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Topic: Dulcimers? |
Jeff Metz Jr.
From:
York, Pennsylvania, USA
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Posted 2 Sep 2013 11:45 pm |
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Are dulcimers played with a bar? I've recently aquired an old 4 string and the way its fretted for scales( or modes ) is amazingly simple, yet cool.
I have no idea if this instrument belongs or relates to this forum in any way but Any input will be greatly appreciated!
Thank you all
-Jeff
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Mullen G2 SD10 , Lil Izzy Buffer, Goodrich 120 volume pedal, Boss DD-7, Peterson Strobo flip, Peavey Nashville 112 |
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Jeff Metz Jr.
From:
York, Pennsylvania, USA
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Posted 2 Sep 2013 11:47 pm
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I may be ignorant when it comes to this particular instrument, but I may have just answered my own question. The Instrument is fretted! I would still like some insight into these instruments. What is something like this worth?
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Mullen G2 SD10 , Lil Izzy Buffer, Goodrich 120 volume pedal, Boss DD-7, Peterson Strobo flip, Peavey Nashville 112 |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 6:34 am
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Moved to Music from Steel Without Pedals.
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A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
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Michael Maddex
From:
Northern New Mexico, USA
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 8:22 am
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As you have noticed, it's not played with a steel, so it's not a steel instrument. It is usually fretted with a noter or sometimes with the fingers.
You might get an idea of value and where to get some more info here:
http://elderly.com/search/elderly?terms=+appalachian+dulcimer&x=12&y=8
HTH. 
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"For every expert, there is an equal and opposite expert." -- Arthur C. Clarke |
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Tom Sosbe
From:
Rushville,In
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 8:26 am dulcmer
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| the dulcimer is played across your lap. fretted with right hand and strummed with the left. in the old days they where strummed with a quill. today most use a guitar pick. |
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Alvin Blaine
From:
Picture Rocks, Arizona, USA
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Jeff Scott Brown
From:
O'Fallon Missouri, USA
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 9:03 am Re: dulcmer
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| Tom Sosbe wrote: |
| the dulcimer is played across your lap. fretted with right hand and strummed with the left. in the old days they where strummed with a quill. today most use a guitar pick. |
I have a mountain dulcimer (that is what is pictured, as opposed to a hammered dulcimer which is altogether different). What you described is backward of what just about every right handed player does. It is possible there are right handed players who play it that way, but it would be unconventional. Normally a right handed player would strum with their right hand and fret with their left. I can't see the strings in his picture well enough to tell if it is strung left handed or not.
See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INu3UQ35yVk (that was just the first video that popped up in a search for me).
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Peavey Nashville 112
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Mark van Allen
From:
Watkinsville, Ga. USA
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 10:13 am
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When I was in college I saw a concert where the guitarist (Ken Bloom) played rock on a dulcimer, very well, and it was one of several incidents that have reminded me to look at wider potential for "niche" instruments. Traditionally, they're strummed with a feather quill, pick or fingers, and noted with a small dowel rod or fingers. Some people fingerpick in a kind of Atkins style. Here's a video clip that reminds me somewhat of the playing I heard years ago. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izmDzZmxYmY
I flirted with a career as a luthier sometime back and built 15 or 16 lap dulcimers. They're really neat instruments.
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Last edited by Mark van Allen on 4 Sep 2013 9:08 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Tom Sosbe
From:
Rushville,In
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 12:43 pm dulcimer
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jeff is correct. sometimes one hand don't know what the other is doing.  |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 4:00 pm
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http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=162826&highlight=
Check out the above post.
Musically, the Mountain/Appalachian Dulcimer is from the family of Board Zithers, and it originates from the Swedish Hummel. I've been building board zithers of various sorts for about 55 years.
As has been said, you can play it with a noter, a quill, or a plectrum, or you can finger-pick it, with or without finger picks. Traditionally it is also played with a bow. To enable this you need a slightly rounded bridge, or the bow won't touch the centre strings.
I've built dulcimers which can also be played as lap steels. It's my opinion that the Hawaiian Lap Steel originated with lap dulcimers introduced into Hawaii from India. |
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Michael Maddex
From:
Northern New Mexico, USA
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 4:39 pm
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| Alan Brookes wrote: |
http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=162826&highlight=
Check out the above post. |
Also:
http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?p=2073882&highlight=
Alan, thanks for the reminder.
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"For every expert, there is an equal and opposite expert." -- Arthur C. Clarke |
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Brett Day
From:
Pickens, SC
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 8:31 pm
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| In the '90s, there was a great dulcimer player named David Schnaufer and in 1991, he played a beautiful instrumental version of Hank Williams', "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry". There were two videos of the song, and in one video, David is seen playing the dulcimer on the steps of the Ryman Auditorium after a recorded intro of Hank Williams introducing the song. David died in 2006, I think. He also played "San Antonio Rose" on dulcimer too |
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Jan Viljoen
From:
Pretoria, South Africa
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Posted 3 Sep 2013 10:32 pm Dulcimers etc
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You guys are so interesting and you have so much experience with rare instruments.
Alan Brooks is a genius with all sorts of stuff. Go boy!
In another thread I read about Bob Hoffnar's link to a strange beast that looks like a Chinese lap steel.
I will add another thread about a modern Hurdy Gurdy.
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Mark van Allen
From:
Watkinsville, Ga. USA
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Posted 4 Sep 2013 9:12 am
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| Quote: |
| It's my opinion that the Hawaiian Lap Steel originated with lap dulcimers introduced into Hawaii from India. |
Alan, I've also read there were many Indian sailors on early boat arrivals to Hawaii. There are apparently several very ancient Indian instruments played with a slide. It's fascinating to think about that possibility of the one guy who saw the one guy who slid that one thing... and started noodling and that one other guy picked up on it and...
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 4 Sep 2013 5:43 pm
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Yes Mark, there were several Indian instruments played with a slide. I'm inclined to think that the playing of string instruments with a slide goes back into antiquity, maybe as far as the hunting bow. It seems such a natural thing to do.
Here are a few of the many board zithers that I've built over the years.
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