Three sets of pipes???  I'm jealous!!!!

A Seagull "guitar-dulcimer" (my 8 year-old's), a mountain dulcimer (made by me), Scottish Border Pipes (key of A), Scottish Small Pipes key of D, and another set of Small Pipes, key of A.  There's a penny Whistle and two practice chanters as well.

Here is a link to my Youtube with a bunch of my piping (I am a novice, though)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbc0Wjxm0ZW_bK_4zqFrxHA

Totally Agree with Dusty. I love to dabble with every instrument I can try. I do however have my favorites. My Banjo and Dulcimer are in the lead along with my guitar, mandolin,uke, recorder and harmonica. Phewww. That keeps me busy. Lots of fun and yes, worth well because we all need to relax and enjoy things that pleases us without the worry of how much money we can make when we learn a particular instrument. My first admirer was Wayne Newton. He can play lots of different instruments. So Robin, Go ahead and enjoy. Your worth it !! 

I have put planetary tuners on all of my steel string banjos, but my nylon string banjoleles have friction tuners as does my favourite dulcimer.  I think you can see Pete's guitar tuners here.  He had three Grover Rotomatics and one cheap knock off that he put on when one of the Grovers got busted.

Pete's strap.jpg  •  12KB

Friction tuners will hold a tuning if they are adjusted correctly using the little screws in the ends of the knobs.

 My bad. I should have said friction tuners. That's what they have no. The guitar shop said that if I wanted to play the banjo, I should get gear tuners (same as planetary?), but if I wanted to sell it, I should keep the friction tuners.

@userno4, Why would planetary tuners cause a banjo to not hold its tuning?  Most banjo players seem to prefer them, although Pete Seeger did use guitar tuners on his banjo.
I think the planetary tuners on your Lyon & Healy would be add ons.  I believe it would have come with friction tuners.

In my house I have:

Piano: A console piano from my late mother-in-law. I took (half-heartedly) piano lessons as a kid and have enjoyed playing hymns and other songs by ear. I play the melody with one hand and broken chords with the other. So far, I primarily play in C and use the C, F, and G chords.

Electronic keyboard: From my mother. I received this before the piano. It may have a means of recording and mixing sounds since it has all sorts of options. I'd like to use my chart of frequencies for various instruments and play through the range of some of the instruments in the bank, such as violin.

Soprano recorder: It's a $5 Yamaha unit that I bought when I bought one for my daughter's music class at school. I get confused by the fingering.

Alto recorder: It's also a Yamaha. I prefer the depth of the sound over the soprano but don't play it often.

Clark tin whistles in C and D: I definitely prefer these to the soprano recorder, though I play them more "breathy" than I'd like to. I have gotten into the second octave on both.

Spoons: More of a novelty item than anything, but they're in the box.

Slide whistle: Does this count as an instrument? It's good for occasional silliness.

Harmonica: Another piece of plastic. No, I can't play it all that well. Oh, and a kazoo, too.

4-string banjo: I found this when cleaning my late father-in-law's house. It's a 1925 (or so) Lyon and Healy Washburn. I had a great time digging out information on the company and model. It has planetary gears, which means it doesn't hold a tune well. I'd prefer a brighter 5-string model, but I don't know how to play either. I've experimented with scales and a few chords.

I play the piano, guitar, autoharp, psaltery, dulcimer, ukulele, and am patiently awaiting my new Clemmer banjammer to arrive so I can get started on playing it.

The guitar was my first instrument, circa 1960.
Since we had only one guitar for a short while, my brother and I both learned mouth harp to play some Sonny & Brownie tunes
I bought my first mandolin in the mid sixties.
I built a dulcimer in the early seventies and bought a better one at a yard sale in the early eighties.
I quit smoking 40 years ago and put the money aside.  I used it to buy my first five string banjo.
I learned to play Autoharp on one that belonged to the school where I taught and bought a few of my own later.
I also play tenor banjo.
I have played at piano accordion, button accordion and English concertina, but have neglected them lately.
My newest instruments are the Filipino banduria, The ukulele and the tiple.

My wife says, "The concept of enough hasn't gotten through to Jim."
I'd probably be a much better guitarist if I'd stuck to it only.

Piano, Banjammer, ukulele, penny whistle, recorder; a beginner on steel drum, djembe and hammered dulcimer; and a former player of the clarinet, guitar, and flutofone.

Forgive me for being late to the party on this thread. Besides mountain dulcimer, I play ukuleles, guitar, fiddle, banjo, mandolin, tin whistle and harmonica (the last two quite poorly!). If you're interested in seeing me in action, click here:  Mound City Slickers @ KDHX Radio, St. Louis, MO . I'm the fellow playing the banjo-uke and singing.

