Thanks for listening and commenting--Ariane and Robert....

Very beautiful, Janene!

Great singing and played on a great instrument. That song is very pretty. Enjoyed it very much, thanks for doing it.

I hope you make a cd of your wonderful music, Janene!  

So clever and enterprising :-) I've always considered Mac just for Garage Band as it seems so universally liked. But I'm Microsoft.  I love your packaging and design solutions. Plenty of experimentation to keep me very busy....who can ever be bored, I wonder??? Thanks for sharing your experiences.

Janene, Mark & I made a cd to give away a few years back.  All home recordings, we gave them to a guy we know, Adam, who mastered them-- the mastering was minimal, done, primarily, to set volume consistency from recording to recording.  We used no editing app.  I mailed Adam's master cd to DiscMakers and had 100 made.  

Actually, we're working on another homemade cd now.  Mark is using Garage Band but we're just using GB to trim the ends of recordings.  Adam will, again, make a master for us to send to DiscMakers.  

We had a stamp made (from original artwork by a niece).  Then inked/stamped the cd covers for the first cd-- we'd bought plain cd sleeves about the color of a brown paper bag and typed & printed our own liner notes.  We've got a stamp & ink for the cd we're working on now and have bought the brown sleeves, too. 

Thanks Robin..I DO have a Zoom H2 but I haven't used it much or very effectively and I had never heard of Oasis or DiscMakers.  A revelation, when I visited their websites.  I was wondering how everybody and their brother seems to have CDs.  It doesn't have to be a huge investment, evidently. I'll look into this.  Have you done this and do you use an audio editing app?

Oh, Janene, how lovely! 

My two cents' worth:  Buy a Zoom recorder and make your own own record using Oasis or DiscMakers for reproduction.  

Thanks Elvensong.  I can see myself PLAYING in the park, but probably not SINGING.  It would just feel weird to just break out into song..for someone shy about doing it in the first place.  I do love to chat about the dulcimer though, and there is always curiosity. Still waiting to hear from the F.Market. It's an interesting dynamic...I'm pretty OK with playing in public...but SINGING is an entirely different thing. Thanks. Always working on more songs...hope you like some of them.

I also love to find a shady spot at a park and play. People will stop by and listen for awhile then move on. It's very relaxing and there are no time constraints, you play when you want and where you want for as long as you want. Make a picnic of it!

I am so glad to hear you are reconsidering. You really have a nice "brand" if you will. It's compelling and captivating. 

Keep posting videos - I'm a huge fan if you can't tell. 

Thank you Dusty...such thoughtful insight. I really appreciate your sharing your thoughts on this with me!  I have just booked a weekly lesson and laid out my goals to my teacher..he gets me totally..I already feel more focused and am excited to have an hour planned to tweek and ask questions as they come up...I'm EXCITED.

Janene, the intimate collaboration you've developed between your voice and the dulcimer accompaniment might be something that does not lend itself to the kind of studio recording you describe, where you lay down one track at a time. But by the same token, I don't think I'd be so taken with your music if there were a guitarist adding chords behind your vocals or something like that.  There is a naked honesty, a minimalist quality to your music that is quite compelling. It honors the song and the vocals in ways that would be compromised by too much else going on.  Yes, a fiddle taking an instrumental interlude might be nice here and there, and perhaps you would just have fun playing with someone else--in which case you should do it-- but I don't think you should do it because you think your music will improve. You have a pretty unique thing going on right now.

As always, thanks so much Dusty.  I tried recording a couple of years ago (can't believe it's been that long) and did NOT enjoy the process. This was a friend who was aware of my limits as a musician. He had me play the song separately, and put my vocals over it.  When I heard the play back, I hated it....it sounded so forced. That's the way he wanted to do it....so I quit after we did 3 songs.  I got the MP3s from him and that's all, for the $500 I paid out for that 1 day.  I AM now considering going to my local guitar instructor whose been a mentor to me.  He has a recording studio and is a very supportive type of person.  Maybe resume some kind of lessons with an "eye" to polishing things up to record.  I really just want to get organized and be better. 

I've also taken Elvensong's advice and emailed my local Farmers' Market about getting a slot to perform. Haven't heard back yet.  If I'm honest...what I REALLY want, is a collaborator. Someone to play and sing with...doesn't matter what instrument..and doing almost ANYTHING in public, might help me be seen and heard so that I might find someone with similar music sensibilities.  The FEW times I've been able to play with someone, it has been such a wonderful experience. I've been talking about taking these baby steps for at least 5 years now.  Time is getting away from me.

Janene, I always love listening to your songs.  You've developed a style of play that accompanies your voice just perfectly.

As an alternative to performing, perhaps you might consider recording.  You easily have a CD's worth of tunes that I would love to have assembled together.

Elvensong..I had given up on the thought of it....I'll think on it some more.  I had done some farmer's markets and was a pathway player at some historic events and celtic festivals around here...but that got me over PLAYING in public. SINGING makes me feel so much more vulnerable and I'm hobbled to the printed sheet for lyrics which doesn't seem right. I can't seem to memorize. I play occasionally at a wine bar (he lets me come when I feel like) and I've sung a few lines when the place was empty..just to vocalize in a public space. A friend asked me to a dementia residence...have quavered, but collecting a "nursing home" repertoire, in case I can push myself. I envy your ability to share..trying to make it not such a big deal, in my head. Thought I'd content myself with sharing songs on video.

Hey Janene,

What helped me get over the jitters was to play a few farmers markets. The crowds are small and folks are there to see everything not just the musicians so it takes a lot of pressure off. The dulcimer is such a sweet and relatively obscure instrument that people are fascinated with the sound regardless of how well you play.

And as I said earlier, you don't have a weakness to worry about: your playing style and voice are fantastic and you always choose the best songs to share. People will gobble you up and come back for more!
 

I've attended open mics where the performer was not very good at all, but they played and sang with such passion that there wasn't a dry eye in the room.

You have a real talent and people would love to hear you!

Thank you for listening. Val..missed you here of late.

Elvensong, You are so encouraging, thanks..I'm clearly paralyzed with insecurity as I've made a couple of half attempts to experience performing but I retreat back to just making these videos which has been satisfying.  But thanks... Perhaps if I could find a playing partner to help "get over it"

Thank you Terry Wilson and Gordon-Hardy, I really appreciate your listening and commenting.

Irene, this song is particularly easy.  I have (very recently) started a blog, where I offer the lyrics and chords I use for the songs, and in one case, so far...possibly more..make a video explaining what strum, or picking patterns I've chosen etc. I'm learning about blogging as I go along (and it shows, pretty rough...) Janene's "singing" blog

Beautiful Jan, lovely version.

Oh how I wish you lived closer then 14 hours away.  I LOVE your style of picking and would love to learn that style.  Not fast or wild and BAMB BAMB BAMB....but played with meaning and simply lovely.   thank you so much for such a ballad.  aloha, irene

This is a lovely rendition Janene! Thank you so much. I like the maple leaf sound holes and inlays on your K. Simmerman.