The Banjo Guru

When you think of instruments one that doesn’t come to mind is the Hammered Dulcimer. We have probably seen one but never knew what it was called. It has primarily been played by great classical composers throughout Eastern Europe. It has become even more popular and noticeable in thanks to the “Blue Man Group.”

So what is a Hammered Dulcimer? The hammered dulcimer is a stringed musical instrument with the strings stretched over a trapezoidal sounding board. Typically, the hammered dulcimer is set on a stand, at an angle, before the musician, who holds small mallet hammers in each hand to strike the strings. The hammer portion of its name is used because of the mallets that are used to play the instrument. Traditionally the hammers are hard but in other regions of the world the material is made a little softer.