Forum Activity for @ken-longfield

With all the cut backs in school funding our children are no longer exposed to classes that teach woodworking, sewing, cooking, etc. I am thankful that my 33 year old son had those classes. Today he is an excellent cook, is able to do simple home repairs including installing all the cabinets in his pantry and can replace a button on his shirt. He is a professional musician. We worked side-by-side to build his 16/15 hammered dulcimer.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Joy To The World is fun on mountain dulcimer. Good King Wenceslas is another one played around Christmas. The Friendly Beasts is another one.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks Ken. Looks like a good resource.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Just sharing that the contest is over at the Walnut Valley Festival and the 2014 mountain dulcimer champions are:

First Place - Duane Porterfield, Mountain View, AR

Second Place -Jonoathon Schultes, Tulsa, OK

Third Place - Jonathan Dowell, Los Alamos, NM

Congratulations to this years winners!

Ken
"The dulcimer sings a new song."

Steph and Keith were looking forward to this event when I was out there this summer. Maybe next year I can plan a visit to my son's around this time. Glad you had a good time Kristi; and all of the others who attended I am sure had a good time as well.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

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."

Great news Kristi. Enjoy your new dulcimer.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Kristi, I feel for you. It is frustrating and disappointing. I hope you Blue Lion turns up soon at your home. The IIR is a wonderful instrument. I have one.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Julian, like the others above, I am sorry for your loss of two fingers. I do hope you will find a way to continue with the mountain dulcimer. Best wishes as your recover from your injuries.

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."

313

Must have been Larry's day to put the tops on when your dulcimer was made Patty. I find 1/8th inch to be pretty much the norm. If the are wider I find that I tend to split them apart. I have thin fingers.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I have seen a few of these, mostly in museum exhibits. Never played one though.

Ken
"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

I'm not one who likes to have unplayable instruments sitting around. Repair, restore, play.

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."

I too use the tape on the end of a pencil. Just like Joe said, ". . . works like a charm."

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."

Skip's advice is good. Another option if the the slot for the seventh fret is deep enough, you might be able to tap it deeper in to the slot. I would check that before filing.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Great news Brian. If you need any help as you work on your kit, let us know. I, too, have built a couple of their kits.

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."

I don't know if anyone still uses Stanley's technique. He was a real character. I had the opportunity to meet him about the same time I started making dulcimers. I also met Albert Hash who was a really fine gentleman. Unfortunately I never met Edd Presnell.

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."

Glad to hear that you enjoyed yourself Carrie and we didn't have to use the bail fund.

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."

Very nice Sheryl. You will have a fine instrument. Enjoy.

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."

I've been experimenting with a V-pick and find that I am liking it more and more. It is a large ULP.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks Dusty and Maryann.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Reply by Cindy Stammich on March 1, 2014 at 11:09pm

Reply by Regina Bartlett on February 28, 2014 at 11:03pm

It has been said "We may live without music, but not so well"
There is so much truth in this!