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One of the challenges and creative joys in playing the hammered dulcimer is to take the bare bones of a tune and embellish it to create your own version of the piece. I must confess that my arranging is often quite fluid in that I often never arrive at a completely finished product. I try to keep an open mind and challenge myself to bring new ideas to an old arrangement, constantly creating new variations. Sometimes the new ideas improve the arrangement and sometimes, well…maybe not! But the experimentation and improvisations keep me on my toes and hopefully keep my arranging from stagnating. Over the last 20 years or so, I have enjoyed teaching many players to expand their tool chest of ideas. More recently, I produced a series of five "arranging" double-CDs which present in great detail how I begin with a basic tune and explore the process of arranging beginning with hammering, chord progressions and so on. Each idea is explained thoroughly and separately tracked on the recordings. My latest venture was arranging "seasonal" music. My intent has never been to provide specific arrangements but to provide arranging ideas and give examples of applying those ideas. However, using models of completed arrangements can be a good way to develop your own arrangements. In any case, at least at some level, almost all musicians "copy" other musicians' ideas, so feel free to copy all you would like! From this arranging recording, I have borrowed "In the Bleak Midwinter." The simplicity of this beautiful melody makes it a wonderful piece for arranging. Listen to Ken play "In the Bleak Midwinter" Below is the basic melody with a simple arpeggio accompaniment. If you play with others or would eventually like to, it is a great idea to ALWAYS have some sort of accompaniment prepared. Simple arpeggios like these will do an adequate job. Even if you have no intention of ever playing with anyone, learning the arpeggios (based on the chord progression) right from the start will help you greatly when it comes time to arrange the tune. My only two cautions are that you play the arpeggios lightly and that you not feel obligated to play all the notes of the accompaniment. While this accompaniment is unquestionably too busy, I still like to see students start out getting comfortable playing all the notes in an arpeggio. Certainly, you could also vary the accompaniment by starting on different notes of the arpeggios (i.e., not start on the 'root' of the chord each time). In general, also try to stay out of the range of those playing melody (e.g., you might play the accompaniment in the lowest octave on your instrument if the melody is in a higher octave).  There is nothing tricky about the basic melody. After you learn it in the octave as written, try it in an octave higher and an octave lower (i.e., always explore the range on your instrument). Note that there are a few unusual chord choices. Most notable is the B7 "substitution" in measure 14. This chord is called a secondary dominant and provides "movement" (or a strong need for resolution) to the Em that follows. There is a similar use of a G7 to C going from measure 8 to measure 9. You could certainly harmonize this tune differently but try these first and see if you like them. Now we begin the fun and challenging part. I have presented two versions of the tune among the many that I might play. In the first arrangement, I use a variety of ideas, some of which are identified on the written music, and others which hopefully are a little more straightforward. Among the tools used in this version are two-, three- and four- note rolled chords, "flams" or valley rolls, bounced triplets, drone notes, arpeggio fills and melodic runs. Note that in using simple two-note chords, I often separate the harmony note in distance from the melody notes. Greater separation of harmony from melody has a more open sound than does a close harmony and may sometimes be preferred. Since the bass bridge on many dulcimers is more powerful than the treble, be careful to lighten up on these harmony notes. This separation is also achieved by using what many players call "flams." A typical flam bounces from the right treble bridge slightly down (a fifth across) to the bass bridge. This is followed by the left hand which plays the melody note. I try always to play my three- and four-note chords lightly, but slightly emphasizing the last note (which is the melody note). Be sure also to play drone notes, arpeggio fills and melodic runs lightly so that the melody is always present. Note that the B7 chord is played very simply just by adding the D#. It is not necessary or desirable to play all the notes of a B7 chord to communicate its existence-since the D# is a note borrowed from "outside" the key, just adding the D# will do the trick.  In the next version, I play the melody up one octave to begin while my right hand plays low accompanying arpeggios. The left hand could also pluck the tune gently, perhaps through measure three. The "melodic" run (a simple scale) with thirds in measure 4 brings us back down to the middle octave. Note the tremolo in measure 10. I play the tremolo on the E by alternating my hammers and playing the E five times rapidly, but I crescendo through this execution. You can hear this clearly on the recorded version. In measures 13 and 14, I play simple two-note chords above the melody. This is tricky business since your ear tends to hear the highest note as the melody note. However, since we have already cycled through the tune a few times, our ears will accept this use of harmony above the melody.  On the recorded version (taken from the "arranging CD"), you will hear me start in the upper octave with my left hand plucking the melody as the right hand accompanies using arpeggios in the base. This is an example of using "texture." I also use a few dissonances in this accompaniment. One could also vary the texture by using the hard side of one hammer in the melody as the right hand accompanies with a padded hammer. The second and third versions progress a bit further and further from the original tune, but I try to be careful never to deviate too far from this beautiful melody. I try also to play dynamically and occasionally "borrow time" from phrase to phrase so that my phrasing is somewhat free. My hope is that the end result is a relaxed feeling to the piece. Have fun with the tune! Start working on those Christmas tunes early!! About the Author As a soloist and in ensembles with Helicon (with Chris Norman and Robin Bullock) and Greenfire (with Laura Risk) and many others, Ken has performed and taught extensively throughout North America and Europe for over 20 years. Well-known as an influential hammered dulcimer player and fine old-time fiddler, Ken has been featured in nationally broadcast concerts on NPR, the CBC, German National Radio, "The Voice of America," as well as on "All Things Considered," "The Thistle and Shamrock," and elsewhere. His credits include a featured solo in an Emmy-nominated CBS-TV Christmas special, numerous recordings including an "Indie" winner (Helicon's 'Winter Solstice Celebration'), and a #2 World Music title and bestseller for BMG ('Walking Stones'). In addition to his 9 recordings, Ken has released 5 "instructional" CDs on arranging and contributed to or written three tune books (including several for Mel Bay). Partial Discography
Ken's recordings, books and instructional materials and contact info is available at www.kenkolodner.com Also see www.maggiesmusic.com Email Ken at kenkolodner@aol.com |
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