Thanks Ken, now if I can only find a tenor banjo blog as helpful and fun as FOTMD. 

In addition to Mountain Dulcimers (I am owned by 8 of these)  I playat acoustic Guitar,  bowed Psaltry,  Hammer Dulcimer and Balalika. Thanks for your attention, Tony

Another person sees the light! That's great Sheryl.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

McSpadden Spruce

Kala and Ohana ukuleles, tenor, baritone, and concert

A drawer full if harmonicas. 

Piano

Acordian. 

Kazoos (Infatuated.  One kazoo plays every key.)  Cheap too. 

Foot tamborines.

It's all fun.

Two guitars - one is a Washburn travel guitar

Hammer Dulcimer - a Songbird by Chris Foss. my wife plays it

Mountain Dulcimer - Folkroots D series I play it

Ukulele - Oscar Schmidt Tenor Spalted Mango

Piano

Two Recorders

Good for you Sheryl!   

Pass the Bacon!

Got the banjo bug. Just bought a 1930's 4 string tenor banjo. Should get it one day this week. I'll post some pictures, and hopefully a tune or two in the not too distant future. 

In chronological order: piano, violin, cello, guitar, mountain dulcimer (!), autoharp, guitalin [www.guitalin.com], Great Highland Bagpipe, mouthoblown smallpipes, bellows-blown smallpipes, biniou, washboard, harpsichord (!).  I can no longer play guitar or violin due to arthritis in the fingers, but other instruments are still doable. I love playing in groups.  We have a small family ensemble called "May Milling Company" composed of myself, my husband (on washtub or bodhran), and our nephew on recorder. 

Don't ever let anyone tell you you are too old to learn an instrument!  I have a good friend whose father played the clarinet all his life.  In his 90s he took up the bassoon!  Etta Baker was a fine bottleneck guitar player in the Piedmont of North Carolina.  We had the pleasure of seeing her at Merlefest back in about 2004.  She was in her 90s and had just taken up the banjo.

I have 5 dulcimers, 3 I bought and 2 I made, a strum stick, lap steel guitar I made, and 8 or 9 Native American Flutes, also a penny whistle. I only play or am learning to play the dulcimer and flutes.

Not me.  Although in my Society or Creative Anchronism days I wore similar costumes and glasses.  Suprisingly, eyeglasses were invented in Italy somewhere between 1268 and 1289 (although not those modern frames, of course).

Ken, I love the modern glasses and period costume. 

   Plucked Psaltery                                                  Bowed Psaltery                         Bowed Dulcimer

Thanks. I've been very confused about the difference between the bowed psaltery and the bowed dulcimer.

Psalteries -- both the classic Plucked Psaltery and the modern Bowed Psaltery are good choices for other stringed instruments.  A Plucked Psaltery is like a simplified Autoharp without nearly as many strings and without the chord bar in the middle.  The Bowed Psaltery is very simple, not at all like the Bowed dulcimer (which is more or less a cello).

Well, so far, I only play the dulcimer.  I'm enjoying it more and more as I go on.  Not that great at it yet, but it makes me happy. However, I occasionally think about picking up another instrument and trying it out. Everyone in this thread seems to play a wide variety of instruments.  What would be an easy string instrument to pick up in addition to the dulcimer?  I don't mean easy in a demeaning way--all instruments have their complexities.  I've been considering trying out a ukulele sometime.  Some of the dulcimer festivals have a "try out a ukulele" class, but I haven't made it to any of those. Bowed dulcimers fascinate me, but they seem quite challenging for someone at my level.

Piano would be nice too, but I don't have any free walls in my house.

Thanks, Helen. Hope to work more on melody playing in this class.

I started playing guitar in my teens and along the way picked up harmonica. Many years later I picked up banjo and mandolin. At about 40 I started playing violin/fiddle. Mountain dulcimer is pretty new to me, barely a year. For my own personal enjoyment I like fiddle and dulcimer the most. There is also a very lonely (and cold) piano in the garage. And a zither of some kind (looks like an autoharp w/o keys) that is unplayable at this point that I may yet get to.

I am looking forward to a continuing autoharp class next week taught by John Hollandsworth. It will be at John C Campbell Folk School in the beautiful North Carolina mountains. I went to a beginning class last August there taught by Ivan Stiles. The Folk School is really a wonderful place - looking forward to it!

One-string-bass. Oh! You mean my upside-down bailing bucket and oar with a length of cable???

