That's wonderful, Anne. Glad you enjoyed it and a lovely time. Have a great 2025.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Well, I worked on playing as ambient music...I haven't busked for a while, but  about 2 months ago I was busking at Aldi, and someone asked for my card. They asked if I'd be interested in playing for a Christmas gathering that they would be hosting. I confessed my lack of Christmas repertoire, and that I'd not done such thing before,but they said a couple of Chrissy pieces and just whatever else would be fine, and that they'd be in touch. Having heard this before, and not receiving any messages up until the weekend before Christmas, I was surprised to hear from them on the Saturday, apologising for the short notice, but saying they'd lost my card and only just found it, and wanting me for Monday night. Well, I went along, was made very welcome, had a lovely time and got paid as well. I guess busking can have extra benefits. Here's the lovely tree I was stationed beside.. I hope everyone had a lovely end of 2025 and happy, auspicious start to 2025.

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Very true, Dusty. I hope you had a lovely Christmas and New Year.

Thank you, @marg !  

Wishing you & all a lovely holiday season! 

@Beth-t , that's wonderful!  I really look forward to hearing you play some of the old traditional Welsh folk tunes that you love.  

I've been a bit quiet online recently, but I haven't been neglecting my dulcimer(s)! I've also joined the South Wales branch of the Nonsuch Dulcimer club and it's been good to meet with other dulcimer players and covet their instruments. :-) It's just over two years now since I bought my first dulcimer. Over those two years, I've tried to find ways to play Welsh folk tunes that I know, starting with the slowest and simplest. Feedback from FOTMD has been a huge encouragement. I'm now trying to get my arthritic fingers to dance around a bit more and play faster tunes. The ebony fretboard on my new FolkRoots dulcimer seems to help. I will upload a few as soon as I can play them through without too many mistakes! 

Using geared violin tuners like Wittners might be worth considering for your violin, especially if you prefer not to widen the peg holes. Keeping the Sam Carroll with its original pegs is also an option. You could use wood filler for the stripped hole to ensure a secure fit for the replacement pin.

(Fas-n-Tite Brass (plated) Linoleum Nails - Those and a toothpick in the old hole might be a good choice.)

Thanks

Walmart has " Fas-n-Tite Brass (plated) Linoleum Nails (5/8" x #16) - 0.75 oz., Steel, $1.58 "

Those and a toothpick in the old hole might be a good choice.

Wally:  right - other 2 are brass pins. Just deciding if I would go with the same type or replace all 3 with something else - yes, choices.

thanks

Why remove the nail head? The nail head makes it easier to hold a string loop on. In addition, if you simply cut the nail head off with pliers you will have a sharp end. Half an inch in length should be enough if in a hole of the right size.

My main suggestion is Look at the other string anchors and try to match them. They might be screws, nails with heads, nails without heads, brass pins, or was it wood?

Thanks Robert -

Thanks Ken - (Glue the dowel in to the hole using wood glue. )

Marg, you can make a very good end pin with a nail. Drill a hole first then glue in a nail. Tapping in a nail will shock the dulcimer and possibly break something. Remove the nail head before installing. Set the nail about 3/4" deep....Robert 

Hi, Marg. With regard to the Lazenby dulcimer I would not use wood filler on it. Instead I would plug the hole with a piece of hardwood dowel rod. You will need to measure the diameter of the hole when you take the screw out. You might need to enlarge the hole a bit to fit a readily available dowel. Glue the dowel in to the hole using wood glue. You will then need to drill a hole the diameter of the end pin or just a hair smaller and tap the pin in place. This hole should be drilled at a slight angle like the other ones. Those look like standard hitch pins. It might be hard to just by one. If you send me a private message with your address I'll send you one. I'm pretty sure I have a few of them downstairs in my shop. I won't be venturing down there for the next week or so until my eyes get adjusted to the cataract surgery I had yesterday. Hope this helps you.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

Thanks Ken,

I think  the  geared violin tuners like Wittners - may be something to try. I don't want to widen the holes so, I may just keep the Sam Carroll with it's pegs. I have changed the ones in my Warren May dulcimers with the Grovers, without any adjustments. I don't want to do anything to the dulcimer, that couldn't be undone - like putting screws on the sides for gears. 

