I think the biggest issue in playing along in a bluegrass jam is if they change keys frequently. Assuming you don't play other instruments as well, you may opt to bring two dulcimers- one for the keys of G and A, and another for the keys of C and D. That's what i used to do for oldtime music jams. It's not hard to tune up or down by one step to do this, OR use a capo on fret1 to do it. (I used to just tune up and down between A&G, and between D&C.) Using one dulcimer and tuning up and down over multiple steps will more quickly result in breaking strings, IMHO.

Bluegrass jamming has a lot more singing though, and often the favored singing key is B-flat, which might pose a special problem for a dulcimer player. In that case you might try completely muting your strings with the left hand while strumming in a percussive way with your right hand pick... not making out-of-tune notes but instead still having fun while improving your strumming rhythm.

--
Site Owner

Those irritated by grain of sand best avoid beach.
-Strumelia proverb c.1990
updated by @strumelia: 01/22/25 11:20:47AM

Hello Jon. In my opinion, even when playing with louder instruments the dulcimer still fits nicely into the blend and adds a lot to the overall sound. Assuming you can't use any kind of amplification and are wanting the sound of the dulcimer to stand out, it helps to consider where all the players are relative to eachother and make sure that the quieter instruments are  prominently placed where they wont be drowned out as easily.

Hi kids, just me Jon here again have a question. Not another one, yes it is true, hoping to get some kind of feedback. I have just found a bluegrass group that tries to get together once a month to jam. My question has to do with trying to play along with a  group since the dulcimer is not very loud. Is it better to just jam with other dulcimers and not in a bluegrass situation where you're trying to play with louder instruments. I hope I'm making some kind of sense anyhow. Your feedback would be much appreciated. Take care everybody, keep those fingers limber and thanks again for your opinions.