Heck Lana, I live in a 26 ft sailboat. I don't have the dogs but I do have 7 dulcimers, a Carolingian Lyre, four or five board psalteries, a couple penny whistles, and three crossbows, over and above the usual sort of things. You've got LOTS of room for more instruments!

Here's our band with octave fiddle playing at a beer festival in Haverfordwest castle a couple of years ago with an itinerant djembe player we acquired at the gig. It was before we added a harp to the lineup and I'm afraid the fiddle is kind of drowned out a bit with all the background noise going on.

I only been playing about 6 months but so far I have an hourglass MD and a teardrop MD. I've also played the snowshovel a lot this year.

Not as much as you might think. We were always quite careful not to push the kids towards music too much in case it put them off! We did encourage them to learn an instrument at school - clarinet for Micky, trombone for Dan - all the rest they've done for themselves. Must have worked though as they've both got the bug and in fact Micky is studying music at University.

We do play in a band together though - `Estron' - specialising in Welsh traditional music. That's me and Danny on Welsh bagpipe, Micky on ukulele, a friend, Holly on octave fiddle (looks like a violin but plays an octave below one) and another, Jess, on harp. I guess we get together for a practice about once a month on average and do a few gigs on top of that.

As to the bass clarinet, I find them easier to play than a normal clarinet, but much harder to hold while you're doing it! Most orchestral types have them resting on the floor on a spike but Micky plays hers hanging from a sling round her neck and holding it more like a saxophone.

Leslie - I do miss playing the tuba. It was a battered old thing but I did enjoy playing with the brass band. It was actually a junior band, I got roped in after my daughter joined as I had to hang around anyway waiting to take her home again.

Which reminds me, Helen, I only mentioned my own instruments. I have 2 daughters, both at University now, but when they're home, the eldest, Micky, plays clarinet, bass clarinet, and ukulele while the youngest has a trombone, a set of bagpipes, two guitars and a cello.

First instrument I ever had was a stave dulcimer I made myself but no longer have. This was soon followed by an hourglass which I'm still playing 42 years after I made it. But since then I've wandered from the fold a bit.

I now have 8 sets of bagpipes from different lands, in different keys, all but one of which I made myself - these are my main instruments. I also play piano accordeon regularly, hornpipes, clarinets, a whole bunch of flutes including whistles, recorders, piccolos, Native American flutes, one in E and a NAF droneflute in G. And I used to play Eb Tuba in the local brass band but had to give it back to them after I stopped playing with them.

And now I've got a Tennessee Music Box and Swedish Humle.

Hi Helen, will you 'busk' with your new love ? lol !

John

Here's a photo of some other instruments I play (more or less) - especially instruments that are perfect for Mountain Dulcimer accompaniment...

http://mountaindulcimer.ning.com/photo/d-major-instruments

In addition to my quest to learn the mountain dulcimer and lap harp, I play the piano, church organ, keyboard, guitar, ukulele, recorder and the oboe.

William, I'd love see a vid of you playing bones sometime! I play some minstrel banjo too, and have an interest in mid 1800s music as well.

I sing and play clawhammer & minstrel banjo, fingerstyle guitar, upright bass & bass guitar, piano, violin (just a little), mandolin, various ethnic flutes and whistles, and various small drums. And when I really want to annoy folks at bluegrass jams, I break out the bones I keep in my banjo case.

I had the joy, for six years, to be the resident music specialist at a local history museum in Alabama. It was actually part of my job (!) to research any instrument with even a passing connection to 19th or early 20th century American music history, acquire one, learn to play at least one song on it, and demonstrate it for visitors. There is such a thing as a dream job!

Hi all, as well as dulcimer,

I "play" (make noise would be a better term) alto recorder, pennywhistle. Alternating fingerings between the 2 is a brain teaser!

Piano - but have a midi keyboard as I live upstairs.

Voice.

I'm probably most proficient as a singer, given I take voice lessons, but I bumble along on the other instruments and they make me happy. I would love to learn celtic harp someday..... And bass ocarina.... And a concertina.....And cello....

I tinker with a ukulele, lap harp & piano. On a 1-10 scale, I would say I am a 2 on ukulele, 1 on piano, and 3 on lap harp. I still own 8 dulcimers, two are on loan, and have sold 3 more on Craig's list recently. My favorite is a 6 string all walnut McSpadden. Next is the 2nd dulcimer I purchased the first week of learning to play a little over a year ago, an all cherry 4 string Cletus Penny, hand crafted in Newton, Ga. Thinking of ordering a Penny Whistle maybe today.

Whose voice are you using now?

Paul

Good for you Christine!

