MONDAY'S MUSINGS: TOE TAPPING SOUNDS OF THE SEASON

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. 

I particularly like the unusual sound it brings to this particular Christmas carol, The Little Drummer Boy. It's played by Ted Yoder.





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?

SUGAR PLUM FAIRIES DANCING IN MY HEAD

Tis the season and everywhere we go the music of the season rings out. I have many Christmas favorites from traditional to a few modern renditions. I have to admit I especially drawn to creative people who present the beauty of music in unusual ways.

I've always loved Tchaikovsky. He's one of my favorite composers, in part, because of his ability to tell a good story. His medium happened to be music and he touched the senses with those stories. His passion imbues his music. Tchaikovsky could tell a tale dark and ominous and do it well. He could also create whimsical fantasy with his music. He was willing to try different things to create the sound and mood he wanted. In one of my favorite sounds of the season, The Nutcracker, Tchaikovsky used a celeste to create the sounds for the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. It was a new and different instrument in his day. Instead of typical piano this keyboard had a four octave range and attached to hammers which struck graduated steel plates. It was both a percussion and keyboard instrument. It created a different sound. It was unusual.

Below, is another rendition of Sugar Plum Fairy, and is played on another unusual instrument, the glass harp. I have a few more traditional Christmas songs played on unusual instruments that I'll share in a few more posts. Meanwhile, enjoy this one!

• Do you have a favorite Christmas carol?

Disclaimer: Although I'm curious how many bottles of good wine it would take to fill these glasses I did not help them empty wine glasses before they were played. Just sayin'  J