Thanks for listening! 

Thanks John, I will remove both videos as you suggested.  I agree with your conclusion.

Perhaps you can follow Salt Springs' link above and use the Reinhardt tune from 1754 for the hymn instead, and then repost a new video of it for everyone if possible.  :)

The hymn tune "Lynne" uses 13.10.11.10 as its metrical meter.   That metrical format is a slight variation on "Was Lebet, Was Schwebet" written by Johann Heinrich Rheinhardt in 1754.  A few adjustments to the tune and everyone is good to go I should think.   Since I did not get  chance to listen to MM's video or JM's, you might check this link out to see if Reinhardt's tune would work.

https://www.ccel.org/cceh/0006/x000682.htm

  Thank you so very much for sharing this.  

I'm so sorry.  Those are some of my very favorites.  :(

If you're not familiar with the Hearts of the Dulcimer Podcast, it's a podcast dedicated to everything about the mountain dulcimer. In our first year, Wayne and I created 16 episodes. You can find out about them here on FOTMD  or you can check out our website: http://dulcimuse.com/podcast

Hearts of the Dulcimer Podcast - Episode 17
Dulcimer Short Story with Neal Hellman: Celebrities at the Renaissance Faire

http://bit.ly/hotdpodcast

This episode features stories told by Neal Hellman about celebrities who encountered the dulcimer at the Renaissance Faire.

For episode resources, go to:  http://dulcimuse.com/podcast/resource/017.html

Hi, I forgot to add that the video by Mary MacGowan    "And All Your Life Shall Open as a Prayer" which is  a variation of "Be Patient With Your Faults & Failings"  should be taken off the video section as well.

Thank you Ken and Stumelia.  I feel that it is best to remove the hymn on FOTMD "Be Patient With Your Faults & Failings" set to the hymn tune:

"Lynne" for it is most likely still copyrighted. Would you do this for me?

Me too, John.

John, I do the "learn it backwards" thing, too, especially on a tune I'm not familiar with and that has a lot of tricky parts.  I learn the end, then back up and play through to the end again, then, when I have all that learned pretty well, I back up even more, etc. etc.  There are just some tunes that seem to work well with this technique!

 I'm having a hard time getting it to post so here's a link - 

(edited, you're right, I HAVE..) It's showing $350, Phoenix, yes. Can't tell much about the shape though. Yes, I have a Starsong. Happened upon it at Unicoi last year. I play my Ron Gibson more than anything though, but everytime I pick it up I still say, "Wow...this is a beautiful instrument!"

I found a Modern Mountain for sale on Craigslist in Phoenix for $370...that the one?
Did you mean to say you HAVE a Starsong? Wow!

There's a MM for sale on craigslist in Arizona right now. Dusty, I thought you had a Gallier. Why did I think that? I have a starsong but I'm only 20 months in and not confident enough to show myself on here. 

Thanks, Dusty!  I should probably send Jim Fox a note and tell him how much I'm enjoying this Little Mule!  The first one I saw was at the Great American Dulcimer Convention at Pine Mtn. State Park in KY last September...Gary Sager was there and I think he sold all the ones he brought.  Either he didn't have one with a 1.5 fret or he did, but it was already promised to someone else, so I didn't get one then.  I had to think about it for about a year, trying them out whenever I saw one again at this festival or that.  But when I picked up THIS one, I couldn't resist, even though I certainly had NO intention of buying a dulcimer while at Dulcimer U this year (Craig came with me this year and was going to be bringing home the one he made from a McSpadden kit that week).  I'm glad you like the tune...it's nice to have some fun, lively ones in my repertoire!

Here's a website by Bates' great grandaughter:

http://www.abbiebetinis.com/writings_burtcarols.html

You could ask her.  But I imagine the tune cannot be freely used by others for their own compositions.

Looks good!  How is the sound?  Post a sample....

Here's a website with useful information that may help:

http://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/hymns-public-domain-and-copyright

I haven't been able to find anything about a hymn called Lynne.   Who was the author, and what what faith was the hymn composed for?  Tha would be a big help.  

Thinking about that too. 

I have been eyeing them all along, but my conservative side wins out when I have ordered the two I have. But, you know, I think I may have to make my final flute the special one with the turquoise.

My wife wrote a hymn: "Be Paitent and Be Gentle with your Faults and Failings"  see videos FOTMD.  The hymn tune she used is called "Lynne' and was written about 1940. The Rev. Bates G. Burt wrote a hymn entitled: "O God of Youth, Whose Spirit.." and then he wrote this hymn tune "Lynne" also to go with it.  Is there a way of knowing if that hymn tune "Lynne" is now in the public domain or whether it is still copywrited?

I'm thinking my next will be a HS F# mid-tone in walnut or ebonized walnut, with the turquoise. 

Congrats Jennifer, let us know when you get it. You'll be impressed with the HS flutes. Soon you'll be planning your next purchase from them.

My dad and I built a NAF! Key of A minor. Western Red Cedar.

 image.jpg - 120KB

For play music on the porch day?  Hazel (10) is out there now with her violin, and I plan to go out a bit later with my dulcimer.  Frances (6) wants to do a set fiddling around on the keyboard...  <3

Jennifer, I think you'll like the A Sparrow Hawk, it is a great start and I believe High Spirits do want to help people learn how to play NAF. Are you getting the package deal with the instructional video and a song book?

Also check out High Spirit instructional videos as was suggested, they really helped me and give good information on your new NAF.

I'd like to jump in and suggest watching the instructional videos on the HS website. I found them helpful when I began my NAF journey. 

Jennifer, if I may, the best 2 tips I could give to anyone just beginning their journey with NAF would be these:

1.  It only takes a whisper.

2.  Don't get carried away tonguing every note.

"That's about all I'm gonna say about that."(as in F. Gump)

Thank you, John!  I especially like the advice to slow down...  And OH yes to rhythm!!  ~might try the backwards thing~

In memorizing an instrumental, I'm pretty "scientific." I like to work from music/tab and I play through a piece a few times to "get the lay of the land," looking for musical phrases which repeat. I love folk songs and fiddle tunes. Most of them are pretty short and most have at least one "chunk" which repeats two or three times. So if I get that part down, I have 1/4, 1/3, or even 1/2 the tune learned. The different endings of the repetitions come next.

After that it is a matter of repetition and smoothing things out. One trick I learned which I find useful is to memorize "backwards." I'll take the last two measures and get them down, then the two measures ahead of those, then two ahead of those, all the way back to the beginning. When working on a new section, I always play through to the end. That way the new material flows into material I'm already familiar with. 

I think it is important not to speed up and slow down. If after I've memorized a piece there's a rough patch I can't play as fast as the rest, there are two things I do. I take that section out and work on it alone, pushing myself slightly to try to get it up to speed. That may take a while. If it takes two days, or two weeks (or two months!), OK, that's what it takes. Most of the time it comes in just a practices session or two. I also continue to work on the whole piece, playing only as fast as I can get through the hard parts smoothly. That way the whole piece comes together without any "seams."

Everybody has trouble with rhythm. Your metronome is a friend who won't lie to you. 

I don't sing or memorize words very much anymore, but remembering the story of the song and the rhymes always helped.