Ed Pressnell: Dulcimer Maker

Photo by Paul Macatee

Georgianne usually plays her dulcimer on a song or two in each of our Homegrown String Band sets. She received her first mountain dulcimer as a fifteenth wedding anniversary present, from yours truly, in 1994. Over the years she has developed her own unique chording style that fits in well with the band and gets a more featured role in our Homegrown Two duo shows.

The Appalachian dulcimer is a type of zither developed and popularized by folk musicians from the southern Appalachian region of the United States. This unique instrument owes much of its beauty, both visual and musical, to its elegant simplicity. Audience members are often fascinated by the look and sound of this traditional American folk instrument.

Here's a short film profiling traditional dulcimer builder Ed Pressnell, produced by Thomas Burton and Jack Schrader in 1973.