I spent some time this morning trying out your suggestions. They offer some new possibilities. I've been playing 4 equidistant strings for over a year. I wonder how much difference that makes regarding fingers and thumb.
Thanks for your answers. My answers to yours:
1) I knew about Stephen Seifert. I wonder if he started on guitar, like me.
2) There's a whole literature about string instruments that says, contrary to what may seem like conventional wisdom, that the right hand does the harder work. I'm very left handed, but was never given the option of playing lefty. It's been limiting in some ways, but I can do some things with my left hand that righties would find challenging. Check my stuff out on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Music (or other streams) and see if you agree.
3) I'm passionate about alternate tunings, on 3 or 4 strings. I think I've found about 70 and they open up worlds of possibilities. But I have no interest in a chromatic dulcimer. (I have a guitar for that.)
4) Staff notation is probably not very useful for learning other people's repertoire, unless it's for vocal melodies. But I compose a lot and I've been reading staff notation forever, so I use it.
Thanks so much. Such a great community.
Hi All,
I hope you're having a great weekend with better weather than here in MN.
I'm relatively new here. I'm completely self-taught on dulcimer. I've played for about ten years, after about fifty years of guitar and I'm a classically trained composer and music professor. Dulcimer has become my main instrument. My questions:
1) Because of my background in guitar, I mostly use all four left hand fingers and only occasionally my thumb. Anyone else out there use this technique?
2) Anyone else left handed, but play right handed? If so, do you think this affects your playing and if so how? (I play fingerstyle, but I think my technique is unorthodox.)
3) Does anyone else spend a lot of time exploring alternate tunings?
4) Does anyone else use/like staff notation?
Thanks so much,
