Dull Simmer

That used to be my code name for a certain stringed instrument--but you
don't need a college degree to figure it out. I realized this and took
the code a step further--to rhyme and be "boring boiling". Now, I think
I'd call it a "Tedious Sauce". Why I wanted a code name for the
mountain dulcimer is another story in and of itself and one that no one
really needs to hear.

I am, of course, getting to the point, which is this--I am now the
proud owner of a lap dulcimer and am already making some genuine
messes! Okay, I'm only excited about the first part. The second is,
well, the necessary evil. It took me two whole years to get to the
point that my over-ecstatic grandmother coined as "wonderful" when
playing the tin whistle. Ask me about the Appalachian dulcimer when I'm
sixteen...

I am probably going to post some pictures of the many-named instrument
when I get settled again, but we've been visiting family before moving
in, so it's rather...shall we say...difficult. I'm NEVER around when
there's a long time with wi-fi and dial up is too slow and unreliable
with our darn internal modem going loopy. Oh, well. My uncle gave it to
me. It was his, but he didn't play it any more and figured it would get
used to death. My mother had asked him if he still had it. He said
yeah. I said, could I try it out, I'm going to get my own some day.
That gradually evolved to saying, "can we buy the dulcimer?" and then
it ended up being "Merry Christmas!", so that was it.

It came with three books, and it's a wonderful thing it did--because I
left the marvelous book by Aubrey Atwater at my other grandma's house
(I didn't think I would need it and I was worried about the back cover
falling off) and can't play a note without a book.. Also, one book,
while its songs are not really my type, has some useful hints, some fun
pictures and history, and the thing that resolved the one thing left
hanging in my mind. See, back when we were going to buy one from a
store, I had been thinking hourglass shaped, because that's what you
see on anything dulcimer. I loved the graceful lines and the four
little heart soundholes. I worried about what I might end up with on
the cheap side of things. Now, this dulcimer is pear-shaped--only not
as combersome-looking as a regular pear, more graceful--and I was kind
of like, well, all I want is "a dulcimer" and who cares about shape,
anyway? But I have my lovely heart-shaped holes, and I love the sound,
so by the end of last evening I had completely fallen in love...or so I
thought.

But my book said that the pear shape was actually a fish shape, and
that it was a Christian symbol*. I actually gasped, I think, and then I
told it to my family at least three different times--once to my
grandmother, once to my mother and once to my father. Grandma said,
"Ahhh," and Mum said, "COOL." and Daddy said, "O.k." Now I am certain.
Fish-shaped for me!

Hey, the soundholes could be symbols too, if you want to look at it
that way. Since the fish stands for Jesus, so can the hearts stand for
His love. Now, I like symbolism, but even so, I think it's a nice way
to look at things. Might as well go the whole way.

For those who don't like Christian symbolism for whatever reason or who
have doggedly read through this wondering where it would end--I can
already play and sing one song and make no blatant errors, but more
just stumbling along. I count that as being pretty good for the first
full day and second day of learning...don't you think?

Oh, and the song is "The Christ Child's Lullaby". It's simple, in
Mixolydian mode, and sounds good with drones. I'm not ready to try
major retuning because I want to get more settled before I start
breaking strings. A Christian Celtic band out of Chicago, the Crossing,
does this one. It's on their CD "The Court of a King".

I even have a Crossing sticker for my case! Majorly cool!

Better let you go now. Have a good one!

*If you've heard another story about the origins of dulcimer shapes, it
might be the right one. It could be that both are true. It's hard to
know with folk instruments and all that. Whatever it is, I'll never see
pear-shaped dulcimers the same way again.