Forum Activity for @ken-longfield

Checking on the Folkcraft website, the Folkroots dulcimers that have a 29" vsl the string gauges are:  .012, .015, .024RW. Howard Rugg may see this and comment on what he initially put on the dulcimer.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

You can use the Strothers' string calculator to get a good approximation of the strings to use. I think it tends toward the light side. http://www.strothers.com/string_choice.html  Just follow the directions.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Looks like nice wood. I trust that when it is finished you will share that with us as well.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Very nice instrument, Jack. Thanks for sharing it with us.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

That's really nice John. I bet it sings sweetly.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Since the fretboard is level I do not see a problem with playing it on your lap. As long as the glue joints are solid I do not see a problem with it coming apart. Some dulcimer builders put a curve on the bottom intentionally.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I knew Ruth from several dulcimer events I attended. I enjoyed sharing music with her. We talked about her on another dulcimer site (probably one of the Facebook dulcimer pages). She is missed by many.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

That is a beautiful instrument. Enjoy and have fun playing it (which I am sure you will). Richard makes wonderful instruments.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Nice, Randy. I could sit and listen to you play all day. Might need a break for pizza though.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Wow, really nice figured rosewood. It is a beautiful instrument.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Welcome back, Jeannie. It is wonderful to hear about your new dulcimers. David makes a really nice dulcimer which I'm sure you will enjoy. My best wishes are extended to you as you continue to recover from the fire and loss of your home and possessions.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Enjoy your new dulcimer.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Glad my suggestion worked out. Enjoy your new to you dulcimer.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Is the lower string also tuned to D an octave lower than the others? That is certainly a valid dulcimer tuning. It looks like you can easily add a groove in the nut to make it a double melody string. You would then move the other string to the center slot which is already on the nut. Using the proper strings for the vibrating string length of the dulcimer you could certainly tune to DAA or DAd.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Three that have some meaning for me:

There's A Meeting Here Tonight sung by the Limeliters

Jimmy Newman written and sung by Tom Paxton

Paradise written and sung by John Prine

My three favorite hymns:

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God

Now Thank We All Our God

My Life Flows On In Endless Song

I could make up lots of categories for three songs, but I'll stop with those two.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

You might check this website: http://www.dulcimers.co.uk . Robin Clark is a member here. He sells several different brands of dulcimers including McSpadden.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Interesting, very interesting.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Guitar Tab Universe uses an "after the fact" type of copyright situation. The site places the responsibility of the copyright owner to notify it that a particular piece of music is posted unlawfully. Once the notice and supporting evidence is supplied, the offending piece is removed. Most dulcimer sites prefer to proactive and ask that copyright material not be posted with out documented permission.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

My guess is that the strum hollow was invented by someone who did not like to hear the clicking sound of the pick against the fret board. Could have been Prichard or Thomas or someone else.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

When I first saw the title of this discussion, I was going to suggest using a pick instead, but now that I understand the topic of this discussion, I won't do that. I just received a soprano ukulele and enjoy playing along with my dulcimer friends.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I agree with Greg's comments. I know some folks who have Cedar Creek dulcimers. I think they are a good quality dulcimer. There probably have not been as many made as McSpadden and Folkcraft. You just don't see as many around. They often come up on the used market although I can't recall prices paid for them.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

One reason for letting instruments acclimate to their environment before opening is that with gloss finishes they will craze when subject to rapid changes in temperature. This is much more likely to happen than a problem with the wood. Temperature and humidity will effect wood expansion and contraction and glue joints. The use of modern glues has pretty much eliminated the glue joint problem. It is always better to err on the side of caution than to be eager and sorry.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I agree with the Hoffman part. Could be Albert.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings sweet song."

Like John said, i would advise them to let them acclimate to room temperature before opening if they are coming out of a UPS, FedEx, or post office truck. I picked up a ukulele I ordered at the post office this morning and opened it right away when I got home. I reasoned that it had been in the heated post office for about 4 1/2 hours and I carried it to my parked truck (about 30 seconds in the cold) which was warm and drove home (about two minutes) pulled in to the garage. I then walked to the house (about 30 seconds) and then went inside. I placed the box on the table, heated a cup of coffee in the microwave and then opened the package. No problem.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

That's a good looking group of fellows. I couldn't make out writing, so I'll take your word for it. Thanks for sharing this unique find.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I'll need to check some brochures for certain, but I think in 1976 Musical Traditions dulcimers were made in West Virginia. i do not recall when Hank Levin sold the Musical Traditions line to the folks in Sandpoint, Idaho.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I visited Howard a couple of years ago. He was starting to build again at that point. As you can see from the other posts, he is still building very high quality dulcimers.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I like that shape of that dulcimer, Lisa.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I can't remember ever seeing a film strip in music class in grade school, but the one about the Grim Reaper is one I would have liked to see. We, too, had the same music teacher, Mrs. Harrington, from K through 8th grade. She directed the 7th and 8th grade chorus and orchestra. 

