Help Us Solve The Lichen Log Mystery
Good Morning, Y'all - Happy Friday!
While enjoying a walk in the (frigid!) Indiana woods last weekend, I came across a log that had fallen across the path. The trail maintainer had used a chainsaw and removed a section about two feet wide, rolling the cut-off part of the log down an embankment. But this left two ends of the remaining log exposed to the environment.
Lichen Log Mystery
I was intrigued by the growth pattern of the lichen. Or is it something other than lichen? It's just around the outside edge of the log. I figured this could be either: 1) sapwood has more nutrients than heartwood, so it grew lichen better; or, 2) moisture was more prevalent in the outside edges of the tree, and thus supported the lichen growth.
What causes the lichen to grow just around the circumference of the log?
If you know the answer, I would be interested in hearing it!
Here's a closeup photo:
No lichen on the bark, just on the wood beneath the bark.
A Little Help, Please
I know that most of our subscribers are dulcimer players, and that dulcimer players are smarter (and better looking) than average people, so certainly at least one of you knows the correct answer. Let me know? Thank you!
We Don't Just Build Instruments, We Play Them, Too
You know that all of our dulcimer builders - here at Folkcraft - have a keen interest in music-making, right? We all play instruments for fun. Well, one of our dulcimer-building superstars (Cheyenne) is a phenomenal guitar player. He's off of work today, but I spotted this amplifier underneath his desk:
Casey's guitar amplifier hiding out under his desk.
A guitar amplifier! Why would he have that at work? Well, during his lunch breaks, Cheyenne will often get out one of his electric guitars, plug in a set of headphones, and make some music. And after his lunch break, go back to making (and playing) mountain dulcimers.
Casey, Dad, and I all make music for fun, in addition to making instruments for Y'all. Just thought you might enjoy hearing that!
Christmas Is Coming Soon
We're down to less than three weeks until Christmas, which means you're running out of time to get your tab books full of fun Christmas songs. We have over a dozen hard-copy books at Folkcraft.com (Just click on the links below to order)
CHRISTMAS BOOKS AVAILABLE AT FOLKCRAFT.COM
Plus over a dozen downloadable tab books at DulcimerDownloads.com:
CHRISTMAS BOOKS AVAILABLE AT DULCIMERDOWNLOADS.COM
You should definitely order sooner rather than later. The postal service will be getting slower and slower before the end-of-month holidays.
Here's a small part of our warehouse area (pictured above). We have 55 of these shelf units, each with 26 individually-labeled shelves. We keep all the strings, straps, machine heads, and BOOKS (close to 300 of them for mountain dulcimer!) on these shelves.
Most books are in stock on most days, but we're absolutely running low on some of the Christmas books already. Of course, the downloadable books (at DulcimerDownloads.com) have a limitless supply, so no worries if you want a PDF version of your favorite book.
Thanks for reading, I hope you get lots of music-making time this month!
Richard Ash - luthier-who-is-"lichen"-walking-in-the-woods
FOLKCRAFT® DULCIMER PLAYER OF THE WEEK: JOSEPH HENNES
Folkcraft: How long have you been playing the dulcimer?
Joseph: I have been playing on and off for two years - it is getting easier. I can play about 10 songs.
Folkcraft: When did you get your first Folkcraft dulcimer?
Joseph: Two years ago I bought an hourglass dulcimer kit from Richard Ash. Its back and sides are walnut, the top is butternut. Richard helped me with the sound holes. Last year my wife and I went to Richard's shop and spent half a day visiting him and touring the shop. We left with a cherry hourglass 25" VSL kit. I put it together for my wife, June, she has small hands. We are both 83-years-old, learning to play together, and having fun.
Joseph: We have a room in our home that is 20' x 40' and has a vaulted ceiling. It has great acoustics for playing music.
Folkcraft: What other hobbies, or interests, do you have besides playing the dulcimer?
Joseph: I make and play Native American flutes. I was a woodcarver for over 40 years. I also enjoy Plein Air Painting with watercolors. I have been painting in oil and watercolors most of my life. I have to keep busy, it keeps me young.
CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT MORE FOLKCRAFT PLAYERS LIKE JOSEPH & YOU!
HELLO FOLKCRAFT® PLAYERS - COME JOIN THE FAMILY
We are so very excited to welcome Joseph & June Hennes to our online global dulcimer community today!
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 hearing from you and 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?
FOR JUST A LITTLE WHILE LONGER 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)
This Week's Featured YouTube Video:
This week, Mandy gifts you with a free dulcimer lesson: "Greensleeves" (also known as "What Child Is This") Have fun! Just click on the image below to watch.
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.
BASIC BACKUP
by Aaron O'Rourke
Have you ever heard two of the "great" dulcimer players performing, on stage, together? Ever notice that one of them generally plays a melody, while the other one plays "backup" parts? They'll trade off, back and forth, melody and backup. Which sounds a LOT better than having both of them playing melody all the time.
With this book, you'll learn (from legendary performer Aaron O'Rourke) how to play "backup." Chops, riffs, bass lines, following the lead player. He makes it all sound easy.
You'll be able to use the same techniques when playing with a regular jam, too. Nobody should be playing the melody 100% of the time, and with this book, you'll gain the skills to play a GREAT backup part. (50 pages)
This book is published by Fingers Of Steel, and is made available here as an authorized, licensed download.
