Growing Pains And Side Bender Stains
Hello, Everyone! And Happy Friday!
Today we're re-featuring an "In The Shop" from the spring of 2024. We'd just opened the floodgates for ordering the DulciVox, and it was also the last day to book a spot on the February 2025 Castaway Music Cruise at a substantial discount! Hope some of you were able to get in on one or both of those!
It also features that fascinating contraption - the side bender - which your newsletter editor thinks is such an amazing piece of equipment for dulcimer building. She's even seen it in person and was just awestruck!
Until next week,
Toya-Folkcraft-newsletter-editor-who-keeps-busy-spreading-the-dulcimer-joy-on-the-East-Coast-side
(April 5, 2024)
Good Morning, Y'all!
This has been a great week for dulcimer building. Dad, Casey, and Cheyenne have been working in the shop, and Pam in the sewing room, so we've been highly productive. I've spent my time this week lounging around on the beach, enjoying the sun and a chilled beverage, as usual. (And most of Y'all know that that last sentence was entirely a fabrication - our shop is in Northern Indiana. We have no beaches here, and for the past few weeks very little sun. It is too wet and sloppy to even work in the garden right now, so once we DO get some dry weather, it'll be a scramble to get the soil prepared for vegetable planting in a few weeks...)
Last week we opened up the Folkcraft DulciVox for ordering and it has been going very well. You're going to see a lot of our new model dulcimer on players' laps in the coming months. In case you missed it last week, here's a demonstration video, and here are the links to order, or design your own, DulciVox at Folkcraft.com.
Today is the LAST day for the 60% fare discount on next February's Castaway Music Cruise. After today, you'll be subject to all the (annoying and unpredictable) fare discounts that Norwegian Cruise Lines offers its potential passengers. I'll suggest that you sign up for the classes first ($299) since that's the limiting factor (we have a maximum class capacity of about 30 people) and then sign up for your cabin second. Registration for the music portion, and contact information for the cruise portion, are at the CastawayMusicCruise.com website.
And in the shop this week? I got you some photos of a Canarywood side-set that Cheyenne bent yesterday afternoon. This wood finishes out to a pale yellow, and has a tone remarkably similar to East Indian rosewood. But unlike rosewood, this comes to us from Central America, and doesn't have any governmental restrictions on harvest/export/import, so it is much less expensive. I mentioned "pale yellow," right? Check out what happened when this lumber was heated in our side bender:
Outside of side-set. The hole is where we'll mount the Fishman preamp after the dulcimer is fully lacquered.
The streaks of red, and the big, huge blotches of red (lower right) weren't there before the wood was heated. I'd guess there was a pocket of sap (bright red sap!) that when heated, leaked all over the sides. It went through to both sides of the lumber, and even stained our side bender!
Inside of the side-set.
Lower half of the side bender.
Upper half of the side bender.
The "sap" wasn't at all sticky - the side bender cured it to a glassy hardness. Cheyenne cleaned up the lumber with sandpaper, and it came off just fine, and looks "normal" again. The side bender, with the sheets of stainless steel? A razor blade/scraping tool made short work of the red blotches there, too.
So no catastrophe or anything, but this was something I hadn't run into before.
Kind of fun, what I learn even after making so many dulcimers in the Folkcraft shop!
Thanks for reading, Y'all - have a great weekend!
Richard Ash, luthier-who-was-worried-that-there-had-been-a-shop-injury-when-he-first-saw-the-red-marks-on-the-Canarywood
FOLKCRAFT® DULCIMER PLAYER OF THE WEEK: PATTY CURTIS
Folkcraft: How long have you been playing the dulcimer?
Patty: My friend Joy introduced the dulcimer to me 2 1/2 years ago. As a retired band director, this is my first string instrument - a new world for me! I really enjoy learning different techniques and playing songs of different genres.
Folkcraft: When did you get your first Folkcraft dulcimer?