Aside from the mountain dulcimer, I play banjo in clawhammer and minstrel stroke style... I play a LOT of banjo, actually more banjo than dulcimer (running for cover now).

I also love to 'play' limberjacks, and I dabble in playing the bones (minstrel style), and also bowed jouhikko or tagelharpa. I'm trying to learn to play a little tambourine too, at least to play it halfway decently- it's not that easy for me, and I feel like a total klutz sometimes! But fun is the keyword here.

Leslie - you come up with 16 stuffed cats and I'll build it for you! What a hoot

I live in the Hurricane zone. My retirement home/boat contain what little I own - some clothes, a few tools and books, and my dulcimers. It is, in somevery real sense, a survival kit/lifeboat. Do I

• get the boat down river, out to sea, try to guess which way the storm will zig, and then zag the other way to avoid it?
• get the boat as far upriver and inland, as far as I can, tie up in the mangroves batten down the hatches, ride the storm out there, and pray?
• tie the boat up extra good to the dock where I am, head to Lady Sally's shuttered home, ride the storm out there, and pray?
• Grab Sally, the pets, dulcimers and whatever else we can cram in her CRV and head inland and north to ride out the storm?

I knew you where kidding Yip everyone should a paln for things like these

strange you should ask living here in tornado ally I have been thinking long and hard about this. The first thing I want out of the house in case of Fire is my dogs. they are kenneled every night in the room next to our bedroom. if I have to I'll open the front door and send them out on there own if I have to. Then make sure my wife went out with them. then back in our bedroom and grab my 12-string guitar and my six string also my dulcimers then as much sheet music as I can grab. lucky for use we are close to the ground so most of that goes out the window along with as much close as I can grab. If there is no time then my wife and hopefully the dogs.

My cat, Tigger and my tab files. In fact, the storms have had me going over my tab, and retyping it into the computer so I can get them all backed up. Lost a major portion of them a few years ago, and though I've been backing up my new ones about 80% of my work was lost, except for paper copies.

I Play several instruments

recorders

Native American Flute

Guitar

Bass Guitar

shekere, I also make them

feel like I am forgetting something.

Oh Yeah Jaw Harp,

Mouth bow

cigar box Guitar, slide (also make them)

I'm a flute player. Dulcimer is my first attempt at a string instrument. I wanted to try something new and fun.

Hi Paul,

Yes. Nifty and sounds very good. I have not played it for at least a year since I began with dulcimer. Fun and player friendly.

Kristi

Does Kona Bass refer to Kona Bob's Walking bass?

Paul

A big thank you to all our veterans, and JPR I hope that music will be a soothing balm for you.
James Paul Reed said:

Kristi's got the best ukulele collection I'veever seen-----call me for a jam, Kristi; I'm local thru the 19th of November!

I play piano, penny whistle, mostly. USED to play clarinet, recorder, guitar. Have been known to experiment a bit withthe djembe (I have one from Senegal).Wish I was better at spoons and bones. REALLY wish I could play the cello..........

Kristi Keller said:

Ukuleles(12), guitar(2), Kona Bass,autoharp (2),

James Paul,

I'll join you in hoping you can keep mobility for a long time! And although you aren't able to get out much, I'm imagining music brings you joy.

So glad you've joined us here!

Robin

Wow! Lots of multi-takented people here!

I play the instruments in the photo (I didn't say I play them well ). They are:

banjo (two five-strings: bluegrass and clawhammer [1910 Orpheum]types), mandolin, autoharp, dulcimer, and guitar (one of a couple of L'Arrivee six-strings). Not taken to the jam were electrics (Gibby six [LPC]and twelve [ES 335]), bass (Hofner Beatle), tenor banjo, lap steel, pennywhistles ( really can't play them ), and various percussion instruments. My most recent acquisition was a bohdran. I may eventually learn to play it and drive the wife, dog, and cat totally crazy.

I gave the 1929 Martin to our daughter. I've been through a bunch of other instruments, mostly acoustic and electric guitars, plus some banjos - given away, traded, or stolen.

I had the best job, too - teaching school, so I was able to use them in the classroom (even the elctrics), a lot! Even conducted choirs and brought folk musicians into the school.

Don't forget to also check our FOTMD forum called "Adventures in 'Other' Instruments' located HERE , to see what other members are playing besides the mountain dulcimer!

I've known some salty fellows, but no faulty bellows. Was that Saul Bellow's kid brother?

Sorry, I couldn't resist a yuk or two.

Jean Whitfield said:

You gonna teach me how to play it???

Bill Davenport said:

I play fiddle, whistle, guitar, and I want to play mandolin and bowed psaltry as well. Maybe a bowed dulcimer, somewhere down the line. My issue with bowed dulcimer is balance.

