dholeton

Folkcraft also sells fretboards if the cardboard dulcimer maker doesn't sell them. Folkcraft I rigged a temporary method for attaching an old Lawrence guitar sound hole pickup in the strum hollow of one of my dulcimers and I liked it better than a Dean Markley "stick on" acoustic pickup. I am one of the few who strums in the strum hollow. I actually made a dulcimer with less frets so the strum hollow would be closer to where many other people strum. Lawrence Pickup Dave

I don't think the back brace locations are critical. I constructed a dulcimer from a kit and didn't like that the braces were directly under the sound holes. I built another kit (same model) and I moved the braces so they were not so visible. Dave

Any music editing software that we can obtain has its own learning curve. It will take some effort to learn on our own, watch any available tutorials, or gather other information to learn how to use any music editing software (not just TablEdit). Music editing software is also a great learning tool. I've learned a lot about sheet music in using my software, so I think obtaining music editing software is the start of a new learning path. Dave

Jack is probably the only person of whom I know who has made a dulcimer out of dogwood other than myself. Dogwood is a very hard wood (harder than oak, hickory, black walnut, some rosewood varieties, and other hardwoods). Check to see if he has any dogwood dulcimers. (I'm not a person who makes dulcimers for sale like Jack). Dave

I can hardly wait. First of all, I want to fix some of the tab files I have uploaded since I see errors in some of them. I would like to replace the ones with errors. Also, I have some files I submitted that either don't have and audio sample or the audio sample is just a midi file. I would like all of my audio files to be mp3 files with recordings of a real dulcimer playing the tablature. Thanks Dave

Years ago there was a site for sharing audio. I can't remember the site but a group for dulcimer players was started. The site allowed people to put up their hand if they had a song to play. So, when it came time for a person to play something, that person would click their mic "on" and play or sing their song. It was such a lot of fun because it seemed to me like playing live on the radio. We had some fairly large groups from anywhere in the country on some nights. Some people would share more than one song each night and some people just joined the session to listen. There was a space for chatting while each person was playing. Zoom might be a good way to organize such a session today and I also recommend one person with mic on and the rest of the players just listening or playing along with their mic on mute. The added benefit of Zoom is that video of each player would be possible. Dave

Excellent Burt The attachments are very helpful, too. Dave

I use a wooden stand made for mountain dulcimers. Here is a link with more information. Dave

I tried a thumb pick and finger picks years ago when I was first learning to play dulcimer. I got them to fit but I didn't work with them long enough to determine if they were beneficial. Dave

Folkcraft might have brass strings similar to what you are trying to find. Dave https://www.folkcraft.com/collections/string-wire-and-string-sets?page=5

This is very good information. It took me a long time to learn I didn't have to play or sing every part of every song. Dave

The only other suggestion I have might be if building one from scratch doesn't work, there are several companies that sell kits. It would still be something you assembled and maybe added some of your own personal design. I have built McSpadden kits successfully, but FolkCraft and StewMac and maybe other kits are also available. Dave

Question: Has anyone ever taped on a temporary 1/12 fret with a paperclip or guitar string? Someone recommended this to me and I think it's a great idea. Do you have a photo of how you did this? and where you put the tape? And how did you get the clip to work on all 3 strings? Suggested Answer Number 1 (I'm thinking others will share their ideas too): I wanted a fret under just the melody strings for one song. I filed a finish nail to the size of a fret and applied Scotch tape under the middle string. I removed the nail soon after so the tape didn't damage the finish on the fretboard.

I'm sorry to hear about the cancellation but it is probably the safest decision. Dave

This song was released in 1971. I was just getting out of high school and mustaches and long hair were the way many of us managed our appearance. John's songs tell wonderful stories. If he would have made it through, I wonder if he would have composed a virus song. It would be a great story song to add to his long list. Dave