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RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
Good one Stephen.
Nice things. Any ideas on how the different shapes change sound? I´m a total ignorant when it comes to dulcimers, but I like the sound and looks. I´ve never seen or touched one
So a parallel question. An idea which I have. To build myself a stringed instrument that is relaxing and easy to play. (both flamenco guitar and violin/fiddle dont fit that category) I can see myself sitting on the floor and freaking out, kinda meditative orientation, free form new age relax.
How does a dulcimer fit in there? I was thinking about a relatively small harp, but I know nothing about harps as well. Or is there something else with a sweet ringy tone.
Posts: 1108
Joined: Sep. 29 2009
From: Back in Boston
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
what about one of these. tone woods are needed, some craftmanship as well. playing chords is a breeze and no fingernails are needed--hence, no worrys about length, breakage, etc. not quite sure how one would do paco inspired picado runs though.
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Posts: 482
Joined: May 6 2009
From: Iran (living in London)
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to Anders Eliasson)
Hi Anders,
Here's a link to a chap busking by playing Iranian dulcimer (Santoor). It's a good one because it shows in the beginning what a pain in the back side is to tune 72 strings! But the guy is actually very good and it's worth listening:
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
Keith, what is it and how do you play it.
Argaith, Hammer dulcimers are nice, but I dont want to hammer....
A thing I like about the dulcimer is its simplicity... But maybe I would put all the frets on and not only the ones used in folkmusic (oh... that word again)
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
I love the Persian instruments, but those are from the Psaltery family of instruments. A group of Western and Easter instruments which all like lap harps. They can be hammered or plucked by fingers. The hammer dulcimer is a really a kind of Psalter.
The dulcimers I'm talking about are Appalachian Dulcimers. They are rooted in Swedish instruments called the Langeleik and the Nikelharpa. They are American versions of these Swedish instruments.
The Appalachian Dulcimers are divided into two time periods, Pre Revival and Post Revival. Pre Revival means they are before the national interest arose in the dulcimer in the 1960's with the Appalachian music. The pre revival dulcimers were extremely variable in size and shape. The post revival dulcimers, mostly made commercially, largely take two shapes, hour glass and boat shape. If you look at these pictures of pre revival forms you can see the freedom with which the makers built them.
More about the notes and stringing later.
Anders if you PM your address in Spain I'll photo copy my dulcimer building books and this catalog and send it to you.
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
Argaith, thats very beautifull. I love it, But its to complicated and instrument for what I asked. Keith, the same goes for this one. Dampers and everything. Complicated.
Back on topic. Are the Mountain dulcimers always fretted with "missing" frets?
I can see that its close to a langeleik, but not so much to a nyckelharpa, which is more or less a hurdygurdy with a bow instead of a wheel.
Fredom is good, but I like the standard hourglass one with heart shaped soundholes. Its so sweet.
Stephen, thanks for your kind offer. I dont think I can find energy/time for a good while to build my freaky new age thingy. But lets say that I contact you if I suddenly find a lot of time/energy and want to build a dulcimer. For now, its just an idea.
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to Leñador)
You can use it Kasey, it's obtainable on this site. Just click on your "profile" at the top of the page, then scroll down to "choose avatar" there's lots to choose from. Doesn't hurt for us Californios to be proud of our flag, something like Ron was with the Scottish flag... I always admired that.
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to Anders Eliasson)
quote:
Back on topic. Are the Mountain dulcimers always fretted with "missing" frets?
Ah the key to the Dulcimer it exactly that....you see Dave K.s post with two dulcimers? Well the one with chromatic finger board should be called a Dulcitar, a dulcimer/guitar hybrid. A true Appalachian dulcimer is set up with a diatonic scale fret board, usually C major according to which tonic note you tune to.
There are usually three or four stings. A couple of drone strings tuned in unison and then a bass an octave below is a really basic tuning. Sometimes a second bass a forth apart is added above the lowest bass. Sometimes the basses drone and higher notes play melody....it varies and there are no supoer hard andfast rules.
So the bass note is called the "noter" because it plays a melody and the drone strings can be fretted or left open to support the melody. There are dozens of regional and family variations on these basic tunings. To get deeper into it you would have to go to read in depth books.
Ralph Lee Smith- The Story of the Dulcimer is pretty good. An the Smithsonian catalog for the organology ( examples of instruments) or perhaps internet sites about dulcimers.
If you listen to the difference between the chromatic dulcitar and the true dulcimer you notice a big difference in sound. The chromatic version just does not have the ability to make the same sound the dulcimer makes. It's basically the same as playing a guitar on your lap.
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to Leñador)
quote:
The dulcimer is not traditionally a chromatic instrument
The dulcimer resonates like crazy because it's not fighting with itself over how divide equal temperament. It plays one key really well, but that is all it needs to do. The chromatic example is not nearly as potent, hear it?
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
This with the sound confuses me. and I agree of the 2 instruments that DaveK shoves, the trad. one sounds right... Sounds like a dulcimer. Sweet and open. The other sounds like a guitar. Tight and a lot harder And the whole feel is that its two different instruments with the Dulcitar having more strings, more tension etc.
BUT, if one made the trad one. Exactly the same, same tuning, same strings same whatever, but filled the gaps, where there are no frets, with frets, I dont think it would change the sound????? You would just get a 12 tone instrument and not a fixed scale instrument. Maybe not the best for trad. appalacian music, but better for "free form open scale brainwashed new age freekie music".
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
Anders, I just put the reference to the nikelarpa to see if anyone was paying attention.
Here are some of the German style zithers that were made in Pennsylvania in the mid to late 19th century that inspired the dulcimer. You can see they are simple in body construction. The one of the bottom was a bowed zither.
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RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
This is an example of how localized certain designs became. These are from a town/area called Galax. They made these wide boat shaped instruments. I find them quite pleasing to the eye. All the details like sound holes and head stocks are very open to interpretation. There were no set standards. Each maker freely created. That is why I decided to research these because each makers work is so individual.
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Joined: Oct. 29 2006
From: Olympia, WA in the Great Pacific Northwest
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
Seriously stoked on this thread because it has triggered a memory of a long-ago favorite song of mine that I’ve been thinking about, but could not identify, ever since I lost the crappy cassette dub of it fifteen or so years ago. And now I’m back from my local record store with a copy of the CD in hand. Also nabbed a cheap used copy of Yusef Lateef’s Eastern Sounds while I was there.
So: THANK YOU.
I always assumed this was a hammer dulcimer he's playing, but it’s apparently two modified table zithers, a Celestaphon and a Phonoharp, played in tandem. Whatever it is, is sounds killer:
RE: Dulcimer porn - Old Style. (in reply to estebanana)
The volumes and sculptural qualities of this one remind me of civil war era iron clad ships. I doubt that is intentional, but it's the kind of thing I look at which interests me. However many dulcimers do have details which are visual reminders of other objects like farm tools and of course boats.
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