I haven't done any recording lately. When I was recording I used a Sony mini-disc recorder. I like Sony products also. They make excellent video cameras. When I was looking for a camera about six or seven years ago I went to a Best Buy. The guy showing me cameras tried to steer me away from Sony because they made audio products. I told him that when I worked in TV the only cameras we used were Sony and they were excellent. Kind of quieted him down.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
I, too, enjoyed the video on the "Birth of a Kantele." Thanks for alerting us to Orange Kantele.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
A photo would help Dan.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Hi Wayne. There are many book/CD combinations available from Mel Bay. Cripple Creek dulcimer has many good songs for playing at the park. Check them out at Mel Bay's website: http://www.melbay.com/Products/CategoryCenter/D09/dulcimer-mountain.aspx
While I have been depleting my stock of Mel Bay books, if you see any you like, you can PM me to see if I have it still in stock and I can make you a good deal on the price. Or you can email me at: longfieldsfolkmusicshop at embarqmail dot com. I hope you find some things you like. Enjoy your dulcimer journey.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
John, it would be helpful to know specific songs you would like to play. Rocky Top and Foggy Mountain Breakdown are songs that you will not find in most dulcimer tab books. I play Rocky Top but in DAd tuning. There are several places on the Internet where one can find free dulcimer tab. Here is one place: http://everythingdulcimer.com/tab/index.php#R
Ken
The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Looks like you are reading this correctly Jan. As usual, buyer beware! It pays to know with whom you are dealing in these transactions. One of the reasons I have stopped buying off of eBay.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Congratulations to the winners and thanks to Strumelia and everyone who participated for making this a fun contest. Happy Birthday FOTMD! We are fortunate to have this website and virtual community.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Absolutely exquisite! That is a real treasure. Enjoy the dulcimer.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
The nut is a fixed position while the bridge is not. I know, the bridge is in a slot on my dulcimer's fret board so it must be a fixed position. The ideal placement of the bridge is "theoretical" in that other factors come in to play, e.g. the thickness of the strings, string height, etc. This is why some bridges are "compensated" or angled to insure proper intonation. So measure from the fixed position, not from the moveable.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Currently I am using 3 string because it is easier to do hammer ons and pull offs with a single melody string. This is for chord/melody style playing. For my noter/drone playing I use 4 strings most of the time. So I can't choose A or B; I need to choose both A and B.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Looks like your husband did a good job Maryann. Usually at festivals when I work on someone's dulcimer I do it in private so they don't see me drilling holes or pounding on their precious instrument. These instruments are tougher than they appear. BTW, another former Jerseyite here.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
I'm coming in to this discussion a little late, but if you want to buy a great quality instrument you can't go wrong with a Folkcraft or Folkroots (made the same people). They are consistently good instrument. Blue Lion is top of the line and worth every dollar you pay for it. After that Robert's list above is pretty good. I'd add David Lynch's Sweet Woods Dulcimers.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Dusty, a few we do here in the east are Down In The Valley, Red River Valley and You Are My Sunshine. There is also Clementine, Rocky Top and Tom Dooley.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
That's a nice find Jennifer. I am having trouble figuring out the second picture. Do the strings go under the round metal piece or over it? Under the metal piece it looks to be a walnut bridge with slots for four strings. Or maybe that is where strings cut in to the end of the fret board. The nut definitely looks like a replacement.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Amen to that Robin.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
I looked at your dulcimer Kitty. I don't think the holes were enlarged as the shafts of the new tuners appear to be narrower than the holes. I can send you three rosewood violin pegs if you wan't to try them. If I lived closer to you, I'd do the work for you. You could remove on tuner and try the peg. It it works then you could remove the others. Email or PM me if you want to talk about this some more.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Hi Kitty. The answer is: it depends. If the original holes were enlarged, the pegs would have to be specially made to fit. If they were not enlarged it would be no problem at all. I can't recall if the Pickows used commercially available wood pegs or if they made their own. If they made their own, then someone would have to make copies of them. Didn't you post a picture of your dulcimer here somewhere? If so, I'll see if I can find and give a bette informed opinion. I'll look for some other pictures of dulcimer made by the Pickows.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Thanks Dusty and Maryann.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Reply by Cindy Stammich on
How many dulcimers does a dulcimer player need???
Just one more
Reply by Regina Bartlett on
Pluck it and strum sing and hum it's all good!
It has been said "We may live without music, but not so well"
There is so much truth in this!
Chris Stammich posted this in the Drifting Thread:
Just for fun.....
Once upon a time I wanted to start a collection of "favorite sayings" regarding the dulcimer, or music in general.
Tull Glazener was gracious enough to get me started with "String Side Up".
I loved it! However, I didn't keep at it, so I thought now would be a good time to see if anyone here has something fun to add
So, I decided to create a discussion just for this topic.
My favorite saying: "The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Another one I've seen on a poster is: "There ain't no notes on a dulcimer. You just play it."
I'll try to copy the other responses for the Drifting Thread and post them here.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Both are good instruments. With the Sweet Woods student you have the option of trading it in later for another model. On the other hand the custom Folkcraft will be a lifetime instrument. That's not to say that the Sweet Woods student can't be a lifetime instrument as well.
There are many places on the Internet where you can get free instructional material for learning mountain dulcimer.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Matthew, where are you in North Carolina? There are 29 pages of members from NC here at FOTMD. There should be someone near you to get together with on dulcimer. You might not find any of the books mentioned above in a music store unless the store has an interested in folk and Appalachian music.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
Over time strings stretch and get dirty from you fingers sliding over them. The oil your fingers leave attracts dirt. It would not hurt to change strings at this time. Much depends on how often you play. I the more you play, the more often you need to change strings. I try to play a little every day and change strings about once a month. You will probably notice a difference in the sound of your dulcimer when you change the strings. It will sound better.
Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."
