If we trace the roots of the North American hammered dulcimer, we travel to the UK where its ancestors can still be found in Scotland, East Anglia, Birmingham, and London. Shorter hammers are used compared to the cimbalom hammers, but not still not as short as those used by the tsymbaly players of Belarus. Most traditional American hammered dulcimers have the major keys of F, C, G and D easily available, which works well for a variety of musical styles like old-time, bluegrass, hymns, Celtic tunes, and even some pop music. When attaching two planks together, try this helpful trick. The strings are only struck on one side of the bridge, similar to the Indian santoor. The first step in building a hammered dulcimer is to cut the sides for the frame. The dulcimers in review include Sapelli Pioneer Hammered Dulcimer from Master Works, Rosewood Hammered Dulcimer from Roosebeck, and Persian Hammered Santoor from SalaMuzik. No need for a stand, this dulcimer has a leg that fits into the back allowing it to be placed on a table or other surface for playing. The term yangqin (or yang quin, yang chin) was once written as , which meant foreign zither. It is possible it arrived through the Silk Road from the Middle East. For the trim, rip pieces of mahogany to fit the sides of the hammered dulcimer. To fill in the gaps, many modern dulcimer builders include extra short bridges at the top and bottom of the soundboard, where extra strings are tuned to some or all of the missing pitches. This means you can play in all keys or even chromatically! Update your shipping location. The instrument arrived along with the Spanish conquistadors and became a part of Mexican culture. Dulcimer.net is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. This is a very heavy instrument with a steel structure (38 kg), and the body is reinforced by iron bars. The soundboard is typically made from spruce, cedar, birch, or mahogany. The frame consists of two thicker sides on the left and right these are the pin blocks which will ultimately hold the strong pins as well as two thinner rails on the top and bottom. He was known as The Primas of kings and the king of Primases. In order to make things easier, its a good idea to dedicate a specific area of your workshop to woodworking projects. Is a dulcimer easy to play? Replacing your first broken string can seem daunting, but with a little patience, a tuning wrench, and a pair of wire snips, you'll be a pro in no time. Absolutely! Schunda manufactured over 10,000 of his instrument and it soon became popular with the bourgeoisie and Romani (Gypsies) alike. Do you happen to have any videos you could share of it being played? You hold a hammer lightly between your thumb and pointer finger and let it bounce on a string, preferably close to one of the bridges. However, if you have one of our larger models with wound strings or phosphor bronze strings in the lower register, you might consider changing just those strings every few years, as they can lose their tone and start to sound dull over time. Musicians typically play this instrument with two light-weight beaters called hammers (mallets). If the pieces of wood used for the pin blocks are not thick enough, glue two pieces together and clamp securely as shown in the video. The hackbrett comes in various sizes and shapes, including trapezoid, half-trapezoid, rectangle, and with and without soundhole decor. The instrument is fully chromatic with up to five bridges and can have up to eight strings per course. These makers produce a wide variety of cimbaloms, from the classic cimbalom to its smaller versions, to even smaller, more portable versions. Dusty Strings has been lovingly handcrafting hammered dulcimers in Seattle, WA since 1979. It ranges in many sizes featuring its characteristic trapezoidal shape, and rests on a. The Persian santur has a diatonic tuning, with tones that are designated into 12 modes, or dastgahs, which makes up the classical music of Persia called the Radif. The 15 is the number of pairs of strings passing over the treble (center) bridge. The head of the hammer can be left bare for a sharp attack sound, or can be covered with adhesive tape, leather, or fabric for a softer sound. Building a dulcimer is definitely not an easy task, but its also not as difficult as some people might think. This is called a 12/11 or 13/12. Next, apply glue to the back of each internal brace, set into the notches, and press down onto the dulcimer back and let dry. Once the pin blocks are cut to the desired length, make cuts at the end of each pin block to create notches needed to accommodate the side rails. So take some time to think about what you want your dulcimer to look like and sound like, and then choose the right materials to make your vision a reality. We are united by our love for hammered dulcimer music! Hammered dulcimers can also be chromatic, which allows for a longer range in the higher registers. The Hutsul tsymbaly typically has 12-13 courses of strings. But in the end it comes down to musician taste. $340.00 . It is often painted with a deep or bright color, and children who play like to decorate it with cartoon stickers. However, for over 100 years many players in Western Canada play the Ukrainian tsimbaly. If there isn't, we can ship a dulcimer to you from our workshop here in Seattle, with the guarantee that you can return it for a full refund (minus the shipping cost) if it doesn't meet your expectations. Unlike