Forum Activity for @dana-r-mccall

Thanks Cheryl

Dana.....that is PERFECT!!!

Updated:

We Just Aint Right

Well we sit and strum all day long

Making videos and singing songs

Then the bee boopin starts

And we chat all night

But some people say

We just aint right!

We just aint right , thats what they all say

But we dont care, cause we like us this way

So join the Bee booper, were outa sight

But some folks say We just aint right

Were always happy and havin fun

Jump right in, so you can have some

Your toes will be tappin

All through the night

Then they will be sayin

You just aint right!

We Just aint right , thats what they all say

But we dont care, cause we like us this way

So join the Bee booper, were outa sight

But some folks say We just aint right

We Just Ain't Right!

Well we sit and strum all day long

Making videos and singing songs

Then the bee boopin starts

And we chat all night

But some people say

We just aint right

But we all say were just havin fun

Just jump right in

So you can have some

Soon your toes will be tappin

And youll be singing along

Join the bee boopers

Where going strong!

Then dont be surprised

If you hear one night

Someone say..

We just aint right

Hi Ken.

Nothing strange about it at all, most dulcimers made today have this fret pattern.
It's only 'old school' types like ourselves who insist on only having a single diatonic fret pattern('do' at the 3rd) rather than two diatonic fret patterns('do' at the 3rd AND 'do' at the open) that most folks use today.
That being said, having an instrument that only has the 'do' on the open string has definite disadvantages compared to one that only has 'do' on the 3rd fret. Choice of strings and having no leeway below the Ionian root being the main ones.

You could, of course, add a 6 fret, in the same way that old dulcimers have a 6+ added, to give you the style of dulcimer used by most people today

The only things stranger than his fret pattern is his spelling of "Appalachian". I wouldn't tune it, I would never have bought it.

Hi John,

Our normal dulcimer only needs a melody string capable of the range G > d to accommodate the four standard tunings.
On this instrument you would need a string capable of the range F > d. This is a bit of a stretch, and whilst the thicker string would help tune Aeolian, it would probably then break in Ionian.

It may be an unusual fret pattern for regular dulcimer players but it's not unknown elsewhere. The scheitholt depicted by Michael Praetorius in 1620 has the exact same pattern. And it's not farewell Old Joe Clark - the mixolydian scale starts on the 4th fret. So if you've gone for DAd tuning that'll give you the ionian scale in d, whereas DAG would give you mixolydian in d at the 4th fret. Guess you'd have to restring it with a thicker melody string for that though.

Here's another odd fret pattern. Same maker as the other.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/MOUNTIAN-DULCIMER-KENTUCKEY-STYLE-/17089617...

John P. Your right about the first one being an Ionian tuning from the open position. So long "Old Joe Clark".

I have an old one from Michigan with the same fret pattern (no 6 but a 6+.) I haven't tuned it to anything because the strings are so high off the fingerboard I can't fret it. Neither can I lower the bridge because the strings would not touch them when tuned to pitch. I am taking it to my repairman as an engineering problem to see what he can do. All in all though I agree with John P. It's diatonic and ionic with the do note being on open instead of 3.

Rob

Same way you tune any other dulcimer really Dan. This is still a diatonic fretboard, the difference here being that it starts at 'do' ... not the 'so' we are familiar with.

The home fret would be tuned to the tonic, the bass drone tuned an octave below that, and the middle drone tuned a fifth above that.

john p

Dan Goad said:

... Don't know how I would tune that thing.

II notice he also lists Martian strings. Is this another one from the fella who go all peeved when we told him his instrument wasn't right???

ya got me on what they where thinking when they set it up.

That is an odd setup. Don't think I'll be bidding on that one. Don't know how I would tune that thing.

I wonder if anyone will ever tell this seller/maker that he has a very strange fret pattern.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/APPLICIAN-MOUNTIAN-DULCIMER-HAND-MADE-IN-THE-USA-/170895966191?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27ca317fef

As near as I can tell he goes 0,1,2,3,4,5,6+,7,8,9,10,11,12,13+,14. How would you tune it?

Ken I respect your views

Never heard of them. Looks like an average plywood dulcimer. Design-wise I don't care for the "neck" sticking out beyond the body. Just doesn't look 'right' to me; but that's me... Just based on looks, I'd rather have a Harpmaker Student.

anyone know of this company ?....saw a starter model on flea-bay ...it caught my interest...your view amigos and amigas

I've heard these two live a few times, always a treat. Thanks for posting.

I've heard these two live a few times, always a treat. Thanks for posting.

Oh, I love Lester's fiddle play! Lester's 90 or better and I believe he was at Clifftop this year.

According to the liner notes in Kim Johnson's cd, Linda McCumbers (Lester's late-wife) used to sing Cherry River Line.
Have fun learning this cool tune, Phil!

Love It.Now I want to learn it.

