Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Wednesday, October 15, 2008

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Dick Albin, an artist-in-residence from Bowling Green, helps Dixie Elementary fourth-grader Vanessa Tincher align the tuning pegs on her dulcimer.

“Making music” took on a whole new meaning for fourth-graders at Dixie Elementary Magnet School this week as students crafted their very own handmade wooden dulcimers.

Kids rotated smoothly among several workstations Tuesday – some screwing in the three tuning pegs and hammering the tail-piece pins, others carving shallow grooves in the bridge and stringing their new instruments.

“The idea is that kids get a chance to build these things, but more importantly, they get a chance to play them,” said artist-in-residence Richard “Dick” Albin of Bowling Green, who guided their efforts.

Children tackled the hands-on task with confidence. “I think the hardest part was probably the filing. The rest went pretty easy,” Corban Ellis said matter-of-factly.

Classmate Katie Demetriades was a tad more hesitant. “With all the building process, if we make a mistake, it might not sound good,” she said.

The project, funded by a 2020 Vision grant and the school’s PTA, touches on several aspects of core content, including folk instruments and bluegrass, drama, Appalachian art, Kentucky history, and social studies.

“The project can evolve into something huge,” said art teacher Rachel Losch, who said Dixie is planning an Appalachian festival in January. Already in the works are a folk tale play presented by fifth-graders and dulcimer music played by the fourth-graders.

Albin, who spent two days at Dixie this week, had done a bit of prep work on each dulcimer, such as cutting out the fret bar and gluing the bridge and tail piece. That’s where the children picked up – hammering, filing and hearing how to tune their instruments. The attentive students moved eagerly from table to table as they shared tools and supplies.

“We’re dealing with a generation that very often doesn’t know how to use a screwdriver,” Albin said. “I hope they will get a sense of what it’s like to actually build something.”

Albin, who has worked with students for about 20 years, led a dulcimer-building workshop last spring at a craft market in Louisville, where Losch got the idea of inviting him to work with her elementary school kids.

“I feel really lucky that we get to do it,” Dixie fourth-grader Mackenzie Wallace said.

Before this week’s culmination, while Albin was working with the wood, the students decorated oblong cardboard boxes with latex and acrylic paint, either in warm or cool colors. Parents and other volunteers then were on hand Tuesday to trace each child’s dulcimer and cut a resting spot in its cardboard box, which acts as a resonator. The goal was to complete 100 instruments.

After the hands-on work, Albin shared a little music theory and explained the dulcimer’s Appalachian roots, noting that the dulcimer is Kentucky’s official stringed instrument.

“The dulcimer came into the mountains with early, early settlers,” he began as the kids sat crossed-legged on the floor with instruments on their laps.

Dixie music teacher Kim Day also pitched in. “People would use (dulcimers) as part of a bluegrass band to play for special occasions like a barn dance,” she explained.

After the quick history lesson, Albin patiently showed the roomful of children how to find the frets and strum their dulcimers with picks.

“We’ll add notes as we go,” he said after teaching them a simple song. “I really want them to be able to play with their eyes closed.”