Who Will Kick Off The Dulcimer Revival?
Good Morning, Y'all & Happy New Year!
This is the first newsletter of 2026, and let's start off with some of YOUR prognostication. Last month, I asked for your predictions as to which prominent figure (movie star, singer, politician, etc.) would reveal their dulcimer playing skills, and lead to our next dulcimer "revival." Here are a few of your responses:
Amanda Seyfried, playing Jean in a Jean Ritchie biopic.
Cyndi Lauper
Taylor Swift
Meryl Streep, playing Jean in a Jean Ritchie biopic.
Molly Tuttle
My thoughts? Amanda Seyfried is an obvious choice. She played her dulcimer on one of the late night TV shows a few months ago. Did a fantastic job covering a Joni Mitchell tune. She clearly has the fingers - and voice - to go places as a dulcimer player.
Cyndi Lauper? Obviously a top-tier musical talent. A lot of us have seen her playing dulcimer - she's good, for sure.
Taylor Swift? The biggest live performer out there right now. She's brought in over three billion dollars in touring revenue alone in her short (so far) career. And she's got the talent to learn a new instrument. But... Why on earth would she mess with a proven formula?
Meryl Streep? Fabulous actress, famous as can be. I don't know that she's a musician though, so it might be tough to convince her to learn the dulcimer.
Molly Tuttle? Definitely the youngest of this list - 32 vs. Taylor's 36 vs. Amanda's 40. These three are all young enough to potentially attract a new cohort of 20-to-30 year old dulcimer players. I had to look up Molly, though. She's definitely an A-list performer in her niche, which appears to be bluegrass. She'd understand our traditional music and traditional repertoire (she probably ALREADY knows Boil Dem Cabbage - ha!).
My personal favorite out of this list, with potential for starting the next dulcimer revival? Any of these artists could do it, for sure. But, Amanda Seyfried - hands down. She has an aptitude, and an affinity, for our instrument already. She also has a huge following, due to her movie career. She was one of the lead actresses in "Mamma Mia!" the Abba-song-inspired movie.
So maybe we do the Jean Ritchie biopic, with Amanda Seyfried. Or better yet, a big movie that features plenty of Amanda playing dulcimer, but getting away from traditional repertoire (and away from Joni Mitchell tunes, even), and have her play contemporary popular repertoire. Something that'll appeal to the largest audience.
And While We're Dreaming Big
Beyond Amanda as the star, I nominate Steven Spielberg as the director, and James Horner as the composer. We'll need a great arranger for the dulcimer tunes, maybe we could get Bing Futch to work with Amanda on the dulcimer parts, and have Bing work with James on the tunes where the dulcimer and orchestral score worked together.
So there you go. My thoughts on which popular personality is most likely to inspire the next dulcimer revival. But I'm surprised that none of you suggested any male performers...
Getting Back To Dulcimer Building
Here are some photos of one that went out last week. It has a walnut body, butternut top, ebony fretboard, and vine hummingbird sound holes. Came out nicely, and looked sharp!
To get your own instrument, just like this one, give me a call: 317-539-1855. Or, you can use our online design tool, found here:
Design Your Own Mountain Dulcimer
And lastly for this week's newsletter. As I'm writing this (on Tuesday, January 6, 2026) my calendar is reminding me of an anniversary. It was on January 6, 2007, that I was sitting in an attorney's office in Winsted, Connecticut, finalizing my purchase of Folkcraft Instruments. So tomorrow marks a big anniversary for me. I've now been making dulcimers for 19 full years. Next January will be my 20th anniversary. This has been a very rewarding part of my life. I've met some of the best people ever, and that includes the readers of my weekly newsletter. Thank you for letting me, with Cheyenne and Pam and Dad, make your instruments. It's an honor, and a privilege, and I'm thoroughly grateful for all of your support.
Thanks for reading, Y'all - happy new year - go learn a new tune for the new year!
Richard Ash - luthier-who-loves-his-job
FOLKCRAFT® DULCIMER PLAYER OF THE WEEK: ELLEN KEIRNAN
Folkcraft: How long have you been playing the dulcimer?
Ellen: I’ve been learning how to play since 2016. A full decade now!
Folkcraft: When did you get your first Folkcraft dulcimer?
Ellen: I acquired my first Folkroots in 2021. It is a D550 made in Windsor Ct in 2003. Richard Ash added a 1 1/2 and 8 1/2 and brought it back to life for Jim Furry right before I purchased it from him.
Folkcraft: Where do you enjoy playing your dulcimer?
Ellen: I'm a member of the Windy City Dulcimer Society. We meet once a month - at least - and have started playing at a local nursing home. I also love playing my hammered dulcimers at local heritage events. I bring my FolkRoots along to play as well!
Folkcraft: What other hobbies, or interests, do you have besides playing the dulcimer?
Ellen: I play lots of golf, and I’m a proud foster-failure Mom to three dogs - all adopted from a local Collie rescue.
FOLKCRAFT® PLAYERS - WE LOVE HEARING FROM YOU!!!
No new dulcimer player to kick off the new year. But "Hello to Ellen," a two-year member of our world-wide, online dulcimer community. Maybe it could be you 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!
YOU COULD ALSO JUST WRITE A LETTER TO THE LUTHIER (by replying to this email.) NO QUESTIONS TO ANSWER, NO PHOTO REQUIRED. WE JUST LOVE HEARING FROM Y'ALL!
This Week's Featured YouTube Video:
To kick off the new year, here's the first in a three-part series by Bing Futch. Perfect for new (or newish) players! 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.
THE BEST TUNES YOU NEVER PLAY
by Aaron O'Rourke
Aaron's done it again! With this collection, he's put together some of the more obscure tunes, mostly American old-time, that really deserve to have more broad exposure.
"The Best Tunes You Never Play" features 30 addicting fiddle tunes - from "Duck River" to "Wounded Hoosier" - that don’t get played often in dulcimer circles. Most of the tunes in here are pretty simple. But for the more complex tunes, Aaron O'Rourke includes a simplified version for beginners.
You're sure to find something you really like to play. Your newsletter editor certainly has. This book introduced her to a tune with the same name as her new hometown - which she has a blast playing at the local bluegrass jam. Another tune, "Greasy Coat," turned out to be a favorite of her mandolin teacher. She's gotten a lot of mileage out of this book. (All DAD tuning - no capo needed. 59 pages) See below for the complete song list.
This book is published by Fingers Of Steel, and is made available here as an authorized, licensed download.
SONGS INCLUDED IN THIS BOOK:
Battle Of Cedar Creek
Big Scioty
Boogerman
Christmas Time Is Coming
Booth Shot Lincoln
Dry And Dusty
Duck River
Citico
Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss
Five Miles From Town
Goodbye Liza Jane
Greasy Coat
Gunboat
Happy Hollow
Hawks And Eagles
Hop High Ladies
Ida Red
Jack O'Diamonds
Old-Time Billy In The Low Ground
Jack's Creek Ridge
Kiowa Special
Last Of Harris
Leather Britches
Little Billy Wilson
Salt Creek
Wake Robin
Walkin' In The Parlor
Washington's March
Waynesboro
Wounded Hoosier