Forum Activity for @ken-longfield

That is funny. I think it is the living who put the pressure on to preserve what our ancestors did.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Yes, those are excellent books and must reads for folks who want to learn about mountain dulcimer history and context. One part of your question we have not addressed is the use of European predecessors of the mountain dulcimer. Wilfried Ulrich addresses some of this in his book The Story of the Hommel. There are many such instruments in museums in Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, etc.Unfortunately I am not aware of English translations of literature that describes how folks used these instruments. What is clear is that they were "folk" instruments and not considered to be of great value musically. Again, they were mostly played by folks in their own homes for their own enjoyment. 

I do what to respond to Kenh's comment about amplification. The zitters used in Pennsylvania Dutch communities had feet on the bottom and were often played by placing them on tables when played. This increased the volume of the instrument. Some dulcimers builders in the late 19th century (J.E. Thomas, C.N. Prichard) made dulcimers with feet on the bottom which allowed them to be played on tables as well. It may have helped when dulcimers were used to accompany dances.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Both Kenh and Dusty offer good points. Dusty's offering of Lucy Long's comments reminded me to mention that role of the dulcimer was different in different communities. Dr. Long specifically researched the role of the dulcimer at Beech Mountain, North Carolina. Things may have been different in various communities in Kentucky, southwestern Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina. Of course we shouldn't forget southeastern Ohio and perhaps southwestern Pennsylvania (the area the borders WV and OH) and some areas of Tennessee. I'm not sure when the dulcimer tradition began in Arkansas, but let's not forget that as well.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

A hundred years ago (1923) the mountain dulcimer was beginning to emerge from isolated communities in the southern Appalachian mountains. With the beginning of the settlement schools northern teachers began sending dulcimers north. At this time the dulcimer was pretty much an instrument played at home for one's own enjoyment. It may have been played at dances but was not a concert instrument. In other words people usually would not have played as a solo performer in a public forum. In 1935 the Galaxy Fiddlers' Convention began. I can't recall if a dulcimer contest took place that year or started later, but we can probably mark that contest as the beginning of dulcimer concerts.

You can find a good bit of information in the discussions Nate cited. 

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

This will be a quiet Christmas at home. I played at our local historical society's museum for our annual Festival of Ice the first weekend of this month. I played Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday music. We will visit our daughter's family after Christmas and help them pack up the first floor of their home which will be renovated in January and February. We will attend our usual service of worship on December 24th in the morning and the evening Christmas Eve service. For the most part I'm avoiding crowds until after mid-January as I will have cataract surgery on December 14 and January 4.I don't want to catch a cold or the flue and have to reschedule.  I'll be at home most of the time playing dulcimer.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I agree with Ken. That's a great interview. You did a good job. Thanks for sharing it.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

This is great news. Glad to see that progress has been made on this issue.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

shootrj2003, I'm glad to hear that you were able to get the violin back in to playing condition. I like your ingenuity in finding and making tools to do the job. Keep it up and before long you'll be carving your own violin tops and back. Good work.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Wally, thanks for that link and the information. I have two friends who make violins and have a learned a little from both of them, but I leave the building and repair to them. 

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I hope this reply isn't too late. I would not put the strings back on until the sound post is put back in place. It is easier to reset the sound post without the pressure of the string on the bridge and top. What do you mean by "mixed up the wood tuners"? You took them out and don't know which holes they should be in? Depending on how the violin was made, by an individual or production shop, will determine how the pegs are fitted. Good luck with you project.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Moondancer, I'm traveling at the moment and will be home on Sunday. I have brochure from McSpadden from 1974 which shows the M8 and the price with case at that time. I'll scan it and post it here. I may also have a price list for McSpaddens from the early 1990s.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

The spruce top was an upgrade on the M8 and is solid wood as were all the tops. George Looney was one of the craftsman in the McSpadden shop. People think that because a person's name appears on a McSpadden dulcimer that that was the person who built it. That was not the case. Building McSpadden dulcimers was a team effort and all the craftspeople had a hand in each dulcimer. They took turns doing the various tasks. The person who was responsible for gluing on the back was the one who signed the instrument. Your dulcimer appears to be in very good condition. I'm sure that you will enjoy playing it.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