"Kanikapila: The word kanikapila, literally "play music"has come to mean gathering together informally to sing and play.It was not so long ago that kanikapila was part of our daily lives in Hawai`i. Somehow over the last generation music has moved from the garage party to the concert stage. It has become something to listen to rather than participate in. There is a sense today that singing is reserved for those who are really good at it. Still, many people yearn to kanikapila."- He Mele Aloha, A Hawaiian Songbook

I have borrowed this quote from the forward of this book a number of times. Possibly some of you have seen me use it before. But it strikes a chord in me, and I use it when it seems appropriate. Especially since I'm not articulate enough to say something this profound on my own. There is a wide and varied musical pallet in the world, and while we may not all look to the same muse for inspiration, we all look to music as an expression of our own muse. (Muses?) The fact that I will never play or sing on the level of those who inspire me to play, I still, as above, "yearn to kanikapila."

In the wordfs of John Lee Hooker,"Let that boy boogie woogie. It's in him, and it's got to come out!"

Have fun, Y'all.

Paul

Was a joy to read your post, Dusty. You'd be welcome to come form a jug band at our place!

A spirit of encouragement is one of the things (that's not really a thing) that makes FOTMD special.

Robin, I'vesometimes regretted having dabbled with so many instruments as well. You know what they say: "Jack of all trades, master of none." But then I think about what a gift it is to be comfortable enough with music to trynew instruments . I "discovered" the dulcimer in my mid-40s but did not hesitate for a moment to buy one andlearn it on my own. That I felt comfortable doing so was a product of many years playing guitarand also "dabbling" with ukes andautoharps, mandolins and pennywhistles.

My daughter's piano teacher (whom we love and respectdearly)is a professional cellist.I consider her a "real" musician and myself but a folk enthusiast. I do indeed envy her mastery of her instrument. However, if you had to pick one of us to help you form a jug band, I would assert without modesty that I'd be the better choice. And if you were having a barbeque and wanted some musical entertainment, I dare say our jug band would fare quite well even if we lack the virtuosity of a professional string quartet.

Paul's point is dead-on. Playing music can be a vocation even if it is not an occupation. "Dabbling" for personal enjoyment and growth is indeed avaluable venture. It saddens me that our society only values those activities that make money. Practicing an instrument is considered worthwhile if it leads to a paycheck but a waste of time if done purely for leisure. A story should be something we tell, not just something we read. Drama or comedy should be something we perform, not just something we watch on television. And music should be something we do, not something we purchase.

So dabble away, friend, and I'll be a-dabbling right next to you.

Robin Thompson said:

Gosh, thanks, Dana!

I'm happy with whatever level of play I can achieve with any instrument I take up because it's so doggone much fun. It's important not to underestimate the enjoyment homemade music can bring to life. Paul's got it right.

Having fun with music IS serious! What better can you say than "I enjoy what I do."

Paul

I wish people would stop tempting me with getting new instruments!!! I'm sick and tired of being a mediocre player because I dabble too much.

Making music at home is waaaay too much fun! Ought to be illegal!

The mountain dulcimer is a late comer to my musical arsenal. I currently have two dulcimers: a four-string made by Johnie of Unicorn Woodworks out of mahogany and spruce, and a 6-string baritone dulcimette made by Ron Ewing out of walnut and western red cedar. I've also ordered an octave dulcimer from David Beede, ostensibly for my daughter to play.

I've played guitar for decades and currently have a Guild 6-string and a Seagull 12-string. I also have a mandolin, aviolin (which I don't play), several ukuleles (including two banjo-ukes), and two autoharps (a chromatic Oscar Schmidt and a diatonic Pawprint made by my uncle). There is a wide a variety of pennywhistles, recorders, and harmonicas lying around the house. I also have a limberjack and hope to get or make several more.

Hanging on our living roomwall is a rababa which I do not play but which was given to me by my daughter's pre-school teacher in appreciation for my many visits to the school with many of the instruments listed above. On the other side of the chimney hangs a dulci-gurdy, a hybrid dulcimer and hurdy-gurdy made by some luthier in Austin and given to me recently by an uncle. The dulci-gurdy is not really in playing condition, but maybe if I get some free time . . .

Finally, over the holidays I purchased an electric pianoso that my daughter can take piano lessons.

"That's enough!" my wife says. I smile andignore her.

Oh, and sometimes I sing, which causes the dogs in the neighborhood to howl in pain and my wife to scratch the blackboard to drown out my voice, which sounds like a combination of Bob Dylan and Mr. Magoo.