I ran across a folk-type instrument called a Stumstick. It is shaped kind-of like a Martin travel guitar, but tuned more like a dulcimer, with three strings, and only enough frets to make a scale. In other words, you cannot play a wrong note…a beginner or child can pick it up and play immediately with nice results. Like a tin whistle, the most common key of the instrument is D.
The inventor wanted an instrument for people who had failed at every other musical instrument, or to put in the hands of a child, as it is literally impossible to fail with this instrument.
While this is a limited instrument I would think that this could sound pretty cool with a tin whistle for some folk songs.
I think there was a thread on them a few months ago. I’m not so sure it would go well with the whistle. It’s a very quiet instrument, with very little bottom at all, so I think it might get lost with the whistle’s penetrating sound, plus it wouldn’t be all that much of a complement, not having any bass.
OTOH, it’s very portable and might be a lot easier for most people to play than a dulcimer. You don’t need to hold it across your lap, so if you play guitar, mando, etc., you wouldn’t have to retrain your hand muscles.
I love the sound of the things, and, had I not discovered whistles and flute, probably would have one by now for traveling.
Have seen Bob McNally at the ACC show in Baltimore a couple times, and have long worn-out copies of a couple of his cassettes, including Spotted Cow.
I seem to recall that one promotion point is portability.
I’ve used a uke that way, too.
I have a far better suggestion for you. Go to this site http://www.strothers.com/sweet_woods.htm and buy one of the traveling dulcimers. They are really great little dulcimers. You can tune them to whatever tuning you want and they play as easy as a regular dulcimer, They close up into a little case and play in 3 different volumes. Super quiet, normal loudness and extra loud. To get the super quiet, you just slide the fretboard off entirely and play it without the box and you have super quiet. Slide the lid the whole way on and you have normal volume. Slide the lid just a crack open and you have loud volume! There are a few of these dulcimers in Iraq right now giving our guys over there some sweet music. They are just a great size to fit in a soldiers duffle bag. You can also store your picks, tuner and clip inside of it. It’s a really neat invention!
This maker (Dave Lynch) is very reputable. He is in Illinois and will be stopping by my house in PA on Monday to drop off my new Mountain dulcimer on his way home from seeing his daughter go “out to sea” in Norfolk. She ships out on the 16th of December.
I think that you could easily hear this sweet little instrument over a whistle.
I was never exactly Tiny Tim tiptoing thru the tulips, but I learned enough chords to accompany some kids songs back in the days when I needed to do that.
Just looked at the Strumstick site. FWIW, it looks like a little threee string mountain dulcimer (actually a four-string with only a single melody wire) with not much of a soundbox. I have a three-string MD I picked up a music festival twenty years ago that isn’t much bigger but at least has some volume. Given the cost of this thing, I’m sure its a nice little instrument, but why not just get a real dulcimer?
I’ll second Kathy’s recommendation of Dave’s instruments (and yes, that IS our site that is hosting his web page, but believe me, there’s no “financial interest” because that first picture of the “dulcinator” is my DH - we GIVE money to Dave, not get any!!! ).
The travel dulcimer is a great invention (I’ve got one), but any of Dave’s instruments, from the student dulcimers (of which we own 5, one fully chromatic), to the his baritone (I own his first one), bass (I own his first one of that, too), to the dulcinator (we own the ONLY one of that currently) - are quality, great sounding, and easy playing.
I’ve got a strum stick like object (mine is called an “A Stick”), and they’re lot’s of fun. Very whistle-like in some ways (diatonic, simple, etc.). Mine has a larger sound box than the name-brand strum sticks and looks prettier too.
Thanks for this. Too bad I did not know about this sooner, I probably would have gotten one for my wife for Christmas.
My wife always wanted to learn to play guitar, but she has carpal-tunnel syndrome and her hands tend to go numb at times, so she has backed off on the guitar idea.
The same thing may happen with the Strumstick, obviously, but the investment sure wouldn’t be the same.
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