knit•er•a•cy |'nitərəsē, 'nitrə-|

Why dulcimer?

Some of you have wondered, "Why learn to play the dulcimer, when you're such a cracking harper?"

Gosh, there are all sorts of reasons. In answer to the question, "Why don't you just play that on the harp?" I guess I would say this:

All instruments are different, and they all bring something different to whatever music you make with them. Because I play the wirestrung harp, I have to keep my fingernails relatively long on at least two fingers of my left hand, since one plays the wire harp with the fingernails. When I started playing the harp, I gave up playing the guitar. I miss an instrument I can make easy, strumming or fingerpicked chords on. What I do on the harp does not sound like a fretted, strummed instrument.

The wire harp, like the most traditional dulcimers out there (but unlike my dulcimer, which has a number of extra frets), is essentially a diatonic instrument. While you can do a lot with a wire harp tuned in C to bring things into other moods, a diatonic scale (the one that begins, 'do, re, mi') cannot be played on any key other than the key the harp is tuned in, in my case C. Retuning a 32-string harp to a different key requires changing at least four strings by a semitone even to make it to the next key up in the circle of fifths (from C to D, for example, all Fs need to be sharped). Wire harps do not come with sharping levers. Wire strings do not take being bent the way that nylon strings do; sharping blades or levers will crimp and break them.

Not all songs fit comfortably into my vocal range when played in C or A minor, and that's just a fact. When I'm singing something, I like it to be in the best possible range for my voice, and having an instrument capable of at least chording in three different keys from the get-go (even without all the extra frets) will make it easier for me to cover for whatever I like and to write different things that suit my voice. It'll also be possible for me to jam with people in the key of D if I want.

It's a different instrument. It's not a question of, "Why not just play that on the harp?" It's a question of "Why not branch out and try something new and different?" Of course there will be reasons why I choose to play one song on dulcimer or on harp, but I don't know if they need to be explicitly stated for folks, nor do I think they will be obvious if they aren't explicitly stated for folks.

Anyway. We're off to Sharps, where, don't worry, I'll be playing cracking harp, since that is what I do best.

(For those of you on my regular friends list, this is a public post, which is why some information you already know will be repeated or consolidated.)

Well, let's see. On Sunday, 16 October, while filceolaire was at nMC rehearsal with mokatiki and pola_bear, otherwise often referred to here as the ESDs, I read peteralway's journal and realised it wasn't only cadhla who did those "Iron Whatsis" thingies-- and I figured, "Hey, it's been over a year since you've written a song, Harper!" (Usual diagnosis, happiness; my diagnosis, stress and busy-ness) "I know! Why don't you do some kind of 'Iron Songwriter' thing." I actually had to be told by the good people on #filkhaven that there was apparently a cooking show called "Iron Chef," which is where cadhla got the name for her game, and everyone else, as we all always are, is merely dancing to her tune like a little cadhla-operated marionette. Hey, I can talk about her this weekend: she's busy being Toastmistress at OVFF!

( So I did a potentially foolish thing: )

( Sharps, Tuesday night )

( Folkmob, Wednesday Night )

( The rest of the week in folk music? You mean there's more? )

And that's the week in Folk Music. :) And now it's time for me to retire to my nightly happy ending.