Mountain Dulcimer Mania

Today I'm itching to play my mountain dulcimer, and I'm thinking once I retire and move to the Asheville / Hendersonville, NC area, I can join a mountain dulcimer group!  I think that would be so much fun!

I was shocked and amazed when I moved to Charleston, SC and learned that even the professional musicians here, for the most part, had never heard of a mountain dulcimer before.  Seriously.  Can you believe it?  They thought all dulcimers were hammered dulcimers.  Wow.  That thought had never even occurred to me before.

Amazing.

This brings the teacher out in me, so I feel I must educate all the poor people who are missing out on a whole genre of wonderful music.  


I did this presentation for a Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) meeting in Summerville, SC back in August 2010.  

I hope you learn something new!

The Mountain Dulcimer from Alice Hambright

I've been playing the mountain dulcimer for some years now, but I don't fancy myself very good.  I'm an intermediate player at best.  I mostly play alone just to feed my soul, but when I'm very lucky I get to go to Dulcimer Festivals and play with my friends and dulcimer teachers.  Many of them play and/or build mountain dulcimers for a living, so they are much better players than me.  It is such a joy to hear them play, and playing with them in a group is just a delight!  I will LOVE getting to do that more often after I retire and move next year.

At the North Georgia Foothills Association Dulcimer Festival
in Unicoi State Park, Georgia 2002

Check out some of my favorite Mountain Dulcimer websites if you'd like to know more:

• McSpadden Mountain Dulcimers
• North Georgia Foothills Dulcimer Association
• Paul Andry, a favorite dulcimer teacher and performer
  • Paul teaches at Snowbird Mountain Lodge's yearly Dulcimer Clinic and is a featured performer and teacher in many of the yearly dulcimer festivals around the country.
• Stephen Seifert, a favorite dulcimer teacher and performer
• Sarah Elizabeth, a favorite dulcimer teacher and performer
• Doug Felt, a favorite dulcimer and pennywhistle teacher and performer (Doug passed away on October 2, 2014. He is missed by all who knew him.)
• Joe Collins, a favorite dulcimer teacher, luthier and performer

 There are many others, of course.  Some, like Bill Taylor, don't have a website.

I'll close this morning with a real treat for you.  Stephen Seifert playing Whiskey Before Breakfast on the mountain dulcimer.  This should get your toes to tappin' for sure!


 
NOTE TO MY BOSS: No, I am not having whiskey before breakfast before work today! -grin-