A Short Natural History of the Dulcimer

Roger Frood is a dulcimer maker, running Dove Dulcimers in Somerset. This article first appeared in the Nonsuch Newsletter in 1993.

Past
Origin���� The origins of the dulcimer are lost in the mists of time. It was certainly a fully fledged and widespread instrument a thousand years ago in Arabia and Byzantium. Everything that goes to make a dulcimer was known at the time of the ancient Greeks. Carvings of similar instruments, played with small wooden beaters, go back to 1500BC.

Spread���� The santur (the root name of the dulcimer thoughout the region from Greece to Kashmir) spread westwards across the whole of Europe and eastwards as far as Mongolia. From the fourteenth to eighteenth centuries, it was a well-known and much-loved instrument. At its peak, it was the subject of serious compositions, and its heavenly sound meant it was often depicted played by angels.

Decline���� The dulcimer, a complete and versatile instrument, had no need to change. But the dulcimer combined with the harpsichord to produce an offspring that was to grow and succeed so well that both its parents nearly died. That offspring was the Piano.

Lifeline���� The dulcimer was pushed out of elevated musical circles and now had to survive out on the streets, playing for weddings and dances, often in the hands of gypsies or buskers. Further east, in Arabia and India, where the piano did not penetrate, the santur continued as an esteemed classical instrument. Though the piano rapidly developed greater range, volume and status than the dulcimer, it totally lost one important advantage the dulcimer had (and still has), the advantage helped the dulcimer to survive in its own niche. The piano ceased to be portable.

Further Spread���� As part of the spread of European trade and traders, the dulcimer family spread across the Atlantic to the U.S., Mexico and Canada; and eastwards by sea to S.E Asia and China.

Endangered���� Over much of Western Europe, the dulcimer declined drastically. It totally disappeared from Scandinavia and France for example. In Eastern Europe, it survived intact, and the development by Schunda of the large concert cimbalom gave it a whole new lase of life. In Britain, the upheaval of industrialism disturbed the rural habitat of the dulcimer, though it did adapt and survive in a few cities such as London, Birmingham and Glasgow, as well as its rural stronghold, East Anglia.

Why Endangered���� Because it was surviving in isolated areas, there was no expertise in dulcimer making; often a player had to make their own instrument or get the local carpenter to knock one up. These home-made specimins were often difficult or impossible to tune, and by the early 60's and 70's, the dulcimer was on the verge of extinction in Britain, most of Europe as well as the U.S.

Saviours���� A handful of dedicated men grabbed hold of a very thin lifeline and pulled the dulcimer back from the brink. Tobi Reiser, Johann Fuchs and Karl-Heinz Schickhaus in Germany and Switzerland; in Britain, David Kettlewell. By promoting interest in the music, instruments again began to be built, and the capitivating sound of the dulcimer again began to spread its magic.

Present
For the present, the survival of the dulcimer is no longer in doubt, and it can definitely be considered to be off the endangered species list.

Revival���� More players, more public interest and more awareness of the dulcimer, though still mostly confined to folk music and busking, mean that the dulcimer is experiencing a new lease of life. The demand for instruments has become larger, and the demand from players for good instruments is becoming increasingly discriminating. It is no longer good enough to make a trapezoidal wooden box with strings and call it a dulcimer.

Improvements in dulcimer design have quite rightly been insisted on. There is no excuse these days for making dulcimers that will not stay in tune, or that sound harsh or unbalanced.

The Future
The outlook for the dulcimer is now better than it has been for nearly two hundred years, with a revival of interest in many places in Western Europe including Britain, a continuous flourishing tradition in Eastern Europe, and an explosion of interest in the U.S. The dulcimer is also spreading from its base in folk music into new areas of classical music, rock and jazz.

The dulcimer is a fully-fledged and worthy instrument, far more than just a musical novelty; amd music is more than entertainment, diversion, it is a necessary food. At a time when many people are searching out their real roots from the past to sustain them in a changing world, a world in which music that speaks to the ear, heart and mind will be a lifeline for us all, the dulcimer with its timeless voice has come of age. No longer an ugly duckling but a swan, perhaps the once and future queen of instruments.

Copyright � Roger Frood, 1995. All Rights reserved.