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mountain dulcimer
Bloom
by Linda Ratcliff
The first year I taught school, I put up a bulletin board for my 3rd graders with the quote, “Bloom Where You Are Planted.” I probably was thinking that was a nice Biblical scripture to put up in the parochial school where I was teaching, but then I learned that advice didn’t really come from the Bible. It was actually written by St. Francis de Sales who lived from 1567 to 1622, but it still holds true today.
This age-old tip encourages resilience. Let’s face it … sometimes…
The Value of Partnership
by Linda Ratcliff
My son has a new puppy, part Yorkie and part Dachshund (a Dorkie), called Tipper. And he already owned a black Lab named CJ (after the Jeep CJ-10). Those two dogs have become fast friends, and they have a new hobby - chasing squirrels. Now before Tipper arrived, CJ chased the squirrels alone, but they would run under the shed and the game was quickly over. But now the two work it like a team. When the squirrels run under shed, Tipper chases them back out. Game on!
Warming u…
Be an OVERcomer!
I get notes from folks now and then telling me that, due to physical challenges, they are thinking about packing up the dulcimer and putting it away. I can relate. I’ve told you, my vision is giving me problems … can’t seem to see the strings on my hammered dulcimer and rely mostly on muscle memory. In addition, after an accident this summer, I can’t stand to play very long at a time. Even sitting at my piano, I only last about 10-15 minutes before my back hurts too much.
Is it time to just giv…
Creativity
I taught school for three years in a very small, parochial elementary school. The first two years, I had a combined classroom with 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders. But the next year, I was told I would be teaching the combined 6th, 7th, and 8th grade classroom. OH. MY. GOODNESS.
First problem, I couldn’t use any of the materials I had developed that worked so well with the sweet middle graders. Second problem, they were TEENagers. Third problem, I needed to come up with some lessons and activities t…
How to Recover From a Baaaaaaad Performance
You just played the last note in a performance, and you know you messed up. It was bad. You let your nerves get the best of you, and the longer you played, the worse it got. You want to go straight home and lick your wounds. But you can’t just run out the back door. There are people approaching you already … with smiles on their faces. (Why????) What to do … what to do.
- Accept compliments and congratulations graciously. Even though, to your own ears, the performance sounded like a disaste…
If My Dulcimer Could Talk
Your faithful, highly treasured, beautiful dulcimer is sitting by itself over there in the corner. What would it say if it could talk? What if it could tell you what it’s really thinking? Well, I’ve taken a guess about a few things you might hear it say.
- I’m so honored that you chose me. Choosing your first dulcimer is important, because if the workmanship turns out to be an inferior quality, it may not hold its tuning properly. Many think they will start off with an inexpensive dulcimer,…
Staying Calibrated
My husband had open heart surgery last month and, with all the doctor appointments preceding the surgery, and a one-month vacation before that in Colorado, I haven’t had time to pick up my hammers and practice.
I have to admit, my hands and hammers have lost some of their calibration. And when people have come over to see my husband and keep him company during his recuperation, they see the hammered dulcimer on its stand in the living room and ask what it is. I explain about the instrument, but…
Muscle Memory Saved the Day
I wear glasses some of the time. I have distance glasses that are perfect for driving (well, at least I passed the driver’s test using them). I have reading glasses. I have computer glasses. I have glasses throughout the house on side tables and in my home office. I have more glasses and back-up glasses at the office where I work.
But I still have a problem. And, as I age, it is getting worse. I can’t see the strings on the hammered dulcimer clearly anymore.
I have experimented with different s…
Winning at Winfield
The Value of Contests
by Steve Eulberg
Defining what “winning” means to you.
For some people the notion of combining “competition” and “dulcimer” is oxymoronic. They just don’t go together! I see music competitions as an opportunity to prepare some music to share with appreciative listeners. (Where else can you buy such an attentive audience for $.05 a head?) ($10 entry fee/200 people) The process of preparing tunes for this kind of presentation is an intensive artistic endeavor!
I’ve …
The Gold Standard Dulcimer
Dulcimer players often joke about having DAD — Dulcimer Acquisition Disorder.
It’s true that most of us have more than one dulcimer, and some people have large collections of instruments. We can become addicted to “just one more instrument”. I, personally, have a relatively small collection, with “just” 5 mountain dulcimers (though, I have to admit that I also keep about a dozen student dulcimers and seem to have a revolving door of instruments passing through my home to pass onto young people …
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