If I recall correctly the M-8 is about the size of the kit John is building. If, as you say, it well cared for, you will have a fine dulcimer to play. I do hope you are able to get it. I look forward to seeing it.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

The wood laminates that McSpadden are of excellent quality. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one. I've never heard of one separating. I think they were three ply with the outer layers being cherry or walnut and the inner ply either birch or poplar. I'm not sure when the changeover to all solid woods was made, but it was probably sometime in the1990s. BTW, the reason the Schnaufer model is no longer made is that the cherry laminate from which it was made is no longer available. David specified that only the cherry plywood could be used for the body of his signature instrument.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I found a good bit of discussion about nickel allergy on guitar player websites. I found many alternatives including plain stainless steel strings (although some may contain small amounts of nickel). One item that folks often did.not consider is that the frets on the instrument often contain nickel. For someone with a nickel allergy the frets may need to be replaced.

A consideration for strings is to use coated strings like Elixirs although after a while the coating will wear off.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I took violin lessons when I was in 5th and 6th grades and then stopped when I started 7th grade. Sometimes I think it would be fun to start up again, but then I realize that I already have more instruments than I have time to play them all. Over the years I've had a few violins come through my hands and I get the itch. Cleaning out a closet the other day my discovered another violin. I didn't know it was in there. I'm not going to start playing. Really, we need to pass it on to someone who will. Maybe I'll just take it out of the case and see what shape it is in. Well, let me tighten up the bow and see how it sounds. I'm not going to play that violin. Maybe I'll just fiddle with it a little bit.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

The only time I've played with a concertina was in a jam, but I was playing guitar, not dulcimer.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

What fun to revive this thread. I remember many years ago going to Bryan Bowers concert and he walked on stage with a stack of autoharps all tuned for different kep=ys and songs. He spread them out behind him on the stage in those triangular shape guitar stands. He turned to the audience and asked what you call a group of autoharps like this and then answered his own question: an embarrassment of autoharps. I've never been embarrassed by all my dulcimers.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

You can send him a message here. He is jcalkin. Do a search under members for him and then click on send a message.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

The link Rob posted didn't work for me. It is missing the "l" at the end. This one works: https://www.orpingtonfolkclub.org.uk/Interviews_&_Articles/Interviews/001.html

Good article and interview.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Well, young lady, that was a popular song in of the college coffeehouses I frequented back in those days. Thanks for bringing it to my attention again. The folks who sang it did not do it as well as Art and Paul, but it was lovely nevertheless.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

You can purchase a plastic recorder or tin whistle for less than $3.00. A plastic ukulele can be had for $5.00 or less. The least expensive dulcimer kit in a quantity lot of 12 is $52 each and then you need to factor in the cost of building (labor, glue, paint or other finish, tools, etc.). Given tight budgets for the arts in education, which would you choose.

Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Well, Robin, I've done both, perform weddings and played music at them. The latter is a lot easier. Now, can I enroll in this fan club?

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Nightingale, that's a nice looking dulcimer. It certainly cleaned up well. Those long scales (28.5") make for nice noter style playing. Have fun making that dulcimer sing again.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks, Robin, but I can't take credit for the video. Dave Holeton, a member here, edited the video and posted it to YouTube for us. Dave is our "official" leader for the Tuesday night Zoom group over at TTAD. We use the free Zoom time (40 minutes) and play 5 songs we agree to play for that week. Dave or whomever the leader is plays unmuted while the rest play along muted. In a sense we are playing a duet with the leader. Our Zoom meets begin at 8:30 p.m. Eastern time. The link is posted on Tuesdays at TTAD. Just click on it and wait to be let in to the meeting. It is fun and everyone is welcome.

Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I, along with several of my Tuesday evening Zoom colleagues, made a video for PMOTPD. Here is the link:

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

There is also the possibility that the builder cut the fret slots too wide and those frets eventually worked their way out. As one hammers in frets the slots in toward the center of the fret board tend to compress a little bit which may be why the ends came out while the middle frets stayed in.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

John and Ken gave you the advice I was going to offer. You don't say where you are located in British Columbia but if you are near a shop that works on fretted instruments (guitar, banjo, mandolin, dulcimer, etc.) you should be able to have the proper frets installed. Good luck.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

It worked for me as well. Thanks.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Strumelia,I searched for the same videos as John to see if I would have the same problem. I did. I followed the suggestions that you offered, but they did not correct the problem. I use a MacBook Pro running the version of Safari and  Mac OS Ventura 13.4.1 (c).

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song.

I'm glad the plans for the transfer of DPN ownership is finalized. Ashley shared this news with me about a week ago and it has been hard keeping the secret. I've been waiting for her to make It public. Best wishes to Fiona and Bill as they take over the reins at DPN.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I wondered about that too Ken.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Yes, and when Bruce went out on sea duty he had a few us looking after the site.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

This website has been offline for a couple of weeks now. Does anyone know what happened? There was no warning that it was closing down. I know it wasn't having much traffic.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

If it were my dulcimer, I would just clean it up and string it with three strings rather than six. As long as the fret board is not warped, it should be playable. I might go a little lighter on the string gauges as well. 

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Has anyone else considered that the peg head may have been broken, smoothed a little bit and refinished? Also, did you check to see if the fret board is straight and level? The force of six strings tuned to pitch could have warped it. Just a couple of thoughts from looking at the photos.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks for that sharing that article Strumelia. It captures the essence of George and his relationship with the mountain dulcimer and dulcimer people. His festival, August Dulcimer Daze, was popular and attended by many folks. He was a teacher at many other festivals. And he was a great promoter of folk music in general.

He will be missed.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Molly, I charge anywhere from $15 to $25 a fret. Replacing a fret involves pulling the old fret and putting in a new one. If you damage the fret board in pulling the old fret you need to repair it before installing the new one. Then you need to dress the fret. It can take an hour or more to do one fret. Adding new fret requires calculating where they should be placed, cutting the slots, installing the frets, leveling, and dressing. Customers should be aware that problems in doing these operations may arise and additional charges may be incurred. Since I do not do this for a living I keep my prices low, but I the pros around here charge around $50 an hour plus materials. I don't charge for the fret material as long as I have the proper size. If I have to order fretwire, well that's a separate negotiation.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Just another brief thought. I was surprised when attending festivals that many folks had never heard of DPN. One would mention the magazine in a workshop and people would ask "What is that?" And it wasn't just new players, but also players who had been playing for years. Did anyone else ever encounter this?

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks, Dusty, Ken, and Lisa for your comments. As you gathered, my post is a way of dealing with my grief of losing a friend after 49 years.

Dusty thanks for your suggestions about tablets. My wife sits next to me on the sofa and uses an iPad to surf the web, read email, etc. Over the years she has had different sizes and has settled on the one that is about full page size (8 1/2 x 11). I do read books on my Kindle and may some day switch to an iPad for reading. I'm sure part of it for me is just developing new habits. When I referred to "the small number of people on the web," I was thinking about only those who have an interest in mountain dulcimer history which is a small number of the general mountain dulcimer enthusiast population. I agree that the web reaches many more people than print media ever did or would. Obviously I participate on the web and enjoy the camaraderie here and at the other dulcimer web sites. I think the future continues to be bright for the mountain dulcimer and look forward to new days and adventures ahead. Festivals and gatherings will continue in person and on the web. People will discover the mountain dulcimer and start playing or building.

Ken, I appreciate your comments. You pointed out some things I hadn't considered and agree that they contributed to the demise.

Lisa, I appreciate your continuing to offer FOTMD to the dulcimer community. I'm here everyday (sometimes many times) and enjoy our discussions and sharing.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."