Side note:  The Lazenby dulcimer I just got is missing it's end Bass pin. (Looks to me as if someone maybe tried tightening the string and instead of it breaking, it just pulled the pin out.) Should I find an end pin like the others or replace all 3 - also should I put wood filler in the stripped hole?

end pins.jpg  •  172KB

Friction tuners like Grovers offer tradition, while geared options like Five Star provide precision. Cost varies, and you might also consider replacing wood pegs with geared violin tuners like Wittners for a different look.

When you work on a song, you get better at that song. But when you work on your technique, you get better at every song you play.

Wow Dusty, that sounds rigorous. I'm sure it'll pay off to develop that, though. If I enjoyed doing drills like that, I'd probably have a lot sharper of skills than I get from just plunking around like I do.

I'm a total OCD dulcimer nerd right now. I tabbed out a few fiddle tunes that make for great finger exercises.  For 2-3 days I've just been playing " Harvest Home " over and over, forcing myself to use my pinky for anything on the first fret, middle finger on the second, and index on the third across all the strings. And that's the range of the arrangement, from open bass to third fret on the melody string. So the left hand never moves, requiring the muscles in individual fingers to do all the work.

Both A and B parts of the song have four consecutive triplets are really tough.  I'm forcing myself to use a metronome and play really slowly.  Maybe someday I'll speed up a little, but I'm not there yet.  Sometimes I only play that triplet measure over and over. 

My goal is not to play the song well (or event at all), but to use the song to strengthen my pinky and develop greater finger independence and flatpicking accuracy.

But I do feel like I'm getting a bit geeky and losing touch, like Jack Nicholson huddled over his typewriter in The Shining .

@shanonmilan I enjoy Wittner pegs on several traditional dulcimers. Wrist arthritis makes tuning wooden pegs difficult as much as I like them on the traditional instruments.

Only been playing for 5 months as a complete beginner but I am now exploring the sounds of CGC tuning. Luckily as it is still 1:5:8 I can still play all the stuff I was learning in DAD. To me CGC just sounds so much more pleasing.

I also discovered I like playing with harmonies and am working on a little ditty,  something along the lines of 023 - 034  - 045 - 023 -022 - 011 - 103 -113- 012 - 234 045 - 056 -045 - 056 and so on and trying different strumming patterns.

Just need to  learn to write what I play in musical notation now, for the fun of learning it.

It's great that people appreciate the convenience they offer while maintaining the aesthetic appeal of the instrument. And trying out Wittner pegs sounds like an exciting experiment! Their reputation for quality and reliability suggests you're in for a treat.

Good hearing from you Robin, we have missed your post. I hope you and all have a Happy, Healthy Holiday Season.

Great to hear what you've been up to @Robin-clark .  👍🏼

@richard-streib , that is a whole lot of cookies!!  🍪

I've been learning to do a little watercolor painting lately, it's a challenge!
I've also been enjoying brushing up on my cursive handwriting while tinkering with fountain pens and bottled ink, and writing in my journal.
Another decades-long hobby of mine is knitting. I really enjoy the social camaraderie in attending various regular gatherings of knitters in my area.

Hello all,

Yes, I have been absent from the dulcimer fold for a few years!  The band I played with folded a few years back due to a bereavement and then the pandemic came along.  I picked up guitar again and have been working towards playing/singing as a solo act locally - plus I joined a Welsh MVC.  So that has taken up all my time.  The local Welsh music nights in the pub are the same night as the choir practices - so that has also put me out of the dulcimer loop.

But....I do intend to put some time into a Welsh tunes project next year on the Bocs Cân Idris and perhaps make a CD with my good friend and guitarist Johnathan (who lives 3 doors up!).  All noter drone from me of course!!!!

Have a wonderful festive season everyone.  I'm off to band practice now as I have a one-off gig tomorrow night with a new band doing a bluegrass/Americana set.  No dulcimer for me this time but guitar, dobro and banjo,

Robin, great to see your post! I still rely on your YT videos for 'better' noter playing! Merry Christmas!

Robin!   So good to see you here again!!  Have missed your posts.

