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Variations for Mountain Dulcimer | Chromatic Mountain Dulcimer
Colorado Dutch Hop for Hammered Dulcimer

One of my favorite approaches to arranging music is to develop variations of traditional tunes. This is the same technique used by a bluegrass musician when he or she plays a “break,” a melody line that’s related to the original and retains the same chord structure, but is somehow different. One workshop that I offer at festivals discusses how play with greater variety and dynamics in your music, after you’ve learned the tune itself. These ideas can help you whether you’re considering entering a contest, making a recording, performing, or just playing for your cat at home.

Ways to add variety to your arrangements:

1. Dynamics: Contrasts like high/low; loud/soft; slow/fast.

2. Dulcimer techniques: Melody over drone /melody with harmony /melody-chord arrangements; crosspicking or fingerpicking vs. strumming or flatpicking; in DAD, playing the melody on the high string, bass string or both together; using harmonics.

3. Musical tricks: Emphasize the "downbeat" (beats 1 & 3) vs./ "back beat" (2 & 4); try the same song in a different time signature, like doing a 4/4 fiddle tune as a waltz (3/4) or jig (6/8); come up with a unique introduction and tag for a tune.

4. Improvise a variation of the melody. First, you must know the piece well, definitely memorized. Know the backup chord structure of the piece, again, by heart. Try to make up a harmony part for the tune as a variation. Use scales and arpeggios (broken chords) that correspond to the appropriate backup chord to play over the chord changes. Take a tune you really know and like, and play around with it!

I developed my arrangement of the fiddle tune “Kitchen Gal” for my “Still Point,” CD by “fiddling around” with the tune over and over (and over!). On this recording, which you can hear here, I play the tune four times. I begin with an introduction based on the last four measures of the tune, played slowly and accelerating at the end. The first complete time through the tune I play it straight, true to the original melody as it would appear in a fiddle tune book. It’s important to establish the roots of the tune before flying to the moon with it. The tempo is moderate, and the emphasis is on the down beat, beats 1 and 3, which is the most common feeling in 4/4 time. This version appears in Mel Bay’s 2000 Dulcimer book and looks like this:

Listen to “Kitchen Gal”

The second time through the tune (“Variation 1”), I shift the emphasis to the back beat, beats 2 and 4. This gives it a nice old-time feeling, more common for dancing. The tempo is still relaxed. In the B part, I play the melody in unison octaves and ascend to the higher frets. Near the end (measures 20-22), I use a rather “crooked” rhythm that has a more jazz-like feeling. There’s a build-up of the energy in the music at this point that will be relaxed for the next time through the tune. This is a technique (tension and release) used in any narrative art form, from music to storytelling, and we’re using it to create a cohesive “story” in the arrangement. The last two measures shift to 6/8 time to transition to the next variation.

“Variation 1”

The third time through the tune (“Variation 2”), I play it as an Irish jig, in 6/8 time. The melody has to be altered a bit to make the transition, and this adds to the variety of the arrangement. Use an “out-in” strum as much as possible, as established by the quarter note/eighth note pairs. When there are three eighths in a row, strum out on the first note and in on the third, using a hammer-on or pull-off for beat two. In the B part, I use a slide and pull-off combination, and pull-offs from the higher notes, to give it a distinct Celtic flavor. Then it ends by going back to 4/4 time, speeding up dramatically for the final time through the tune.

“Variation 2”

The last time through the tune pulls together several elements from the first and second passes, with the additional use of some chromatic movements using the 61/2, 6th, and 5th frets. Play it fast to give the piece a dramatic finish. There’s also a short tag with harmonics at the end. See if you can use the information you’ve learned here to figure out what I’m doing. Then work on one of your favorite tunes to develop some variations. The goal of creating an arrangement isn’t just to go from technique to technique, but to develop a smooth progression from start to finish. Let the tune tell a story with a beginning, middle and end.

Have fun!

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About the Author

Karen Mueller is a nationally-touring performer specializing in the mountain dulcimer and autoharp. She has released three critically acclaimed CDs: “Still Point,” “Clarity” and “Autoharp Gourmet,” and is the author of Mel Bay’s Celtic Autoharp book. She is also a contributor to the 2000 Dulcimer book/CD and the CD anthologies “Masters of the Mountain Dulcimer 2” and “Autoharp Legacy.” Karen is in demand nationally as an instructor, and has taught at Western Carolina University Mountain Dulcimer Week, the Augusta Heritage Center, the Ozark Folk Center, the Swannanoa Gathering, California’s Summer Solstice Festival, and many more. She was the 1986 winner of the International Autoharp Championship in Winfield, Kansas, and won the Kansas State Dulcimer Championship in both 1984 and 1985. Karen is also an accomplished multi-instrumentalist on guitar, mandolin and Irish bouzouki. Besides touring extensively as a solo artist, she performs with Katie McMahon, the original lead singer of “Riverdance,” and is a member of the Celtic group Piper’s Crow. Born and raised in Winfield, Kansas, Karen has lived in Minneapolis, Minnesota since 1989. She is a teaching artist with Young Audiences of Minnesota, conducting school workshops and concerts with children of all ages, and gives private lessons at West Bank School of Music and Homestead Pickin' Parlor in Minneapolis.

Visit Karen’s web site at www.karenmueller.com for more information, news, CDs, and touring schedule. You may email her at karen@karenmueller.com.

Quotes:
“A true virtuoso. Her talent and clarity of musical vision deserve a wide audience.”
--Bluegrass Unlimited
"Karen is a truly remarkable musician on autoharp, mountain dulcimer and guitar."
--Dulcimer Players News
“She is a skilled, articulate teacher who is both focused and goal oriented. She has the ability to help students achieve a high level of competence in a short time frame.”
--workshop student