"Creed" verse - Rich Mullins - hammered dulcimer instruction

[amanthasoo]

To people of the future, so C(R), G(L), C(R), G(L) never happens. It's always D(R), G(L), D(R), G(L). The only change is whether you hit GG as a chord or if you hit CG as a chord.

It's mostly GG, sometimes a pair of CGs. Just listen to the music. (Check out the XKCD comic number 979 and read the rollover.)

[navycpoemt]

I just stumbled across your videos. Thank You. I just purchased a Russell Cook 16/15 chromatic and it arrives in three more days, Can't wait. It is my first. I play several other insturments so I am hoping to catch on quickly. I am a visual learner so thank you for the videos. I subscribed so I hope you keep it going. I play mainly in church and volunteer to play at nursing homes so I look forward to sharing hammer dulcimer music with many people. Do you ever post tab with your songs?

[amanthasoo]

Ted, I'm having trouble picking up which notes you are playing at a certain point. I'm going to list out what I have to be clear and help others.

GD (chord), G(L), G(R), D(L), G(RLR), G(L high), G(RL)

Then the walkdown. C(R), B(L), A(R), G(L) between each of these are two drone notes on the middle G. 

G(R, drone), D(L), G(R), G(L high), G(R), D(L).

Now I know you play the D on the right side twice, but where are the drones? Sometimes you seem to drone on the G and sometimes the high D. Help?

[tedlavonyoder]

@amanthasoo You've got it right. The drone switches from being in the right hand to the left hand. After you hit that D(L) you fly over with your right hand to the two Ds that you were mentioning. Then the G drone happens with the LH while you hit D<G<D<G then G octave to start the phrase over again. Does that help? So you have two Ds in a row one on the LH across from the G drone and then hitting the octave across on the bass bridge while the drone moves to the G LH. Keep going. :-)

[amanthasoo]

@tedlavonyoder Thank you! To keep it going:

D(R), G(L), D(R), G(L) and GG(chord, which is wrong in my first post)

Play what I have in first post again, then play:

C(R), G(L), C(R), G(L), and another chord. Is this chord the G drone and the B below the C?

At 2:30 & 4:05 you drone on the left D instead of the middle G. So, are the chords using C and using G different? When you play it all the way through, you play it 7 times with the pattern ending in double D,D,D,C,D,D,D. What do I have confused?

[tedlavonyoder]

@amanthasoo When I play the part from 2:30 & 4:05 I just messed up. The drone should always be on the G. I think the place that you're talking about is right after I switched to the C chord and then the second time through I hit the D once and I had to correct myself. On both chords the G is the drone. If I can't explain with words, send me an email with your phone and I'll call you tomorrow to walk you through it. Will that work?

[tedlavonyoder]

@tedlavonyoder I had a little hick-up there at one point and so I just started again and that maybe something that you might be tripping over too, I'm not sure. I think you can get my email from my channel here so send me a number and what time I should call and we'll get this straightened out. I'm on eastern time. Thanks.

[JustJat1]

When I learned this (without the help of this video - Ted makes it so much easier!) I found it helpful at first to split the pattern into 32 (is it 8 beats divided in 4?), but then it subdivides into 4s, then 3s and finally 2s - if you count as follows - the accent is always on 1, and all these are equal length.

1 (234) 1 (234) 1 (23) 1 (23) 1 (23) 1 (23) 1 (2) 1 (2) 1 (2) 1 (2) 1 (2) 1 (2)

Eventually I dropped the counting but it helped me to grasp the structure.