Patty: I’ve been fortunate to attend dulcimer festivals in Milford, CT, Albany, NY, the Poconos, PA, and West Dover, VT. My McSpadden had been great to get me started, and I was looking forward to upgrading. During the Mountain Dulcimer Music Festival in Albany this past weekend, I purchased a beautiful second-hand Folkcraft, and I have been enjoying its gorgeous tone.
Folkcraft: Where do you enjoy playing your dulcimer?
Patty: On my own, I play daily at home - one of the benefits of being retired! I’m also fortunate to be a member of the NY Dulcimer Orchestra, directed by Carol Walker. We meet via Zoom every other week, and in person once a month in New Paltz, NY. Carol’s extraordinary arrangements are a joy to play with others who...
FOLKCRAFT® PLAYERS - WE LOVE HEARING FROM YOU!!!
We are thrilled to welcome yet another new Folkcraft player this week - Ms. Patty Curtis. So happy to meet you, Patty! There's still plenty of room for more of you to get onboard, folks! Maybe we could feature you and your Folkcraft dulcimer(s) next week?
Who's Going To Write In Next? Keep The Family Growing?
It really is super-easy to join our online dulcimer community. Just three easy steps:
1) Send an email to: newsletter@folkcraft.com
2) With the answers to the four questions below
3) Attach a photo of yourself with your Folkcraft dulcimer(s)
We look forward to receiving your submission & featuring you in our newsletter real soon!
1. How long have you been playing the dulcimer?
2. When did you get your first Folkcraft dulcimer?
3. Where do you enjoy playing your dulcimer?
4. What other hobbies, or interests, do you have besides playing dulcimer?
WE'RE OFFERING A $25 FOLKCRAFT GIFT CARD TO ANYONE WHO ANSWERS THE FOUR EASY QUESTIONS LISTED ABOVE, AND SENDS IN A PHOTO (OF YOU WITH YOUR FOLKCRAFT DULCIMER). IT'S REALLY SO EASY TO DO!
WE JUST LOVE HEARING FROM Y'ALL!
This Week's Featured YouTube Video:
This week Mandy shows you how to play in the key of G easily using your 1.5 fret! And you’ll learn the beautiful Em chord as well. Giving you a 4-chord progression that is found in a lot of songs. Have fun! Click on the image below to listen & learn.
We have a slew (that's a fancy luthier word for "bunch") of videos for you to watch on our YouTube channel. Click here to see the full list. Be sure to comment on a video, and subscribe to the channel - either action helps us a LOT with YouTube's suggestion algorithms.
13 GREAT TUNES THAT (ALMOST) NOBODY PLAYS
by Butch Ross
If you're tired of playing the same old songs in the same old way, then you've just found the book you need for your dulcimer collection. "13 Great Tunes That (Almost) Nobody Plays" will open your eyes (and ears) to some really great melodies and fun tunes that aren't the standard cookie cutter songs you're used to playing. No, sir! Combine Butch Ross's knack for pushing the edges and the freshness of some new tunes (and even some old tunes done in a new way), and your friends will be amazed at your playing abilities and will be asking you to play more.
Even though there are "only" 13 tunes in this book, many of the tunes are presented in multiple keys, so you end up with 20 individual song PDFs along with 20 MP3 files. (32 pages)
This book is published by Fingers Of Steel, and is made available here as an authorized, licensed download.
SONGS INCLUDED:
Barlow Knife - DAD Tuning (D & G versions)
Old Yellow Dog - DAD Tuning (D & A versions)
Squirrel Heads In Gravy - DAD Tuning
Booth Shot Lincoln - DAD Tuning (D & A versions)
John Brown's Dream - DAD Tuning (D & A versions)
Shove That Pig's Foot Farther In The Fire - DAD Tuning (D & G versions)
Little Billy Wilson - DAD Tuning (D & A versions)
Cuckoo's Nest - DAD Tuning
Hunting The Buffalo - DAD Tuning (D & A versions)
Cumberland Gap - DAD Tuning
Shady Grove - DAD Tuning (Major Key Version)
Old Chattanooga - DAD Tuning
Wild Mountain Thyme - DAD Tuning