I've been working on my Christmas cookies. So far 30+ dozen and I think I am finished. All for giving away to church members, neighbors, and some local businesses where I trade. Decorating is done and most of the wrapping. I'll make the coconut cake for Christmas and help cook dinner on Christmas for the family.
Merry Christmas every one.

Hi Robin  https://fotmd.com/robin-clark

Thanks for getting in touch. I have noticed you on this forum, but wasn’t sure whether you were still active on it. I’ve been listening to your sound files of Welsh tunes, but the links to some of them in your posts don’t seem to work. Anyway, your dulcimer sounds great and I agree that the dulcimer can make a useful contribution to Welsh dance music. When I play with a group of very loud instruments, I just play chords as a rhythm instrument - much better than a guitar in my opinion. When I’m on my own, I just enjoy finding my own way of playing folk songs and hymn tunes. I’ve only been playing dulcimer for a year, but already I enjoy it more than I ever did playing a guitar!  I’m really surprised that it hasn’t been taken up by more Welsh traditional musicians.

Robin, I have gotten value from your posts and am glad to see you back. Merry Christmas to you, as well.

Nate

Hi Beth,

I live up near Tywyn, Gwynedd.  The dulcimer is an unusual instrument for Wales!  But they are great for playing the old Welsh dance tunes.  I have built a double fretboard dulcimer specifically for playing them - I have called it a "Bocs Cân Idris".  I hadn't played it for a while until last Saturday when we had a village Christmas gathering.  I played a lot of Christmas carols as well as the local Welsh tunes (Cader Idris, Bwlch Llanberis, Corbet of Ynysmaengwyn's Delight, Machynlleth, Bells of Aberdyfi, The Clover of Merioneth and a few more besides).

Merry Christmas to all,

Robin

I have been working on a dulcimer made from goodwill materials only. Metal cans and trays plus wooden cigar boxes for the body, toothpicks frets, and eye bolt tuners. The fingerboard is just a 1/4" thick and 1.5" across strip of poplar. I am out of town but plan on finishing it as soon as I return. The whole thing will end up costing about 5$ and wont require any actual instrument parts. I've been having a lot of fun lately learning ways to make very accessible dulcimers that can be built without many tools and hardware, and with very little knowledge or skill. 

I've been using Perfection geared violin pegs on some of my dulcimers, and people really like the ease of use.  Plus they look just like black ebony violin pegs, which doesn't detract from the appearance of the dulcimers.  I just ordered a set of Wittner pegs to try out.  I've heard good things about them!

Thanks Ken, I had not considered  geared violin tuners - may need to look into them.

Marg there are a couple of things to consider. First is whether you want friction tuners or geared tuners. Since you mention the Stewmac choices the Grovers are friction and the Five Star are geared. The second is cost. You can see the difference in price. Both of those install easily although you may need to make an adjustment in the size of the holes. Since you mention not changing the head design, have you considered replacing the wood pegs with geared violin tuners like Wittners? Here is a link to them: Wittner-finetune-violin-peg They may give a better look to the dulcimer and are priced between the two offered by Stewmac. 

This is general information as I don't know the maker of your dulcimer and I am guessing it has a scroll peg head. If you have any questions, ask here or message me.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

@strumelia Yes, the dulcimer is a bit of a curiosity to most people here in Wales! It has attracted a lot of interest.

@ken-hulme Some of our group are part of another group that take the Mari round the pubs in our locality every year (see photo taken last Sunday). So we're old friends with the Llantrisant Mari! 

Llantrisant Mari Lwyd 2023.jpeg  •  69KB

Well I'm in to the organizing mode. I'm busy scanning all my notebooks of tab in to an iPad. I have 117 pages entered so far which is almost one notebook. I think I have six more notebooks to go, but there is some duplication of tabs. Getting rid of the notebooks will free up some space on my shelves.

Ken

"The dulcimer sings a sweet song."

@beth-t , I knew as soon as you mentioned that the schoolchildren could identify a melodeon and a concertina, that you could not be located in America... and I was right, you're in Wales!  How wonderful that you are playing in that new group you found, and going around to schools to play traditional music for the students.

@jan-potts , 20 minute play sessions four times a day?- that's what you are starting with?  In my book that's a whole LOT of playing!  Kudos to you.. 🙌🏻

Sounds like a great time!  Now that you have  Mari Lwyd, you can add the others by dressing up as Punch & Judy, Merryman and Sargeant.

