Strings on Wood
Address
"So," the TV host asked, "as a woodworker you could make anything. Why dulcimers?"
"Ah," I replied, "but when I make an instrument, the wood sings to me."
My first instrument sang out in 2015, and the experience changed my life. More than 500 instruments later I still love hearing that first song--the voice of a newborn instrument. Yes, I enjoy designing and building and finishing and tuneup; but it's still the song, the new voice that makes the work meaningful.
That first dulcimer was so easy to play that even I, a 71-year-old non-musician, could play a few songs right away. Success is addictive, and I realized that anyone could learn to make music. So I signed up for some craft fairs and met lots of people who want to play their own songs.
Nowadays I make guitars and the occasional ukulele as well as dulcimers, but the focus hasn't changed. It's still the song.
