Playing the Hammered Dulcimer in the Irish Tradition

by Karen Ashbrook

Encourages dulcimer players at the intermediate-to-advanced level to play the "right way". Teaches basic, simple techniques that create the feel of traditional Irish music.
90 pp book with CD $19.95

by Karen Ashbrook

2 hours of detailed Hammered Dulcimer Instruction by premier dulcimer teacher and Maggie's Music recording artist Karen Ashbrook. The lessons include: holding the hammers, tuning, scales, excercises, major and minor chord shapes, beginning tunes, and beginning arranging. The DVD comes with a booklet of charts, information on the dulcimer, and music.

Shot at historic Gaasbeek Castle!

DVD with booklet $38

Arranged by Carrie Crompton

Features 15 easy to challenging arrangements of Bach's dance music set for solo and duo hammered dulcimer with continuo chordsprovided for a guitarist. The dance tunes have familiar rhythms, and blend well with traditional dance music in a set.

Book only $15 CD $16, Together $30

An instructional method by Carrie Crompton

Technical excercises and repertoire in a graded series of lessons for beginners. Covers melodic playing in eight keys and four time signatures, and beginning back-up techniques that sound really good.

130 pages. $25

Hymns and Carols

by William M. Jones (my father)

Arranged for the Hammer Dulcimer . Suggested ways to perform over 30 tunes on a 12/11 or 15/14. In standard notation.

Available as a PDF $5

Instructional Recording: Fiddle Tunes (Reels) Volume 1 ( 2 CDs $25)

The focus of these recordings is to guide the student through a host of arranging ideas in a systematic way. The recordings essentially mirror what Ken does in weeklong workshops or lessons. These recordings are geared primarily to intermediate and advanced but much of the material is appropriate for the advanced beginner.

This recording is a double CD of separate tracks of instructions for arranging and playing four fiddle tunes: North Carolina Breakdown, Oklahoma Rooster, Round the Horn and Eddie's Reel. The ideas and techniques are applicable to many tunes. Written music with chords for each basic tune is included. Tracks include descriptions of:

• The basic tune
• Description of hammering and phrasing
• Flams
• Chords
• Basslines
• Chord substitutions
• Drones
• Fills
• Melodic Runs
• Syncopations
• Anticipated beats
• Ghost notes
• Variations
• Improvising
• Many other rhythmic and melodic ideas
• Back-up ideas (vamps, harmony, chromatic runs)
• Fully embellished version

Instructional Recording: Waltzes and Slow Tunes, Volume 1 ( 2 CDs $25)

This recording is a double CD of separate tracks of instructions for arranging and playing two waltzes and two slower pieces extremely well-suited to display a wide variety of ideas. The tunes are Coleman's March, Caspian Lake, Evening of Roses, and Down Home Waltz. ALL of the tunes in their basic form are quite simple and easily played by an advanced beginner or even by many beginning players. Many of the arranging ideas are perfect for advanced beginners (as presented in Evening of Roses and Coleman?s March). However, there are many additional ideas presented for these tunes that will challenge at least intermediate level players. While again a relatively simple tune, the arrangement of Caspian Lake is probably more suited for an intermediate level player. The arrangement presented for The Down Home Waltz is probably most suited for at minimum an intermediate level player.

All ideas and techniques are applicable to many tunes. Written music with chords for each basic tune is included. Tracks include descriptions of:

• The basic tune
• A description of hammering and phrasing
• Chord progression and substitutions
• Use of the relative minor and 7th chords (major, minor, dominant & diminished 7th )
• Use of secondary dominants and the circle of fifths
• Hand separation; plucking and hammering together
• Using octaves
• Basslines
• Dissonance
• Chromatics
• Accent shifts and syncopations
• Flams, two and three note chords
• Use of fills, drone notes and melodic runs
• Tremolos
• Hammered and bounced triplets
  
• Ideas for improvisation and many variations
• Dynamics and phrasing
• Back-up ideas
• Includes fully embellished versions
• Many other arranging ideas

Ideas and techniques are applicable to many different pieces of music.

