What Did Angelina Baker Bake?
Good Morning, Y'all & Happy Friday!
We've been preparing this week for our Second Saturday clinic. This one with Dave Haas - it'll be tomorrow morning (Saturday, August 9, 2025). We've been hosting Saturday clinics here at the Folkcraft workshop since 2012, and by my count we've held 187 of these clinics.
We started out doing two clinics each month - one for ukulele, and one for mountain dulcimer. And we held the clinics year-round, so the first four years we hosted 96 total clinics. For the next handful of years after that, we kept the clinics going year-round, but only held the clinics for mountain dulcimer.
After a delightful blizzard one February, when our dulcimer instructor (I'm talking to you Lorinda Jones!) experienced ice and snow just south of Fort Wayne, we got smart and started hosting the clinics during the warmer months only - April through October.
Thanks To All Of You
Dave's class tomorrow is the culmination of a long, long line of great instructors, fantastic students, and amazing instruction. Thank you to all of you - the hundreds and hundreds of students that have taken these classes. And to the 46 (or so) instructors who have been part of our rotation of clinic artists - who have made this such a successful series.
Here are a few statistics that will (possibly) boggle your minds:
1) The clinics are four hours long. 187 clinics times four hours? 748 hours of instructor/teaching time. With an average attendance at our clinics of about thirty guests, that's 22,440 total class hours, or 561 weeks of instruction. If one person took all that class time, one week after the next, it would total over 10 years of classes (10.788 years, to be precise).
2) We always hold a two-hour jam before each clinic starts. 187 clinics times two hours? 374 hours of jam time. (374 hours is just about ten forty-hour work weeks - I've spent ten weeks (equivalent) of my life leading Second Saturday Clinic jams!) (There are plenty of reasons I love making dulcimers, and hosting events - having great jams is a big one!)
3) Concerts? There's a thirty minute concert as part of each Clinic. 187 clinics times 30 minutes for the concert? 93.5 hours of Clinic concerts. Wow - most of my absolute favorite artist/instructors, sitting just a few feet away, serenading us!
4) Lunches? Provided with the clinics for quite a while now. We used to go to the local Subway Restaurant to have sandwiches made, but Aly and I have been making them here for years. I'll bet I've made close to 2000 sandwiches. Always a bagel, with turkey and cheese, for ingredients.
That's a lot of sandwiches, concerts, jams, and classes. And a lot of fun! Our new shop location in Michigan won't be able to host events, so we'll absolutely be missing our Clinics.
Well, that's enough reminiscing about our Second Saturday Clinics. It isn't too late to sign up for Dave's clinic tomorrow - just click on his photo above. I have dulcimers to build, and you all need to get off of your phones - or computers - and go make some music!
Thanks for reading, Y'all - Have a great weekend.
Richard Ash - luthier-who-can-make-turkey-and-cheese-bagels-in-his-sleep
P.S. Did you know that one of the world's premier dulcimer players, Aaron O'Rourke, used to be a professional bagel maker? I learned that during one of his Second Saturday Clinic concerts!
P.P.S. I often joke about Angelina Baker, and how she was renowned for making bagels. But I don't know for sure that she made bagels, or didn't make bagels. More likely, she made donuts...
FOLKCRAFT® DULCIMER PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: SUE LANDER
Folkcraft: How long have you been playing the dulcimer?
Sue: I built my first dulcimer when I was in college (54 years ago). It wasn't a work of art, but it was fun to play.
Folkcraft: When did you get your first Folkcraft dulcimer?
Sue: I bought my first Folkcraft instrument, a LAP-JO, in 2019. I finally upgraded from my homemade dulcimer and got a Folkcraft dulcimer in 2020. In 2023, I wanted a dulcimer with a 1.5 fret, so I had a dulcimer made out of a beautiful 100-year-old piece of black walnut wood that was given to me.
Folkcraft: Where do you enjoy playing your dulcimer?
Sue: I most enjoy playing my dulcimer at home to inspire creativity, ground me, and feed my soul.
Folkcraft: What do you like to do besides playing your dulcimer?
Sue: I believe the ingredients to a quality life are chocolate, giving back to the community, and enjoying the beauty of nature. So my favorite activities are...
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF SUE'S STORY AND ABOUT OTHER FOLKCRAFT PLAYERS LIKE SUE & YOU!
FOLKCRAFT® PLAYERS - WE'RE STILL WAITING TO INTERVIEW YOU!
We don't have a new player to add to our global, online dulcimer community today, but we are delighted to re-feature Sue Lander. How's your summer going, Sue?
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!
This Week's Featured YouTube Video:
With this video, Mandy adds a picking pattern to our three chords for "Boil Them Cabbage Down." Picking patterns can add variety to our playing and greatly improve our pick accuracy, so it’s a great way to practice. Just 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.
SIMPLY DULCIMER
by Linda Brockinton
National Dulcimer Champion dulcimer player Linda Brockinton has brought us yet another great book. Finger-style arrangements of (mostly) Scottish and Irish classics. Several O'Carolan tunes and duets are included in this excellent volume.
It might take you a while to play "like Linda," but with this book in hand (or on your tablet!), you can at least play her dulcimer arrangements! (37 pages)
This book is published by Linda Brockinton, and is made available here as an authorized, licensed download.
SONG LISTING:
Song Of The Water Kelpie, Arran Ghelbee - Traditional Manx
Captain O'Kane - Turlough O'Carolan
The Largo From The New World Symphony, #9 - Antonin Dvorak (Duet)
The Fair Maid Of Wicklow - Traditional Irish (Duet)
Go To Sleep - Traditional German (Duet)
Come My Love, Siu'l A Ghr'a - Traditional Irish (Duet)
Fairy Queen - Turlough O'Carolan
Mrs. Judge - Turlough O'Carolan
The Ulster Man - Traditional Scottish
Fear A'Bhata - Traditional Scottish (Duet)
Mo Gilla Mear - Traditional Irish
Innis Oirr, Innisfree - Traditional Irish
Citi' Na Gcumman, Kitty In The Corner - Traditional Irish
Marble Halls - M.W. Balfe, From The Opera Bohemian Girl
Where My Eileen Is Waiting - Traditional Irish
For Ireland I Would Not Tell Her Name - Traditional Irish (Duet)
Check Out These Great Five-Star Reviews For This Book
✮✮✮✮✮ Great collection from a great player and teacher. Absolutely terrific collection of music. Linda is one of the finest! (Gary - 7/27/24)
✮✮✮✮✮ Great teacher and book. The arrangements are beautiful and intended for the Intermediate level. Linda is the first woman to win the national championship (2001) and the first person to win with the fingerpicking chord-melody style. Many known dulcimer players learned from her. The YouTube videos she has posted are very helpful in learning her method, and her arrangements are consistent to that method. (Billy - 6/9/22)
NO LONGER AVAILABLE IN BOOK FORM