Folk Center workshop gathers hammered-dulcimer players

Rick Thum will instruct the intermediate class at the Hammered Dulcimer Workshop at Ozark Folk Center State Park in Mountain View from July 28-30.
Rick Thum will instruct the intermediate class at the Hammered Dulcimer Workshop at Ozark Folk Center State Park in Mountain View from July 28-30.

— Student-centered instruction, afternoon concerts and daily jam sessions are some of the reasons the Ozark Folk Center State Park’s Hammered Dulcimer Workshop attracts instrumentalists year after year.

The Hammered Dulcimer Workshop will take place in the park’s Administration Building in Mountain View from July 28-30. Classes meet from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a lunch break at noon.

Daren Dortin, the park’s music director, said the workshop is an opportunity for instrumentalists to gather.

“A lot of the workshops we have here are really sort of — in addition to the teaching aspect of it — it’s also a gathering of musicians who share a love of particular styles or particular instruments,” he said.

The workshop covers lessons for beginning, intermediate and advanced players. This year’s featured instructors are Ilace Mears, who will conduct the beginners workshop; Rick Thum, who will teach the intermediate class; and Linda Thomas, who will instruct advanced players.

Dortin said the hammered dulcimer is different from the mountain dulcimer, though both share the same moniker.

“The hammered dulcimer is really a percussion instrument, and you can think of it really similar to a piano, where hammers are used to strike the tuned strings to create the sound,” he said. “Unlike the mountain dulcimer, which is a threaded instrument — similar to a guitar or banjo — the hammered dulcimer incorporates the sound of a string instrument and the sound of a percussion instrument.”

Mears, who lives between Branson and Springfield, Missouri, has played the hammered dulcimer for 10 years and said she’s been involved with the workshop for nine years. She first heard a hammered dulcimer at Silver Dollar City.

“For a long time, every time we visited, I would say, ‘Oh, I love that sound. I want one,’” she said.

Mears said the hammered dulcimer is unique because it’s rare, and there are not as many teachers for it. She described her teaching style as multidisciplinary because not every student learns the same way. Her beginners class will cover the structure of the instrument, how to find notes and chords, and how to tune the dulcimer.

“[The workshop] is several intensive days in a row, which helps you learn more and retain better,” she said.

Thomas, of Kansas City, Missouri, has played the hammered dulcimer for 24 years and has been involved in the workshop for at least 10. She said the timbre and texture of the instrument are unlike any other sound, and the workshop helps keep the history of the instrument alive.

“It’s important because the folk center promotes the continuation of old-time music, and the hammered dulcimer is one of the oldest instruments in the history of musical instruments,” she said.

Thomas has two degrees in music and experience in music education. Her class will cover different styles of music and fundamentals. She also said part of becoming a more advanced player is experimenting, and she encourages players to experience different ideas and styles.

“First and foremost, I want the experience to be fun, enjoyable,” she said. “I try to apply a teaching level to each individual student. I look at where the student is and help them grow.”

Thum has long been involved with the Ozark Folk Center, too, Dortin said.

“He’s been sort of a perennial instructor here for close to 10 years,” Dortin said. “He’s got an avid following of students and fans. He sort of helped anchor the event over the years.”

Though each instructor has his or her own teaching style, Dortin said, there are similarities.

“Each one of them tries to incorporate practical skills, some music theory and some notation, or some sort of other form of music notation like tablature,” Dortin said.

The advanced music class can also cover difficult material or improvisation, Dortin said.

“A lot of these classes take into account that students have plenty of prior experience,” he said. “A lot of those times, those classes can be student-specific.”

From 1-2 p.m. each day of the workshop, instructors will hold a concert. Dortin said there are also jam sessions for all hammered-dulcimer players at the end of each workshop day.

“That’s a chance for not only the students but also the paid park visitors,” he said.

Dortin said players must bring their own hammered dulcimer to the workshop, but the Dulcimer Shoppe in Mountain View has a limited number for rent. He also said students can bring a tape recorder to record lessons.

“It’s wonderful that the folk center offers this opportunity to have several teachers in a concentrated event so that you have top-notch instruction that you can’t get just everywhere,” Mears said.

The registration fee for the Hammered Dulcimer Workshop is $200 for all three days or $75 for a single day. For more information or to register, visit www.ozarkfolkcenter.com.

Staff writer Syd Hayman can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or shayman@arkansasonline.com.

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