This recording is a double CD of over 60 separate tracks of instructions for arranging and playing five Christmas pieces: In the Bleak Midwinter, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Angels We Have Heard on High, The Wexford Carol and Hush My Babe (I Shall Arise; Restoration.) This recording once again presents a wide variety of ideas. Most of the tunes should work well for advanced beginners. I generally present at least one simple version of the tune. But certainly the arranging ideas go well beyond that level such that intermediate and even advanced players should find many ideas to explore for some time. There are a ton of ideas presented here. This CD is well-suited to an advanced beginning as long as they recognize that many of the ideas will take much time to master.
Includes the written music (stored as Word files on the CD) for the basic tune AND two additional arrangements for most tunes:
• The basic tune
• A description of hammering and phrasing
• Chord progression and substitutions
• Use of the relative minor and 7th chords (major, minor, dominant & diminished 7th )
• Use of secondary dominants and the circle of fifths
• Shifting octaves
• Plucking and playing
• Hand separation
• Basslines
• Dissonance
• Chromatics
• Accent shifts and syncopations
• Flams, two and three note chords
• Use of fills, drone notes and melodic runs
• Tremolos
• Hammered and bounced triplets
• Ideas for improvisation and many variations
• Dynamics and phrasing
• Includes fully embellished versions
• Many other arranging ideas
Ideas and techniques are applicable to many different pieces of music.

This recording follows up on the Volume I reels CD. This double CD has separate tracks of instructions for arranging and playing four fiddle tunes: Shenandoah Falls, The Cuckoos Nest, Reel St. Joseph’s and YZ Hamilton’s Breakdown. In general, this CD includes ideas and tunes that are somewhat more advanced than Volume I in that the chord progressions are more adventurous, the rhythms presented are more complex in places, and there is far more on back-up. The simplest of the four tunes melodically is Reel St. Joseph’s. Reel’s St. Joseph’s presents an opportunity to incorporate a few simple syncopations and some very interesting chord substitutions. Shenandoah Falls is also not too hard melodically except perhaps for some syncopation. However, I present a wide variety of ideas that are challenging including several different approaches to back-up and a harmony and demonstrate how to blend many ideas. In The Cuckoo’s Nest, I again present several ways to back-up the tune and I walk through adding lots of challe nging ideas including basslines and various rhythmic ideas. YZ Hamilton’s is really an old time rag and again presents syncopations along with chromatic back-up ideas. The tune is great for working on swing.
The ideas and techniques are again applicable to many tunes. Written music with chords for each basic tune is included. Tracks include descriptions of:
• The basic tune
• Description of hammering and phrasing
• Flams
• Chords
• Basslines
• Chord substitutions
• Drones
• Fills
• Melodic Runs
• Syncopations
• Anticipated beats
• Using chromatics
• Ghost notes
• Variations
• Improvising
• Many other rhythmic and melodic ideas
• Many back-up ideas (vamps, harmony, chromatic runs)
• Fully embellished version

This recording is a double CD of separate tracks of instructions for arranging and playing three waltzes and one march in three four time. This recording once again presents a wide variety of ideas but is more geared to the intermediate/advanced player than is the Volume I CD. One of the tunes (Jerry Holland’s My Cape Breton Home) is quite appropriate for an advanced beginner level and several of the tunes could be played by advanced beginners in a simpler form. However, the ideas presented for all the tunes on this CD go well beyond an advanced beginner level. Next in complexity is The Clock Waltz (Quebec) which is a good example of creating an arrangement from a variety of relatively simple ideas (accent shifts, bounced triplets, flams, fills, dissonance). The hardest tunes on the CD are Waltz of the My Dreams (Quebec) which makes extensive use of chord substitutions, accent shifts and other ideas; and The March of the King of Laois (Ireland) which de monstrates bassline ideas, dissonances, some improvisation and much more. This CD in general is probably more suited to intermediate and advanced players than is the Volume I counterpart.
All ideas and techniques are applicable to many tunes. Written music with chords for each basic tune is included.

Tracks include descriptions of:
• The basic tune
• A description of hammering and phrasing
• Chord progression and substitutions
• Use of the relative minor and 7th chords (major, minor, dominant & diminished 7th )
• Use of secondary dominants and the circle of fifths
• Shifting octaves
• Basslines
• Dissonance
• Chromatics
• Accent shifts and syncopations
• Flams, two and three note chords
• Use of fills, drone notes and melodic runs
• Tremolos
• Hammered and bounced triplets
• Ideas for improvisation and many variations
• Dynamics and phrasing
• Includes fully embellished versions
• Many other arranging ideas
Ideas and techniques are applicable to many different pieces of music.