Robin T , that's a great tune to add to the dulcimer fiddler repertoire- nicely played!

I find it interesting to note that there is only one note that dips below the tonic in the Lester clip- and that note is really just a rhythm ornament that the banjo player put in, it's not actually part of the tune melody. This tells me that this tune really is in mixolydian mode (it actually doesn't seem to work in other modes), and could be played from the open string tonic position too, if one chose not to use the one banjo ornament note. That one note does add some interesting difference to the tune, though. Just mental meanderings on tunings, versions, and such!

Don't you just LOVE Lester's raw tone on that fiddle? Talk about yummy !

Does sound like a 'Reuben's Train family' tune.

Here's my translation of the tune to lap dulcimer. Tuning is DGG. Any mistakes in my translation are mine. :)

Like it would sound good on a dulcimer, maybe I had better go look up Reuben's Train and learn that first.

I love this, thanks for posting I think it has turned into one of my most favorite tunes.

Great ear, Stephanie-- you heard Reuben in it! (Mark heard something from a tune he knows as Lonesome Reuben. . .) Thanks a bunch for the links-- they really add a lot to a thread!

Love this tune from Lester & Kim! I encourage you to check out the notes on YT; this was a banjo tune that Lester brought to fiddle.

Wondering whether anyone plays it on mountain dulcimer?

I'm sure Ron would answer your questions, and advise you on string gauges for other tunings. He's here: http://www.ronewingdulcimers.com/ Part of the high pitch is from the short scale length, the string gauges may not be too far from what we use on bigger dulcimers.

IF, ah say IF you change the strings to appropriate gauges, there is no reason that you cannot tune the Ron Ewing (or any other) "dulcimette" to a normal key of D (DAA, DAd, DAC, DAG). When you change the strings, the bridge won't slide around because the larger gauges will apply appropriate downward pressure.

What gauges of strings? Go to www.strothers.com and use the String Finder to find out. Plug in the VSL of your instrument, and specify which note (D, A or d) -- and it will tell you what strings to get.

If for any reason the bridge on any dulcimer starts sliding around, a single drop of Superglue will hold it yet still allow easy removal.

Hey Julie, a friend of mine has one and he tunes in Dad but an octave higher than a standard dulcimer. When he and I play together, that is our favorite combination of dulcimers to play. Go to my page and listen to Possum Up a Gumstump. That's a Modern Mountain dulcimer (played by me) and a 6 string Ron Ewing dulcimette (played by John Hawk).

Hope this helps!

Phil

Hi Just found this thread, but it looks like it's a bit dated. Good to see some discussion of recorders with MDs and other instruments. I play soprano, alto, tenor, bass, and sometimes even the sopranino with a little group of us who get together most weeks, and even occasionally "in public". I am really interested in playing my new and as yet unpracticed-enough-to-play dulcimer (and maybe a rebec when I get one) with our recorder ensemble. Would like to hear from others what musical arrangements they've found that work with these instruments together, especially medieval, renaissance, and folk/world music. Good luck finding practice time - always the trick!

Hi Gayle, A couple of months ago I bought a cheapie soprano recorder because I was in a musical Godspell performed at church over Easter and one of the songs has a recorder solo in it which I volunteered to do. I had played it as a kid so it was interesting to pick it up after 30? years. Had to google the fingering but I was practising a scale and the muscle memory clicked in and it just felt "right" in how I was holding it. Funny how that never goes away! I have decided to try the alto recorder and the pennywhistle as well. This is just to annoy the neighbors you know...the dulcimer just wasn't loud enough for the job :D

Through Half Price Books I've purchased The Recorder Book byKenneth Wollitz which has very positive online reviews.

Kind of late to this conversation. I play recorder: soprano, tenor, and bass. Tull Glazener let me play the bass in a jam, and it was pretty neat.

I have 4.5 hours of recorder practice with other players per week. Wish I could get that for dulcimer.

I "play" the soprano recorder and the tinwhistle. They are great little instruments and sound nice with the dulcimer. My problem is I don't give them enough time. I'm too busy with my fretted/stringed instruments. But, I haven't given up on them. I'm trying to devote more time to them. The soprano recorder is fingered very similarly to the alto sax, which I played in jr and senior high school. So that helps me alot. So is the tin whistle. I just picked up a new tin whistle from Guy George, which I'm hoping will help me progress more, as it's a better whistle than what I had.My husband made me a tin whistle "case" to protect it, made from pvc. It's really cute and very practical. I call it my "tunes in a tube"!

I play arecorder too. well not as much now days. I still get it out from time to time and mess around. May be time to starte to play it again. Oh I also play Native American Flute.

Hi, Gayle, I've played recorders for about 50 years now and, yes, they do blend well with dulcimers. Generally speaking, recorders come in "C" and "F" variations, alternating between the sizes (Soprano-C,Alto-F,Tenor-C, etc.). This is what causes the difference in fingering. Good luck with your learning!