Sunday, August 4, 2013

twang deep...twang darkly


what does a creative mind with a musical bent do with 130 year old coffin-style violin case? re-purpose it into a mountain dulcimer, of course! i have purchased a couple others in the past and turned them into sewing boxes for my slow cloth fragments, but this one had something entirely different in mind... having housed music for so long, this time it wanted to make it's own music!

very little was done to the box itself, aside from removing the side panels on the two curved shoulders at the top to create a surprisingly resonant sound chamber after removing felt linings and dividing walls. add to that a hand-cut, scrolled headed fret board made of oak, stained to compliment, and...twang! instant dulcimer! okay, so maybe it wasn't quite *instant*...but you get the idea. given its dimensions, this unique beauty has a lovely, dark bass timbre. why don't you pour a little of its magic into your ear?



namaste'



12 comments:

  1. Joe, wow. Such a beautifu sound. Do you sing?

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    1. i am very pleased with it, to be sure! i do sing...and have been told i have a good voice, but i have never recorded my singing.

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  2. so nice to hear your voice and how you speak. and the music! well, who knew you could produce so much sound from such a simply adapted object. Amazing!

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    1. isn't it just? i may have to explore this more in the future.

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  3. WOW,she has such a gorgeous deep voice,thanks for letting us hear her.

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    1. anytime! i'm having more fun, looking at things and wondering what sort of music boro i might be able to coax out of them...

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  4. i love that... music boro! it sounds lovely and deep. i am curious why you didn't put a hole in the top of some sort.. most dulcimers i have seen have some sort of opening. do you play traditional dulcimer songs or mostly stream of consciousness melody?

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    1. ha! i actually wanted to cut ornate sound holes on the top, but sometimes the instruments have their own ideas. in this case, one of the curved shoulder pieces was broken beyond repair, so i knocked them out and used them as the sound holes. not what i originally envisioned, but the sound turned out perfect in any case! oh, and yes, i do play traditional songs, too. if you check back in a few days, I will be posting some more.

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  5. Well here I am... Back and waiting for some more music! I'll be patient. But in the meantime I read on the side bar that you ride a vintage motorcycle... What kind?

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  6. WOW I did enjoy your music making. I'm amazed!

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