Singing with the Dulcimer Heidi Muller

The mountain dulcimer provides excellent accompaniment to singing. This deceptively simple instrument holds great potential for song arranging, in choices that range from its delicate fingerpicked voice to haunting, droning harmonies to rhythmic, percussive strumming.

One way to get started singing with the dulcimer is to simply play a tune with one finger, up and down the fretboard, in unison with your singing. Next, you can find a harmony for your voice by playing along two frets up from where you just played. In DAA tuning, for instance, if your melody starts on the 3rd fret (on D), you can play at the 5th fret, otherwise known as a "third" above the melody. You can also experiment with playing parts below your voice.

Chords are indispensable for learning song accompaniment. Many dulcimer books have chord charts (for instance, Larkin's Dulcimer Book). Play through them, choosing your favorite ones, and memorize the names and different positions of the chords. In DAA tuning, there will be easy parallel fingerings that move up and down the fretboard, providing very nice harmony for singing. The DAD tuning allows for inverted chords, giving you high and low voicings to choose from.

Right-hand technique (strumming, fingerpicking, flatpicking) is just as important since this sets the mood of the song. Will you keep it quiet with fingerpicking? Does the tune call for a fast, toe-tapping rhythm? Experiment with these choices and try mixing them up, such as strumming alternated with flatpicking individual strings.

Different playing techniques, harmonies and chord positions are the basic tools of arranging. Vary the way you play each verse and chorus. Maybe add an introduction, instrumental break and fancy ending. With a little imagination, you can change a repetitious or monotonous song into an interesting, complex piece.

Now go find an audience!

Heidi Muller is a musician and performer living in Seattle, Washington. Do you have comments or questions about her article? Contact Ms. Muller directly by e-mail. To learn more about her, see the Contributors section of Sweet Music Index.