We were all able to gather in our home town to have a family music jam. This included our older bother and his wife trying out the Autoharp, Psaltry, and Hammered Dulcimer. It was an adventurous weekend as everyone had to learn many of the nuances of playing in a jam and playing in a larger group for the first time. It was a challenge to the “newbies” with lots of talking and laughing. Key to this session was learning how to integrate all of these instruments and review the protocols followed in a jam (e.g., calling out song, knowing the key, the signals for ending a song, keeping proper time, etc.). Most importantly forcing each of the new players to learn and figure out how best to make their instrument “fit” within this group and knowing how to listen to each other. What a great learning experience for us all.
No pictures but here we are all playing the “Arkansas Traveler.” Keep an eye on the two rookies on the Autoharp. At one point, towards the end of the song, they both actually strum to the correct beat at the same time.