Dulcimer Bill?

Now what am I going to do. Anne and I have gotten through ten weeks of hammered dulcimer lessons, so now what should my music blog be called? Barrister Bill, the Dulcimer Man? Doesn't sound right and, anyway, before one should call oneself a "dulcimer man" one should be able to play competently, I think. Oh, the argument could be made that the fact of competency didn't prevent me from calling myself "the Banjo Man," but that at least rhymes.

We played at St. John's Home in Rochester as our first concert (or show and tell) as our instructor, Mitzie Collins, likes to call it. We were told that playing "out" is different, and it is, even if the audience was mostly in wheel chairs and in a number of cases, not in the same dimension. But, they seemed to enjoy the music and, as we were also told, that at least we now have our first performance out of the way. Well, maybe so, but our next "show and tell" is at the Eastman School of Music and the audience there will be very much in the same dimension.

Anne got "her" dulcimer on November 18th. A Songbird Phoebe Chromatic 17/16/8. A week or so before, we bought a Master Works 12/11 dulcimer as an interim dulcimer until we decided what I would get and "the grandchildren can use it when they come." But, now the smaller one is being referred to as "my" (meaning Bill's) dulcimer. I knew this would happen and I even predicted it. We'll have to wait to see what happens and if I ever get a "grown up" dulcimer.

I have now learned several songs on the hammered dulcimer. I can't play them perfectly every time, but I can get through them. They are:

Michael Row the Boat Ashore
Silent Night
Tallis Canon
Joy to the World
Scarborough Fair
Amazing Grace
Away in a Manger

I have to learn how to add embellishments to the basic melody. Stay tuned.