The Attraction of the Mountain Dulcimer Maureen Sellers

You've seen or heard a dulcimer --You have bought an instrument or plan to buy one soon -- Magic is happening. Life, as you know it, is about to change!

From the first moment I held a dulcimer in my lap, I knew it held the music I had been searching for. In times of solitude, my dulcimer is my best friend. At festivals, in a classroom, or at a jam, my music blends with the music of others and becomes part of a musical conversation. Unlike any other language, music is always friendly yet it expresses so many emotions that are not possible to express with mere words. Stella is the name of my main dulcimer. She is my counselor. If I am happy and ready for another great day, she plays raucous fiddle tunes or call and response gospel songs. If I am a little down, she starts with songs in minor keys and works me back to happy.

I am a dulcimer teacher and have the privilege of teaching all over the country. The people I have encountered have been some of the best friends a person could ever hope for. I have had very young students, including my two-year-old grandson, Patrick. Then there have been the quick-to-learn teens. Last semester I had an eighty-seven-year-old man named Frank come to the University for lessons. Frank gave a concert to his family last Christmas Day! And there was the middle-aged woman with extremely high blood pressure who studied mountain dulcimer with me. Her blood pressure was dramatically lower after practicing the dulcimer. Magic? Pretty close!

Several years ago on my way through Tennessee I chanced upon the beautiful overlook at Bean Station. After observing the stunning panorama from the mountain top, I returned to my car and got my dulcimer. Sitting on that age-old stone fence I played Amazing Grace. I was very much into the moment and did not realize that a group of people had gathered at a short distance around me. As I continued playing people were humming along ever so softly. One man spoke to me after the song and said he had not heard a dulcimer's voice since his mother played for him as a child. His emotions were a mixture of happy times past and of a heartache for his mother.

Have I mentioned the wonderful, supportive friends awaiting those who play dulcimer? As I visit festivals I am reunited with friends I haven't seen since the last festival. We exchange new songs, pictures of the last gathering, and stories of children and grandchildren. And we engage in that ancient language called music.

Our humble dulcimer, with its diatonic scale, is the perfect instrument to preserve and promote the songs of our American heritage. So I'll get on my soap box for a moment and ask each and everyone that reads this to sing to a child or a young person today. Our songs, as we know them, need to be passed on to another generation. Tapes and CDs do not have the power to pass on your version of "Cindy" or "Skip To My Lou." You are the only one who can teach a grandchild or a nephew the version you learned from your mom or grandpa.

Learn, play, enjoy, and pass on the music! A wonderful world of friends and tunes awaits you!

Maureen Sellers is a musician and teacher in Indiana. If you have questions about her article, contact Ms. Sellers directly by e-mail. To learn more about her, see the Contributors section of Sweet Music Index .