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Dulcimer Playing With Extra Frets

Jan 17th, 2009 by Doug Berch

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Posted in Dulcimer, Lutherie, Music

8 Responses to “Dulcimer Playing With Extra Frets”

  1. Russell Adkins says:
    September 13, 2009 at 11:31 PM

    I make chromatic dulcimers, it gives the instrument more versitility with having the sharps and flats , tradition is fine for those who want that but i think the evolution to chromatic is a plus there is so much more to be gained from it.

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  2. Doug Berch says:
    September 14, 2009 at 9:30 AM

    Hi Russell,

    A lot of people are playing chromatic dulcimers these days for the reasons you mention. I personally have not missed most of the chromatic options though I like having a few extra frets. I’ll have to play one for a while and decided if I can’t live without all the additional notes! being able to make what you want is one of the advantages of being a luthier!

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  3. Laura Hedgecock says:
    November 13, 2009 at 1:23 PM

    I have a Warren May dulcimer that I absolutely love, but I am limited when I play it at church. Other musicians very much like to sing/play music in the keys they are written. I’m preparing now for two solos in DAD, but would like to join in on the Christmas hymns that are in F. I can’t figure out how to make that work w/ out retuning.

    Where can I get a chromatic dulcimer as a back-up?

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  4. Doug Berch says:
    November 13, 2009 at 3:43 PM

    Hi Laura,
    One option is to have another standard dulcimer tuned differently.
    I do make chromatic dulcimers and if you are interested please inquire.

    All the best,

    Doug

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  5. lildog says:
    December 1, 2009 at 4:50 PM

    Isn’t it a 13+ not a 12+ extra fret?

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  6. Doug Berch says:
    December 1, 2009 at 5:06 PM

    You are right! Thanks for catching the typo. I’ve fixed it!

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  7. Joel Salisbury says:
    January 30, 2010 at 6:09 PM

    My wife had the 1/2 fret added to her fretboard, as per your suggestion.
    Her instrument already had the 1 1/2, 6 1/2 and the 13 1/2 frets when she got it. But since we play together (I play guitar) we thought the addition of the 1/2 fret would expand the spectrum of cords available to her and would minimize the necessity of so many re-tunings. Which it has, however, we are now wondering about a source book or chart for chording on a chromatic dulcimer. Do you have suggestions? Thanks much for you helpful and educational website.

    Sincerely, Joel

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  8. Doug Berch says:
    February 2, 2010 at 12:19 AM

    Thanks for the kind note. Here are two friends that teach and play chromatic dulcimer. They might have some information to offer:
    http://stephenseifert.com/
    http://www.darkstudios.com/

    I hope this helps.

    All the best,

    Doug

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