You'll enjoy your new 'friend", I'm sure.

I recently joined a group of mainly retired people who meet to play traditional tunes. These last few weeks we’ve been going around local schools playing traditional carol tunes. It was interesting that the kids recognised all the other instruments (accordion, concertina, melodeon, mandolin, fiddle, flute, recorder, spoons etc) but not the dulcimer. Not even teachers knew what it was. 

The excitement for the kids was that we also took along a  Mari Lwyd - a Welsh Christmas/New Year tradition. But the excitement for me this last week was hearing from Folkcraft that my H series dulcimer has finally been shipped! Yes, my dulcimer acquisition disorder is serious. Despite only having bought my first dulcimer just over a year ago, I will now have three. :-) It may be some weeks before US and Royal Mail get my new toy to me, but I look forward to playing with it and finding out what a 1.5 fret is all about!

So nice to see this, from you Dusty. I've been wondering how you are, as the last time we had any contact was on Aaron's last Patreon workshop. I've kept up the alternating bass we were working on then, but am now working on ways to improvise, as well as make up something new that's interesting, so am trying to learn more chord theory progression stuff.

Well...this is new:  After 2 months of physical therapy, my hand therapist just assigned me a practice schedule to strengthen my left hand after I wore it out this fall (in addition to the ongoing exercises and stretches).  I'm to start with 20 minute sessions, 4 times a day and keep lengthening the time as I go through the next month or so.  So I guess I'll be playing a lot of Christmas carols!

Hey folks. I just want to resurrect this fun Discussion that has been dormant for a couple of years.  Please share what you're working on: a new song? a new build? a new technique?

Dusty, I tried Sally on my 1.5 8.5 fret model thinking the minor notes in dad tuning would be a breeze. No such luck. I switched to my pure diatonic model tuned cAD and it played well. I tried dAA with a capo and as you said it was wanting  for an 8.5 fret...Robert. 

Sally is a tough one to get on diatonic fretboard. It's a haunting melody, though.

Some years ago I learned a version arranged by Steve Eulberg.  He uses a DAA tuning with a capo at 1, but the 8+ fret is still necessary. I couldn't even tell you if that was aeolian or dorian.

Sally in the Garden, I wanted a tune to add to my list of tunes for playing on banjo in double C tuning. I've been playing Sally for the last week. It is a minor mode tune that plays nicely in clawhammer  style.

Ok so next was playing on dulcimer. At first I didn't think It could be played noter style but in  aeolian mode it worked well, only have to jump to the A string for an open A and first fret B.... Robert.

I am (very slowly) working on an arrangement of the Irish Gaelic air "Song of the Books" or " Amhrán na Leabha."  It's a haunting melody. I found some sheet music for the penny whistle, which provides the basic melody.  But I've been listening to this vocal version and altering the basic melody to capture a small fraction of the nuances of the singer's voice.  The big task will be deciding on the harmonic accompaniment. Lots of minor chords, obviously, but beyond that I've yet to figure it out.

Once I've tabbed out the melody and decided on the chording, then I'll have to actually sit down and play it a bunch to see how it all fits under the fingers. More revisions to follow then.

You can rest assured I'll be listening to this tune non-stop for many days to come.

Tom, since I'm not a beekeeper, I can't help you if you want a whole tune on that topic. 

My approach would be different and treat beekeeping as a metaphor. Maybe have the first verse about looking forward to springtime only to see that half your bees are gone.  Then the other verses would be about other things or people that have left.  One verse on bees, one on age taking about your athletic ability, one on your fruit tree drying up, on one a woman leaving. You get the point.

OR . . . instead of the theme being loss, it could be lots of work with no reward, so you put in all this work to keep bees and end up with no honey.  You lavish love and presents on your woman, and she leaves you.  You spend weeks building a garden, and the plants bear no fruit.  You spend weeks crushing grapes but they go straight to vinegar and you get no wine.  You spend a year of weekends rebuilding that '68 Mustang and someone steels it before you ever take it for a ride. That sort of thing.  The bee hive would still be the first verse and give the tune it's title: "Big Hive, No Honey."

