Photo by Robert Batey
Ringing Strings Bowed Psalteries
handcrafted by Rick Long
Clinton, Tennessee
(865) 660-4026
ricklong@ringingstrings.com
Updated 2-28-2010
I am selling most of these that I have in stock at the Southern Strings Dulcimer Festival in Hattiesburg, MS this week. I only have a few left and they seem to be moving very fast. I'll have more finished soon after returning home. I am changing this page to be like the others on my site, with pictures and sound clips of each psaltery this is available. I have six on my workbench just waiting for finish and strings.
This page introduces the new diatonic D Psaltery. You will find lots of pictures of several different instruments to show what is available
What started the process of building this new psaltery is thanks to a dulcimer playing friend, Sonja. We were playing at a jam with the Knoxville Dulcimer Club. I was playing my key of D chromatic psalteries, a soprano and tenor, that I had built especially to play along with the dulcimer folks. These two psalteries have a slightly shortened scale and are tuned to a chromatic D tuning. This allows me to play in the key of D and play every song as though I was playing every song in the key of C. This would essentially be like putting a capo on a psaltery as you would a fretted instrument to play in a different key using the same chord patterns. This seems to be hard for most folks to grasp, but it really makes it easy for me to play in D. If I used a standard chromatically tuned bowed psaltery I would be worn out from constantly reaching across for the C# and F# notes I needed.
Please use the word "psaltery" in the subject of your e-mail. Also include a phone number as a second way for me to contact you.
Sonja understood what I was doing and commented that she would like a bowed psaltery in D, to play along with dulcimer groups at jams. She asked if it could be simplified a little more and also be smaller in size.
That started brewing in my mind and began the process of how I develop a new design. Mostly through trial and error, I always add it seems to be mostly error at times. I realized this could be a psaltery that a dulcimer player would enjoy having with them at a jam as a second instrument. My goals were to make it small enough to easily transport, keep down the price, and to still have a great sounding psaltery.
I have decided to start offering them in a very limited choice of wood and won't be photographing and listing each one. I'll only be listing what I have available and there will be pictures representing the woods available.
Here's the description of the tuning, size, and what is included for the price of the D Psaltery. They are 16" long, 4" wide, and 2" thick including the height of the strings, so it is a pretty small psaltery and will comfortably fit in most folks hands. There are sixteen strings on each one and they can be made either right or left hand. The bow is the same 14" bow that is used to play my soprano psalteries. These bows are very light in weight and are haired with a synthetic bow hair. The bow will be made of the same wood as the body of the psaltery, unless a custom wood is requested.
The psaltery is tuned to the D scale starting with A at the tip, A B C# D E F# G A B C# D E F# G A B. This way you end up with one extra note above two octave. I know from playing my soprano psalteries for 30 years that having that one extra note there allows me to play lots of tunes in that upper octave that wouldn't be possible without it, or I would need to search out that note in a lower octave. The two D's are marked with a black dot for reference points to help find your way around.
If you are an Appalachian dulcimer player you might recognize a few things about the tuning layout. First if you were playing from a tab written in DAD, the lowest A would be like playing your open A. The the B and C# would be the same as first and second frets on that same string. Then look to your melody D string, the lowest D on the psaltery would be like your D string played open, then E is your first fret, F# is second, G is the third fret, and on up the scale.
If you are playing from tab written in DAA, the lowest A would match your melody A string played open. Then B is the first fret, C# is second fret, and D is your third fret. This is why I started with the lowest note an A, in either DAD or DAA you need to get at least down to that note. Bear in mind that with the psaltery tuned to go up to that B you can play a lot of the tunes in that higher octave, to mix up the sound a bit. If your tab leads you to start on that low A, try starting in on the A an octave higher. This can really change the quality of the overall sound at a jam. Remember to please check your tuning before any jam, right Sonja.
Does this make sense? I know there would be limitations if you were to have some of the 1/2 fret notes that are added to some dulcimers. Just to keep it simple this psaltery is just tuned to the notes of that D diatonic scale. There may be a few tunes that you need a certain note you don't have on the psaltery. When I encounter this I look for a note that would harmonize with that note and try that. That wouldn't work very well if you were playing your big solo, but playing in a jam nobody will know but you. My feeling is that these psalteries would be great played with other instruments and use it to fill in the background of the tune. It can be quite uninteresting if everyone in a jam plays the melody of the tune. This psaltery is great for adding harmonies or just very simple drone notes that can be held for a very long time with your bowing technique, I give you the secret to achieve this on the included DVD.
This is the ambrosia maple and walnut model.
The picture on the left shows both left and right hand models.
That's an extra soundhole in the back, some folks mistake it for a finger hole to help hold the psaltery. Details on this are on the DVD
This is the aspen and cherry model. I have several of these available. Aspen is second only to holly as being the whitest wood in nature. It looks great with the cherry. I only have right hand models finished in this wood. Left hand model can be made.
This batch has the same wood on the back as on the soundboard. The back soundhole is in the same location as the soundboard. This is more labor intensive, so this may be the last in this style, unless requested.
The price of the D Psaltery is $170, and includes the psaltery, bow, tuning wrench, rosin, extra strings, instructional DVD, and some written instruction, all in a white box that the psaltery can be stored in. I would suggest adding some foam rubber to the box instead of the bubble wrap the psaltery will be shipped in.
You can add a black padded cordura case for $30. There is a picture of the case at the bottom of the
Soprano page.
You can also request the D Psaltery in a different wood combination as a custom instrument. This will add some to the price, depending on the wood you want. Call or email me to discuss this.
These can also tuned to different keys by tuning certain strings up or down a half step. If you do this you will need to remark your notes and probably do something to keep the octave marking at the D's from distracting you. I cover how to do this on the DVD and a special written page I include with the psaltery.
If you want one of these dedicated to a certain key other than D, I can do that, or you can order one without the octave markings at the D's to tune to the key you desire. Just remember I don't recommend tuning any of the string up or down more than a half step. Call or email to discuss this.
Two views of a right hand ambrosia maple and walnut D Psaltery.
Ambrosia maple is named after the insect, the ambrosia beetle, that bores into the soft maple trees here in the south. This cause the dark, and very colorful streaks. Lots of different shades of brown and grey.
This is a left hand ambrosia maple and walnut D Psaltery
I have a limited number of the ambrosia maple psalteries available in either right or left hand models. Working on more.
The included DVD and written instructions show everything on how to care for and play the D Psaltery. Everything from how to hold the psaltery, tuning, replacing a broken string, cleaning, to the most important, bowing technique. I give you lots of examples of what you should practice to make your playing sound the very best.
I will update this box with the D psalteries I have available. This will reflect sales and also when I complete new ones -
0 available - Ambrosia Maple and Walnut
1 available - Left Hand Ambrosia Maple and Walnut
0 available - Aspen and Cherry
For
a listing of
D Psalteries that are currently available scroll to the bottom of this page
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