guitar strings, which must be replaced often due to the corrosive effects of salt and perspiration from the player's fingers, hammered dulcimer strings can last many years with little care. Hammered Dulcimer STAND Plans actual size - Full scale detailed. This ensures a consistent thickness which improves adhesion and reduces spillover. The number of strings in a course was increased from four to eight to compete with the sound of the more recent addition of violins in bands. We're not pushy salespeople, and there's no question too silly to ask. The bridges are wood pieces that separate the strings from the sound board. When building a hammered dulcimer, several pieces of equipment are recommended. Most traditional American hammered dulcimers have the major keys of F, C, G and D easily available, which works well for a variety of musical styles like old-time, bluegrass, hymns, Celtic tunes, and even some pop music. Below is an excellent video produced by master craftsman Aaron Wolff, who builds a 5 octave, 19/18/6 hammered dulcimer from scratch. Dukes, counts, countesses, priests, nuns, and cardinals were all lovers and players of this instrument. For example, mahogany has a beautiful dark finish that would look great as a soundboard on any hammered dulcimer, while maple impacts a lighted, more cheerful tone. Most of the time, one side is left as bare wood while the other side may be covered in leather or a softer material such as piano felt. The treble strings can be played on either side of the treble bridge. Semi-concert tsymbaly: Manufactured from 1950 to 1986 by Chernihiv Musical Instrument Factory. Its also important to wear proper safety gear, such as goggles and a dust mask when working with wood and around sawdust. Austria: The Austrian hackbrett has three varieties: Switzerland: The Swiss hackbrett has two varieties: 2. Hammered dulcimers can range from 2.5 to 4 or more octaves, and are proportional to the size of the instrument. The tuning system for these cimbaloms has a pitch range of four octaves plus a major third. File:Hungary-0223 Cimbalom (7338659240).jpg by Dennis Jarvis from Halifax, Canada is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. While you certainly dont need all of these tools to build your first hammered dulcimer, having these will make the job easier. Woodworkers may already have access to several of these tools in their workshop. This chromatic Salzburger hackbrett was developed in the mid 1930s from the diatonic hammered dulcimer by Tobi Reizer and his son along with Franz Peyer and Heinrich Bandzauner. We place the same value on quality with our least expensive dulcimers as we do with the top-of-the-line models, and we expect them all to last for generations. A hammered dulcimer, like an autoharp, harp, or piano, requires a tuning wrench for tuning, since the dulcimer's strings are wound around tuning pins with square heads. These are the most modern designs of the khim, known as a fancy khim. Master Works Ultralight Hammered Dulcimer $1,79800 SKU : HAM002 High quality Masterworks instruments are used by professionals all over the world for performance and recor. As an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases from Amazon.com, Plywood vs. These include Belarusian folk songs and dances, original compositions of composers of Belarus, Russian and foreign classics, music of current composers, and popular music of today. Spare string packs contain one to three strings of each gauge used on that model, and are useful for having backup strings in case of breakage, but will not provide enough strings to restring the whole instrument. It has 72 strings and smaller additional bridges (called chessboard pawns) that are removable, which allows control of the raising or lowering of notes by a semitone. The hackbrett comes in various sizes and shapes, including trapezoid, half-trapezoid, rectangle, and with and without soundhole decor. size. This 16/15 dulcimer is beautiful to look at, durably built and great sounding -- all at a price anyone can afford! However, for over 100 years many players in Western Canada play the Ukrainian tsimbaly. Like the original butterfly shape, there are 14 notes and 42 strings. However, for those looking to take their time to build a more precision instrument, allow at least 1-2 weeks. Sponsored . Apply tracing paper to the top of the soundboard and sketch out one or two decorative clefs. It makes certain styles like blues, jazz, classical and non-Western folk music easier to play. There are a few stores around the country that carry our dulcimers, and we'd be happy to find out if there's a place near you where you could go and try them out. A brand new dulcimer can take a few weeks to settle in, but after that, it should hold its tune for a few days at least. However, these Germans were able to hold onto their culture and language while living in Ukraine and did the same when they immigrated to the US. However, the instrument is beginning to evolve for a new generation. Hungary: The concert cimbalom was a variation created by V. Jzsef Schunda in 1874 in Budapest. This then possibly led to the evolution of the Persian santur as well as other versions in the Middle East. Shifting down three courses transposes the D-major scale to A-major, but of course the first Do-Re-Mi would be shifted off the instrument. Once a perfect fit is achieved, glue the planks together. 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