Special Effects Without Electricity (Instructional Video)
Through the years, I have come across many of these effects either on my own or by learning them from other players. After demonstrating them to many hammer dulcimer players, I was amazed to find how many players did not know that many of them even existed! Some of these effects may not be learned in typical workshop settings, so I thought it would be useful to share them here.
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I have broken down the effects into two categories, “Cool Tools” and “Dulcimer Onomatopoeia”. The descriptions of each effect are not meant to be complete but a supplemental guide to the instructional video.
Cool Tools
Bending
Strike or pluck a string, then use your finger to bend the string from the opposite side of the same bridge where the note was played.
Finger-Dampening
With one finger, dampen the string by pushing on the bridge directly on any course. With your other hand, strike or pluck the dampened course.
Harmonics
With one finger, gently touch the middle or fifth of a string. With your other hand strike or pluck the string. Harmonics will sound the best on the bass bridge.
Stops
Strike or pluck a string, then stop the sustain with your hand before it naturally fades. The effect is most prominent if you stop a note soon after striking it.
Octave With One Hammer
Played on the far left of your instrument, where the octave from the left and right bridges become adjacent to each other. May not be possible on all hammer dulcimers.
Dulcimer “Onomatopoeia”
Harp Dulcimer
Pluck the dulcimer in a way that the harp would be played. This is done with long, extended arpeggios.
Chimes
Find the middle of any string on the right bridge and pluck it. It should sound similar to a chime. (Remember! You can use the chime effect to make your dulcimer sound similar to a doorbell or grandfather clock!!)
Autoharp Dulcimer
Use one hand to mute the strings that you don’t want and with the other hand strum a chord.
Tags: bend, chime, chimes, dampers, effects, harmonic, octave, pluck, stop