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Folkcraft also makes a travel dulcimer, but they are expensive; $495.00. First Act dulcimers, as KenH mentioned, as of spotty quality. If you can find one, a little work and they can be made playable, although i don't think they are very sturdy.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Irene, before recommending string gauges, we should know the vibrating string length of the dulcimer and whether the strings are in unison pairs or octave pairs. your friend could also use the Strother's string gauge calculator to determine what strings she needs.  http://www.strothers.com/string_choice.html

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I just checked the notice for the Berea gathering. While DAd is not mentioned as tuning, some folks use it even for noter playing. One of the reasons that it is not used much is because you often need to go over to the middle string to get some of the notes for the melody which can be awkward. It is much easier to use a 1 - 5 - 5 tuning as you seldom have to go over to the center string for melody.

Now to answer your question about noter length. When I first started playing I used a noter about 2 1/2 to 3 inches long. Now I tend to use ones from 4 to 5 inches and 3/8th to a half inch thick.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Here is a link if anyone wants to leave a tribute to Mike: https://www.nelsonfrazierfuneralhome.com/obituaries/Michael-Stephen-Slone?obId=3981475#/celebrationWall

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Hello, Lisa. And, again, welcome to FOTMD. Looks like we have something else in common besides Marquette; I was a hospice chaplain for 28 years. I played my dulcimer for patients and for staff/volunteers. I played for our annual volunteer banquet, for our annual memorial service, and our annual tree lighting. The dulcimer is a good instrument for help in decompressing. Enjoy it.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks for posting that link, Robin. It was something I was going to try to do this evening. I think that a nice piece on Mike.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Friends, I just received word that Mike Slone who worked with the Hindman Dulcimer Homecoming in Hindman, KY died. I copied this from the Appalachian Artisan Center Facebook post:

Arrangements for our dear friend and accomplished luthier apprentice, Mike Slone will be at Nelson Frazier Funeral Home. Visitation will be Friday January 4th six to nine p.m. and visitation on Saturday. Funeral will be Sunday January 6th at eleven a.m. with burial in the Slone Family Cemetery.

Mike Slone was a tenacious student of local musical heritage and in particular, of the dulcimers of "Uncle Ed" Thomas and McKinley Craft. In 2012, he began making quality replicas of these significant instruments at the AAC Luthiery and in 2014 was granted a KY Folk and Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Grant to further this work. He became a certified Community Scholar through the Kentucky Arts Council. He was a major contributor and curator of the Museum of the Mountain dulcimer, on permanent display in AAC's Cody building, and he coordinated the Hindman Dulcimer Festival in 2014 and 2015.

A four string model gives you the option to play with three or four strings. Almost all modern dulcimers come with a 6 1/2 fret and its octave 13 1/2. If you plan to play in DAdd tuning those extra frets will come in handy. If you plan to play in DAAA all the time, the 6 1/2 can be a pain (only because it gives you a little extra bump sliding up to the seventh fret.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Mark, I don't know where you are in the Northeast, but there are some dulcimer festivals coming up. One is near Albany, NY (Latham) the first weekend in March. Another is in East Stroudsburg, PA the last weekend in April. There will be several vendors at both festivals where you can try different dulcimers. I would beware of dulcimers in the $100-$250 range unless they are well cared for used instruments. Also, look at some of the individual builders who do quality work and sell dulcimers for less than the prices you mentioned.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Both are good instruments.  I have a Walnut Valley brochure. If you PM me your email address, I will send you a pdf of the brochure. I tried to do it here, but it didn't work.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks Pondoro for catching my mistake. It should be 1-5-5 or 1-5-8. That's what happens when I watch football and try to respond to posts on FOTMD. I've corrected my posts.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."