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Post by Dick Glasgow on Mar 25, 2008 22:05:05 GMT 1
Hello Geoffblack & welcome to the Dulcimer Player's Forum.
We are all delighted that you are now a member and we look forward to your contributions to the discussions here.
Please tell us a little bit about yourself, your music & your Dulcimers.
Then, why not hop over to our Where are you? poll and click on your own area!
Cheers
'Ptarmigan'
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Post by geoffblack on Mar 30, 2008 17:11:43 GMT 1
Dear All
I'm basically a guitarist who has been (slowly) seduced by the mountain dulcimer.
25 years ago I picked up a cheap dulcimer in Barnstaple Pannier Market on a whim. Made locally but rather crudely with a strange assortment of woods - nigh on impossible to keep in tune. Still it intrigued me and when I started playing guitar fairly regularly I thought I'd leaven it with some dulcimer work. Getting serious about it now, I hit lucky when my local music shop in Leeds went over to an American trade show to get some high end guitars and came back with two early Californian Blue Lions. I splashed out on the prettier of the two, a rosewood hourglass with an abalone/brass rose inlaid on the fretboard - what is now the iconic Model IIR. I learnt one or two songs which have been standards in my repertoire and enjoyed doodling on it - but not much else.
Then I stopped serious playing for about 20 years (as you do with a family), until I was re-inspired by some workshops with the spectacularly talented John Shaw from Bristol and some unofficial sessions with other people from the Nonsuch Dulcimer Club.
From there on, one thing lead to about five others. I've imported over the past four years two other Blue Lions (including a 6 string Force D'Ossche) and a rather huge and noisy (but beautifully made) Bear Meadow. And I'm still learning to play - not as many tunes as songs, and most of them appropriately old timey or of appalachian origin. I went to Launde Abbey last October - the Nonsuch Club's annual residential dulcimer get together - and was inspired still further. JOIN and put your name down for the worhshops, you won't regret it!
Oh yes, and we also have a self-built hammered dulcimer, for good measure, which my wife uses.
Together we're running a local dulcimer session - for both species of dulcimer - in the West/Borders of Wales and we'd love to have others join us. Post me a message if you want to know when and where.
Best regards
Geoff
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