An old Jethro Tull lyric says “songs from the wood make you feel much better” and local carpenter Don Gear makes wood sing in a symphony of color and design. At the Chestertown Farmers Market every Saturday, you can hear the wood sing over the burble of the
fountain and the chatter of the shoppers, as customers strum his musical instruments. You’ll feel good too, once you see how easy they are to play and find out they’re made of sustainable wood.
Gear has been woodworking for over 55 years. He was inspired by his “excellent carpenter” grandfathers, who gave him his first set of tools and lumber. He still has his first project, a little tool carrier, and has continued developing his craft because he enjoys working with his hands. To Gear, woodworking is a way to relax while creating beautiful and useful things.
I’m a guitar player, so when I saw the musical instruments at Sassafras Craftworks, my mind lit up. Toys! Things with strings, oh joy! Gear has made two varieties of instruments: Stick Dulcimers and Reverie Harps.
The word dulcimer comes from the Latin dulcis (sweet) and the Greek melos (song). There are two types of instruments known as dulcimers: Appalachian (a/k/a mountain) dulcimers and hammered dulcimers. Appalachian dulcimers have three or four strings (one doubled to add volume) and are held on the lap or a table, with one string playing the melody and the others providing a drone. In contrast, hammered dulcimers are large and trapezoid-shaped, and the strings are struck with mallets.
Gear started making dulcimers in 2010. His are similar to the Appalachian variety, but the shape is more versatile, allowing them to
be played on the lap or upright like a guitar. With only three strings, they are easy to learn and play, making them ideal for beginners or self-professed non-musicians. Stick Dulcimers are diatonic, which means the only available notes are in the same key, so you cannot play a “wrong” note or chord.
A Stick Dulcimer is a good starting instrument for a child who wants to learn guitar. Besides the small size, they are far better quality than similarly priced child-sized guitars. As an ex-guitar instructor, I have seen many students become discouraged and quit because of guitars that don’t stay in tune. Stick Dulcimers in contrast, have three less strings to tune, and beginners can learn a song in 10 minutes.
The Stick Dulcimer is useful for experienced guitar players as well. It can be played with a slide, like blues guitar, or be a tool to easily try different tunings before committing them to guitar. The drone makes it possible to play the melody line and chord concurrently, opening many creative possibilities.
In addition to dulcimers, Gear makes egg-shaped Reverie Harps, which can provide a calming ambiance in church or at the bedside of a child or ill patient. Like the Stick Dulcimer, there are no wrong notes, but the Reverie Harp has a pentatonic (five note) scale. In layman’s terms, a pentatonic scale is like playing only the black piano keys of a piano, while the dulcimer is comparable to playing only the white keys. Guitars, in contrast, have both sets of tones.
Gear also makes eco-friendly house wares such as doggy diners, cutting boards, and pepper grinders. He buys all his hard woods from certified rain forest protection organizations and uses beautifully colored Dymonwood, made of recycled sawdust. Gear uses milk paint (made from milk, lime, and minerals) a safe alternative to chemical-based paints. 5% of sales help Alex’s Lemonade Stand https://www.alexslemonade.org/, a charity that researches children’s cancers.
You can visit Sassafras Craftworks at the Chestertown Farmer’s Market, see his work displayed at Artworks and other local shops, or visit his and the Chestertown Farmer’s Market websites at www.sassacrafts.com and https://chestertownfarmersmarketartisans.com/sassafrascraftwo.html
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