Bringing back a pre-pandemic tradition of spreading holiday cheer, members of the Dulcimer for Beginners Club performed for several senior living facilities in and around The Villages during the month of December.
Ellen Stafford, who is leader of the resident lifestyle club and a resident of Sumter Senior Living independent living facility, said participants and those they perform for are drawn to the stringed wooden instruments played in the Appalachian Mountains because of how easy it is to understand and play.
Although the group has preformed for facilities and during casual gatherings at Lake Sumter Landing before the COVID-19 pandemic, the December performances marked a new endeavor for most of its members, as the beginner group is not a performance group. Members decided to perform this year to spread holiday cheer.
On Dec. 16, the Dulcimer for Beginners Club gathered to play for residents of Mission Oaks Assisted Living and Memory Care. The group also performed at Sumter Senior Living for an audience of 53.
“We are at a point now where it’s very enjoyable because we have just branched out a little bit to going places again,” Stafford said. “We begin in July, when we have Christmas in July every year. That’s when we narrow down what we think would be fun and able to be done with new and experienced people.”
The Intermediate Dulcimer Club joined the beginners club for the Dec. 16 performance.
Dan Bernier, leader of the Intermediate Dulcimer Club, said he enjoys the experience of performing at senior living facilities.
“We can play a song and there is something about it,” Bernier said. “Certain songs bring something back. One gentleman there was almost comatose, but about halfway through the performance, he raised his head.”
Stafford agreed the performances went well with the help of the weekly practice
Having 14 years of experience playing the wooden instruments that lay across the lap and 12 years as leader of the club, Stafford said the group has a healthy mix of players with and without experience.
She said the club is a relaxed group and beginners can pick up the instrument easily. Stafford brings an extra dulcimer during meetings to make sure everyone is prepared.
“The group is a wonderful group,” she said. “We’ve been together, some of us a long time, but others are just joining. You know it’s a very friendly relaxed group, so it’s nice to go.”
Singing and strumming their strings to craft musical harmonies, the group practices playing American folk songs such as “Hale’s Rag,” “Yesterday’s Treasures” and “Where Have All the Flowers Gone.”
Based on attendance for the day and a chosen theme, Stafford picks music from the club’s music catalog for the group to play.
“Depending on who shows up, because some of us have been there a long time and some of us have just come in for the first time, I adapt when I see who comes in, because it’s usually a surprise.”
To find a theme, Stafford said she “just looks at the calendar to see if there’s some special day being celebrated nationally or if it’s a holiday.”
“For example, on Christmas Eve, the theme was gifts,” she said. “So, I went through all our songs and came up with about 12 that were related to a gift of some kind. Then there’s always a little time if they want to pick a song that they want to play.”
During a meeting on Christmas eve, the group played songs such as “Give Me the Roses,” “Good Times with Good Friends,” “Simple Gifts,” “This Land is Your Land,” “Yesterday’s Treasures” and “You Are My Sunshine.”
Meetings for the beginner group allow those with little to no experience with dulcimers a chance to master the instruments — with a focus on the mountain dulcimer.
The Appalachian dulcimer, also referred to as a mountain dulcimer, typically has three to five strings on the hourglass-shaped fretted string instrument that can be either plucked or bowed. While the beginners club mainly plays the mountain dulcimer, the hammered dulcimer is another instrument used to play string music.
“It is first of all a strictly American instrument, a mountain dulcimer,” Stafford said. “But the German immigrants who came over to Appalachian country brought with them a German instrument called a Scheitholt. That is what they saw, heard and built on, and they created their own instrument, which is a mountain dulcimer. They never became mass produced, so every mountain dulcimer is handmade to this day.”
Along with enjoying the soothing sounds, Stafford said playing the instrument is good for arthritis in the hand because it sits on the lap and doesn’t need a hand to wrap around the instrument.
The Dulcimer for Beginners Club meets from 9 to 10:50 a.m. on Wednesdays, except the first Wednesday of the month, at La Hacienda Recreation. To learn more about the dulcimer or the club, or email Stafford at eljayandruby@gmail.com.
Staff writer Brea Jones can be reached at 352-753-1119, ext. 5414, or brea.jones@thevillagesmedia.com.
