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hammered dulcimer
Say NO to Boring
by Linda Ratcliff
Are you bored of being bored, because being bored is BORING?
Say NO To Boring
Have you ever been to a jam session and wondered how many times they're going to repeat the same tune?
Have you ever gone to the nursing home to share your music, and watched your audience nodding off to sleep - bored by your performance?
Just as "gorgeous" is the ultimate compliment for a woman, "boring" is the most dreaded description of a performance a musician can hear.
So let's say "NO…
Something Else New! Sarah Armstrong
by Linda Ratcliff
The key to success is so simple ... just practice and then practice some more.
We have another new lesson ready for you this week - this time for our hammered dulcimer players. The tune is known by the name of the person who played it, Sarah Armstrong.
Sarah Gray Armstrong (3/18/1883 - 8/12/1957) was a well-known fiddle player in Pennsylvania. She began playing the fiddle when she was five, and learned most of her tunes from her uncle and father who were also accomplis…
How Many Dulcimers?
by Linda Ratcliff
If you are not willing to learn, no one can help you.
If you are determined to learn, no one can stop you.
How Many Dulcimers is TOO Many Dulcimers? I recently watched a video in which Vince Gill talked about his collection of antique Martin guitars. He has still quite an impressive array of guitars, although he lost 50 in the Nashville flood of 2010. But, of all the rare and valuable guitars in his collection, he said the guitar he treasures the most is his father's guitar (…
New Lesson-Cold Frosty Morning
Steve & Vi Wickam play Cold Frosty Morning
Vi Wickam has provided us with a new lesson on DulcimerCrossing.com for the Fiddle Series. He and Steve play the tune at the Swingfingers studio above while recording for their duo, Fiddle Whamdiddle's debut CD Old School Old-Time
Cold Frosty Morning is a wonderful old tune in a minor mode. Take a look at Vi's Demonstration here.
Subscribe to DulcimerCrossing to have complete access to this and all of our lessons!
…The Iceberg Illusion
We see the trophies, not the sweat.
We see the diplomas, not the years of study and homework.
We see outstanding performances, not the hours and hours of practice.
by Linda Ratcliff
The Iceberg Illusion
I came across this illustration and it really resonated in my heart. There is this glamour around success that seems to appear when you have "made it." Although I work behind the scenes - writing newsletters, uploading lessons, and answering student inquiries, the rest of our Dulcimer…
New Dulcimer Club Listing
by Linda Racliff & Steve Eulberg
on DulcimerCrossing.com
As we’ve been watching all the dulcimer groups on Facebook, we have noticed the same question keeps popping up everywhere.
People who are new to playing the dulcimer, and those who have just moved to a new community, are looking for a dulcimer club to join. Since EverythingDulcimer.com is no longer active, our handy list for finding clubs has gone away.
And so w…
Concise Guide to Chord Symbols
by Steve Eulberg
These questions get asked frequently so here is a guide to help you decode the chord symbols that you may often see above the musical notation:
A Chord (by definition a triad) is made up of 3 specific pitches (1-3-5 steps of the scale.)
A Chord Symbol is short hand for which steps are intended.
1. When a Single Capital letter is used, it indicates a Major chord (no alterations in the 1-3-5 plan)
e.g. C = C-E-G
2. If there is a low…
Mark Alan Wade Live Event
by Steve Eulberg
We are excited to have national champion, Mark Alan Wade, aka the Professor, share music for our monthly Live Event for Premium Members of DulcimerCrossing.com
Tomorrow Night:
Monday, Dec. 10th 5:00 PST | 6:00 CST | 7:00 MST | 8:00 EST
This is a secret (ssh!) show, but you can tune in here.
The transition from competitor to colleague is often a very quick and smooth one in the dulcimer world. I first met Mark as a competitor at Winfield this is certain true in our cas…
Dulcimer Articles Archive
Since appearing on the cover of Dulcimer Players News in 2002 (see above), Steve has been writing articles to share what he has learned with the dulcimer community.
Dulcimersessions.com was a website hosted by Mel Bay Publications and was coordinated and edited by Lois Hornbostel. Sadly, the website is no longer hosted and all of the resources published there are lost to the bits and bytes of time in the internet age.
Dulcimer Players News is a quarterly magazine for enthusiasts o…
God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
by Steve Eulberg DulcimerCrossing is excited to announce and brand new Hammered Dulcimer Lesson set in time for the Holidays! God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen is a popular, minor mode English carol from the late 1800's. Here, Steve demonstrates 5 different locations and keys in which to play this carol, also demonstrating the Rhythmic Displacement that he used when recording this tune on his 2003 CD 'Twas in the Moon of Wintertime. You can listen to the tune here. It has also been added to the les…
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