I didn't have opportunity to proofread that yesterday....so please forgive the blatant typos. Today I have been thinking a bit about the things I could/should have included in the above synopsis, such as....

~ Larkin talked about in-strumming. It interested me very much, because I was taught to strum outwards, in order to create more volume on the 'melody' string. Larkin and Andy both felt that it would greatly improve the pain and numbness crisis I've had with my dulcimer playing, if I were to strum in instead of out. It will take some getting used to, but certainly worth a try...

~ Larkin plays strums and picks quite high up on the fingerboard, not over the strum-hollow, for a clear and delicate sound.

~ Larkin has 13 dulcimers in her collection, if I remember correctly. She usually travels with 3....one tuned to DDD (bagpipe tuning), one tuned to DAD, and the other a fourstring, usually DDAD. She uses the capo with ease, as well as bar-chording, so she can whip in and out of various major and minor keys like a hummingbird. On this trip, she was travelling only with 2 3-string dulcimers.

~ Larkin said that 2 of her dulcimers are so old and fragile and historic that they are (almost) never played. One of them has 2 hand-wound original strings.

~ Larkin almost never performs without artifical amplification.

~ Larkin is an incredibly fun and patient person to jam with. Ever the teacher, but never making you feel second-class...not at all!

~ Larkin played my Bear Meadow 4 string black walnut dulcimer, made 6 years ago by Dwain Wilder, and she fell in LOVE with it!!!! She said she wanted one just like it! Andy loved it too... Now, THAT made my heart sing!

That's all I can remember for now. If anything else important comes to mind, I'll include it later....

~black walnut