I have played for some years and I love it. Of course, I love bluegrass music but that's not the only music I love. I will listen to anything including classical and opera. My lady is not so keen on classical and opera but I sometimes listen if I'm in the mood. So, to the original question-does anyone else here play the mountain dulcimer?

I am not too much into BG as some others are but I do appreciate all music so I can say I enjoy it (I just do not know enough about it). And I always thought the dulcimer would be something hard to pick up and learn.

I don't but I do agree that it is a beautiful instrument and makes incredible music from such a simple design. I bet you'll love this website I have bookmarked - the guy makes mountain dulcimers completely by hand still and he has created some lovely music, as well.

http://www.jcrmusic.com/

Beautiful. He has some very handsome instruments. They are a lot easier to play than you would think. It's just really picking and strumming at first. The mountain dulcimer is the state instrument of the state of Kentucky and is being taught in some grade schools. I've taught a few classes myself. The kids pick it up quite easily.

That's interesting to learn. I never knew that states had "state instruments". I wonder what the instrument of choice would be here in MA.

I've never played it. but my grandmother had one when I was kid. She was from West Virginia so Is suspect it was from her family. I've heard Bruce Hornsby use a hammered dulcimer on a few songs and like that sound, but I understand it's different than the mountain dulcimer.

I play a little mountain dulcimer. They are different from a hammered dulcimer. The mountain has four strings and are fretted instead of the many strings on a hammered. They have a really neat sound to them. They are tuned a couple different ways, the way I play is D bass and the rest of the strings to A. But they have many modal tunings because the origins of this instrument are really medieval. Check out Joni Mitchel, "A Case of You" and "All I Want."
She plays the mountain dulcimer on these tunes. Cindy Lauper also released an acoustic album that has a really neat cut of "Time After Time" on it.