Strumming with a Quill - Technique Video

Strumelia has asked that I post this short video of onestrumming technique with a quill here in the Drone and noter players group.

It shows one way of working with a quill. I tend to use a quill for my personal noter and drone playing because I like the tone a quill produces. I have found that, for me, a quill works best from an in-strum lead. As they are more flexible than a pick they flick off the strings so, to emphasise the melody, I find that I really need to come off the melody string last (in-strum lead) and into space. It helps me isolate the melody string. I'm affraid that when using a quill it is a case where being an in-strummer or and out-strummer does matter! When playing with a stiff guitar pick I would actually out-strum lead as the technique for generating tone and clarity is very different. My grip with my index finger extended a little down the quill helps with accuracy, and the odd note comes from flexing that finger as muchas whipping the quill. My hand is centered over the melody string not the middle of the fretboard. Again this helps to emphasise the melody and allows me to strike the melody string both ways in time and accurately.

Notice just how many 'air' strokes I do to leave holes in the rhythm and how the back stroke (out-strum) is used for fills (to ring the drones), tripplets and 1/8th notes. The quill itself is very thin and flexible. I don't play hard andloud with a quill but find that I can get the the voice of the dulcimer to carry by playing with clarity, so that is my goal. I find that I can be fast and accurate with a quill but in a very, very different way to using a pick. Don't expect tohold a quill and use it in the same way you use a pick.

My strumming is rarely over the strum hollow - the tone is better a little further up the fretboard and you will see lots of old dulcimers with quill damage about a 3rd along the fretboard from the bridge. I have wondered if the strum hollow was actually a bow hollow on a lot of old dulcimers - and as you know many were built without a strum hollow at all because, for a quill, it is in the wrong place!!!!

Personally, I think that good right hand work with aquills (or pick) is far harder than learning to use a noter. It takes a lot of experimentation and practice, practice, practice. One of the practices I do is to try and play only the melody string but with my stroke still covering across but fractionally abovethe middle and bass drones - it is an over exageration but useful practice. That way, when I'm playing fast, I can hold off hitting the drones (especially the bass) until I wantthem to ring again and so not overpower the melody.

The video will be easier to see in full screen and high quality.

Robin