Hello from The Garden State

[Trillian]

Hi all, I've been browsing your information a bit, and since I registered so that I could use the 'search' function I thought I'd introduce myself. I live in NJ, and have been playing several years. My current acoustic guitars are a 110e that I bought in '06 and an Epiphone PR775-S Orville that I bought in '93. Both nicely made guitars with solid spruce tops and laminated bodies. The Epi has rosewood sides and back, a bit of a different sound than the Taylor. Also sounds noticeably better now than when I first bought it (long story there...). The Taylor has just been awesome from the start. Although I will eventually get a really nice all solid guitar I doubt I'll ever get rid of the 110, it's just such a great guitar. It was the nicest instrument I tried when I bought it (was looking in the $700 - $1000 ish range) sounds great on a mic or plugged in, I gig with it, record with it, I take it to my Mom's house on the beach, all with no worries.

The nicest piece of wood in my house though is a dulcimer that a guy in Berea Kentucky made, that one's lots of fun!

Thanks for the great forum and great information.

[TaylorGirl]

Welcome from a fellow dulcimer fan. I'd to hear more about your dulcimer. I have a custom Berch, a McSpadden, a Folkcraft, and a Clemmer (and an Olympia Walkabout).

[Trillian]

Nice, a dulcimer fan! Mine is by Warren May, a furniture/dulcimer maker in Berea, c. '99.





I'm a lousy photographer, but you can see the top wood has some interesting coloration going on. I haven't played many dulcimers, just this one and the 'First Act' that my Mom found at a yard sale for a dollar and gave to me. I think the May has the edge in tone and playability... Sounds really nice to me though they don't seem that well known. They're not that spendy either, between four and five hundred dollars unless you get something exotic. The peg tuners are kind of fussy to get right, but once you do they pretty much stay put. The 'First Act' just hangs on the wall these days, but it did its job and got me hooked. I'd like to get another, possibly with gear tuners so I can tune on the fly. I'm open to a 6-1/2 fret too, but not really interested in a full chromatic. When people ask me what a dulcimer is I like to tell them it's sort of like a guitar with all the wrong notes left out of it lol. I definitely need to pick up a capo too.

I hear good things about McSpadden and Folkcraft, but haven't heard of the others. Do you have any pics? The walkabout sounds interesting.

[CodeBlueEMT]

 Hi Trillian. Welcome to the UTGF.

[TaylorGirl]

Very familiar with Warren May. A lot of folks who attend the Evart Dulcimer Festival (many of whom come from the OH, KY area) have his dulcimers. Your WM is beautiful and definitely unique. My custom is made by Doug Berch. It's curly sassafras and walnut:


The McSpadden is all cherry; the Folkcraft is a butternut/walnut; and the Clemmer (called a Tennessee Sweetie Church Style) is sassafras/walnut. The Olympia is oriented like a guitar. It is spruce/palo escrito. I have the Deluxe version. You can see them here:
http://www.walkaboutdulcimer.com/products_walkabout.htm

Guitar is my first love, but I do love playing dulcimer. Dulcimer players are interesting....I think, some of the nicest folks you'll ever meet.

[Jersey tuning]

Hi, and welcome. What exit do you live near? I'm by GSP 168.

[Trillian]

Very nice instrument, how do you like the single course for the melody string? I love the unusual woods that pop up in dulcimers, I guess from a tradition of using local materials.

I really don't know exit numbers, I'm a bad New Jerseyan. I live up near the top, a couple more exits on 80 and you're in the Water Gap.

Thanks for the welcomes!

[Jersey tuning]

Most of us are north-south oriented.  You're out in the western wilds.  The bit about exit numbers is a running gag, especially by deprecating out-of-staters who think NJ is epitomized by the Elizabeth gas refineries off the Turnpike.

Driving today from exit 168 to exit 0.  Yes, Cape May is exit 0.

[TaylorGirl]

I use a single melody string on 3 of my dulcimers. I play chord/melody and it works great for that. My playing has more clarity. Try it, if you don't like it, you can always revert back.

[Trillian]

Do you use a different gauge it it's a single string?

[TaylorGirl]

Yes, I go a little heavier.

[Cindy]

Hi Trillian and welcome to the UTGF. So in which part of Jersey are you located? Northern? Central? Southern? I lived in Woodbridge for 5 years. Nice to have you here.

[Trillian]

Hi Cindy I live in the NW corner of the state, not too far from the Delaware Water Gap. There's some nice country around here!