You Can Teach Yourself Hammer Dulcimer

by Madeline MacNeil

This book begins with tuning tips and scales, then continues with arrangements to help you with skill building. Covers major and minor keys, duplicated notes, modulations, walking bass lines, chromatic notes, drone harmony, back-up chords, interval harmony and more. The DVD and CD feature Madeline MacNeil's hammer dulcimer solos. A nice combination of optional approaches.

Book/CD/DVD Combo $25

The Hammer Dulcimer

by John McCutcheon

This easy-to-follow, comprehensive beginner's course on DVD makes it easy to see the way the hammers are held, where the notes are found, and how to make exciting music almost immediately.

90 min DVD $32

Striking Out...and Winning

by Lucille Reilly

A thorough, well-written introduction to the hammer dulcimer. Covers everything a beginner/intermediate player would need to know. Lots of clear diagrams and photos. 50 tunes for all levels. Spiral bound. 170 pages.

SOW Book $35
SOW CDS $35

Currently out of print

The Hammered Dulcimer A-Chording

by Lucille Reilly.

How to play chords on the hammered dulcimer, why chords are the way they are, plus basic chord progressions you can add to dance tunes right away. Includes seven different chording styles to dress up your waltzes, hymns, and your own singing voice. Has the chords to all 50 tunes in Striking Out.

LR 3 $28

Currently out of print

The Music of Tuesday's Child

Edited and arranged by Steve Schneider

Features traditional music from France, the U.S., Wales, Ireland, Switzerland, and original compositions from Steve's CD Tuesday's Child.

His first recording, was reviewed as "One of the best hammered dulcimer albums to come along in a long time" by Sampler Records. Bill Spence said "I simply can't say enough about this album. I think you?ll love it!

The book is especially geared toward the advanced beginner to intermediate hammered dulcimer player. To help optimize learning and musicality, the pieces are presented in a number of different formats: lead sheets with chords, harmony parts, and for solo hammered dulcimer arrangements. All in dulcimer-friendly keys, this book presents an excellent opportunity for enjoyment and learning on many levels. With varying levels of difficulty, players should be able to find immediate satisfaction in playing through the easier arrangements, and also greater challenges in learning the more difficult ones. In addition, there are numerous expression marks that are intended to help guide the player toward playing the music as expressively as possible. Also included is a guide to all the symbols, terms, and expression marks used in the music, which will not only be of benefit in interpreting the music within this book, but can be used to open the doors to reading other classically notated music.

Book w/CD $28

Introducing the Linear Chromatic tm

by Steve Shmania

The book provides a music theory primer helping you to learn to play in any key in the equal tempermant scale. The book defines scales, chords, inversions, enhancements, substitutions, progressions and their playing patterns on the Linear Chromatic. It also covers putting it all together to play traditional, jazz, blues and classical music. There are now two versions of the book; one using the Standard Marking and the other using the Piano Marking system. When ordering make sure you specify which version of the book you'd like.

Book $25

by Mark Wade

Mark is the '98 National Hammered Dulcimer Championship winner. His book features transcriptions of music from Mark's albums, as well as highlights from several of the lessons that Mark teachers in his workshops such as scales and chords and arranging and embellishing

Book $25

The Hammered Dulcimer: A History

by Paul M. Gifford

Paul offers a discussion of the medieval origins of the dulcimer and its subsequent spread, under many different names to other parts of the world. Through local histories, news clippings, rare photographs, interviews and articles by specialists in their own languages, the book examines the playing of the dulcimer and its associated social meanings. The culmination of thirty years of research, this books pays special attention to the North American tradition of the instrument from the early eighteenth century to the 1970s revival (from the book jacket) 440 pages

The Basic Guide to How to Read Music

by Helen Cooper

Guides the reader through rhythm, scales and intervals, keys, and tonality right through to score reading.

Book 80 pp $10

A Rhythmic Vocabulary

by Alan Dworsky & Betsy Sansby

A musician's guide to understanding and improvising with rhythm. This step by step comprehensive course includes: hundreds of patterns drawn from African and Afro-Cuban rhythms explained and organized according to their structures: bit-sized lessons arranged in order of difficulty; a CD that aids practice; exercises to reinforce your understanding; and a fun way to create rhythms while you walk.

Book/CD set $30