"What's the buzz in the bee yard?"

I can't help with song lyrics about bees & blues yet do know I love honey.

Hmmm... how about something using "scrapin that propolis off bee metropolis"?

I can't help you much with the song writing Tom, but I feel your pain concerning pouring money into your hives!

I've kept bees for over 12 years now, and just recently I downsized from FIVE 10-frame double-deep hives, to TWO 8-frame double deep hives. As i got older those ten frame boxes were getting too darn heavy!  I also find that losses have slowly increased each winter for me. I never had to buy bees years ago. Now the past two winters I've lost both hives and had to order packages. Cleaning dead hives up before installing a new colony is a nasty chore but must be done if I don't want all the frames and boxes permanently 'glued' together.
This Spring's packages will arrive in about a month and I'll have some hive cleanup and scraping to do before then. Truthfully, though I love having lots of honey and love having bees buzzing around my garden, each year I do feel closer to getting out of it altogether.

I'm working on a blues song about bees and beekeeping, and could use some help.

One of my tasks at this time of year is getting new bees to replace winter losses. Opening up the top of my hives and basically pouring money in the top to keep them going provided my inspiration. I'm down by half this year, an improvement over the 80% hit I took last year. And a lot of practical beekeeping seems to consist of stacking heavy boxes while trying to keep from getting stung. So there are things to be blue about.

That, and I need some new material.  Maybe "Hive Beetle Blues" or "Varrora Mite Blues." My bees done left me, I'm so sad... stuff like that.

@Kusani - you have built very beautiful dulcimers!

A few days ago I have heard a Macedonian folk tune in 7/8 measure and am working on it - it is quite challenging since we "West Europeans" are not very familiar to uneven measures - but I can't get that tune out of my head ...a recording will come soon

Thank you Ken, I just wish I had thought of the other variable you brought up re the internal volume.  However even if I had, I don't have the math skills to calculate the volume of either of the two shapes.   Anyway, both do sound pretty good to an amateur's ears. :) 

Beautiful job Kusani!

Those are beautiful!

Well, my experiment on body shape affecting sound went awry do to me forgetting one important variable.  However, I did end up with a couple decent dulcimers. Both made from the same poplar board. Ebony was used for the overlay on the fretboard. Other than shape, all components and dimensions are identical. 

John, I just created a couple of screenshots to demonstrate the process.  There are only 5 easy steps.  Check out the discussion I just created in the Site Questions Forum .

Been carving on a peg head!

I like the idea of setting up such a thread but I am not sure how to go about it. Could you run me through the process?

Hey just an idea, people, but we have the Call the Tune Group which was intended for people to share different versions of the same tune.  Someone (John? Gordon?) could start a thread on music for Lent and have people contribute different tunes.  That way all those tunes could be found in one convenient place.

Great idea Gordon.  Look forward to hearing and seeing your video and others who may join the Lenten theme.

I noticed in the calendar that Ash Wednesday is February 17th, the beginning of Lent and so I have been looking at Lenten hymns. To mark the beginning of Lent I have chosen a  Spiritual: "I Want Jesus To Walk With Me". This video will be posted on February 15th.

Thank you very much, my dear friend

Opps, Ken you are exactly correct!  Oh well, it's been fun building them; especially since we were not able to go Florida this month.

[quote="John W. McKinstry"]

Hi Jill,  Good to hear from you.  Yes, I have posted "What a Friend We Have in Jesus" in the video section of FOTMD.  I take comfort in playing the old hymns and often play them as a personal meditation time.

John, I too play some of the old hymns for my personal worship and meditation. Try to do that every time I play.

Hi Jill,  Good to hear from you.  Yes, I have posted "What a Friend We Have in Jesus" in the video section of FOTMD.  I take comfort in playing the old hymns and often play them as a personal meditation time. 

Kusani -- make sure that your two shapes have the same interior volume (cubic inches), even though that means they will be different sizes.  That's the only way to ensure that any tone differences you get will come from the shape not the volume. We KNOW that interior volume differences cause differences in tone -- large volumes = more bari-bass response

Hi John, Have you posted the video yet? Thanks for the info! p.s. I too have arthritis - really difficult to do big stretches for chords - but the good news is that I really enjoy noter/drone playing!