Dulcimer
www.electricbluesclub.co.uk

There are two types of dulcimer. The mountain dulcimer is a shaped wooden instrument with strings stretched along the center which is played by plucking and strumming the strings.

The Hammered Dulcimer (pictured below) has the strings stretched across a board which is played using sticks headed with leather and felt, or plucked with the fingers.

Its origins are somewhat obscure although it is thought to be of the Zither family, it was a popular instrument in medieval Britain and was also known as the 'Pantaleon'.

The hammered dulcimer is relatively easy to play with many musicians learning by ear from more experienced players.

Dulcimer Links

• Boston Hammered Dulcimer FAQ page
  
  
• Building a Hammer Dulcimer by the Smithsonian Institute has a complete guide to building your own dulcimer including illustrations.
  
  
• Dulcimer.com hosted by Griffin Music contains messageboards, hammered dulcimer faq, purchasing guide, teacher listings and a lesson on building a music stand.
  
  
• Dulcimer Limericks
  
  
• Hammered Dulcimer source for information, dulcimer history, playing techniques, dulcimer tabulature, building, recordings and more.
  
  
• Irish Hammered Dulcimer provides instructional material on techniques for playing the hammered dulcimer in the Irish traditional style as well as relevant information on festivals, workshops, and arrangements of Irish traditional music for the dulcimer.
  
  
• Mic'ing your hammered dulcimer contains information and tips on microphone techniques for recording the hammered dulcimer.
  
  
• Sounds from the Vaults Virtual Instruments Enter the vault and click on the images to display musical instrument artifacts, then follow the instructions to play them (uses Shockwave for playing).
  
  
• String Pedagogy
  
  
• The Dulcimer in the Middle East A discussion about dulcimer playing in the Middle East.

Online String Applications

• Arto's String Calculator very comprehensive online program with full instructions for calculating where a string can be used by setting the diameter and more. Measures string tension and diameter for a number of instruments, in a variety of settings.
  
  
• Arto's String Diameter/Tension Drawer
  
  
• Bob's Handy String Tension Designer With this Netscape Javascript program, you can see how pitch, tension, string length, diameter and inharmonicity are related. First select an octave, then click on note to select, and enter values in the fields above the COMPUTE button. Select type of string. Click on COMPUTE to find out how much tension is required. This program does not work for wound strings.
  
  
• Java Tuner This Java applet demonstrates various historical tunings and temperaments and allows one to experiment with them. It was developed to accompany a text on Understanding temperaments, and is complemented by a set of MIDI files demonstrating various tunings and temperaments, full instructions and a variety of modern and archaic tuning modes. Also provides selected intervals and a chord player.
  
  
• String Guage & Tension Calculator Check your string tensions based on pitch, guage and type of string, also does the inverse calculation when you type in other string parameters.

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