Wilfried Ulrich, "Story of the Hummel"

Copy of a blast email I sent out today promoting Wilfried Ulrich's new book The Story of the Hummel (German Scheitholt). 181 pages. Published by the author. A translation of Die Hummel: Geschichte eines Volksmusik-Instruments. Volume 42 of Materials Pertaining to the Everyday History and Folk Culture of Lower Saxony. Clopppenburg: Museumsdorf Cloppenburg, 2011. Price: 22 euros, plus 7 euros shipping (approximately $45 total at current exchange rates).

Hi everybody -

A couple of months ago Wilfried Ulrich, a German luthier whom I met when he taught in Mountain Dulcimer Week at Western Carolina, came out with a book called "The Story of the Hummel." He asked me if I could help with publicity for the book, and I'm happy to do what I can. It's a fascinating book, and it's changed the way I think about the origins of the mountain dulcimer. In a word, I really liked it and I highly recommend it.

"The Story of the Hummel" is a translation of the catalog for an exhibition of hummels and other European folk zithers at Museumsdorf Cloppenburg, an open-air museum in North Germany. I'm attaching a synopsis and a PDF file of a flyer for the exhibit; the flyer is in German, but the pictures are thumbnails of visuals in the book. The blue instrument on the flyer is a North German hummel that is also pictured on the book's cover. It was apparently a wedding present, and you can see the bride's and groom's initials intertwined with a bridal crown in the soundhole. Like so many exhibit catalogs, it's a hardback coffee table book with very nice photography.

The synopsis I've attached elaborates on Wilfried's history of the hummel. In addition to pictures and history, dulcimer players will find a chapter on how to tune a hummel in Ionian, Aeolian, Dorian and Mixolydian modes, along with tablature; it would work on most American dulcimers. Full measurements of the instruments in the exhibit, including vibrating string length and fret placement, are also given.

"The Story of the Hummel" costs 29 euros with shipping from Germany included (a little less than $45 at today's exchange rates), which isn't bad for a hardback coffee table book. For more information, or to order a copy, contact Wilfried Ulrich, Am Diekschloot 40, D-26506 Norden, East Frisia, Germany. Email: ulricus.norden@t-online.de Web site: www.ulrich-instrumente.de ...

- Pete