The hammered dulcimer (aka cimbalom in Europe) is not a musical instrument one hears everyday and traditionally it has been used for folk music. The hammered dulcimer has been used by classical composers and has even been used in popular movies like Star Trek In Search Of Spock (when they were stealing the Enterprise) and also, more recently in Lord of The Rings The Two Towers (used to highlight how sneaky Gollum was). It isn't a new instrument and has been around, in one form or another, since about 3500 BCE.
Dulcimer means sweet song from the Latin dulcis (sweet) and Greek melos (song). It does have a sweet sound but I like the energy and rhythm it can bring to a song. Here's a few selections of Christmas songs played on the Hammered Dulcimer.
Even with traditional carols the dulcimer brings a toe tapping energy to the beauty of the song.
I love the feeling of uplifting joy Mark Wade brings to this traditional Christmas song...he's able to capture the rich fullness of the song.
I'm a fan of Ted Yoder's playing. I love his energy and chord choices.
- BTW, anyone know what famous group of singers first brought The Little Drummer Boy exposure? Care to guess what the original name of the song was?
