Timbre Hill Dulcimers
An innovative dulcimer design from luthier Paul Conrad of Timbre Hill Dulcimers, Ohio. Paul’s love affair with the dulcimer started with a Mike Seeger concert in the mid-70s. Mike played several songs on the dulcimer and Paul was enthused enough to make several dulcimers of his own at the time. However, college, family, a teaching job and then becoming a dairy farmer in Amish country, Ohio, all intervened. Throughout all this the family led a self-sufficient life and Paul continued to build and repair many things around the farm. Around the millennium, Paul realised that the demands of the dairy farm were distancing him from the activities and interests of his children as they grew up. He gave up much of the commercial side of the farm and became involved in general carpentry.
In 2005, dulcimers re-entered his life when he decided to build a dulcimer for his daughter’s fund raising auction. He re-discovered the joy of building and the sound of the dulcimer which had entranced him in the first place. Friends, family and neighbours demanded more instruments and soon the wider dulcimer community was also knocking on his door. After two years he felt confident enough in his building to sell at several festivals and through two music shops. He says about his craft: “I’ve found building dulcimers to be a highly reflective and meditative—almost spiritual—process. I continue to be thrilled with the prospects of taking a rough piece of wood and turning it into an object of functional beauty that has the possibility of providing years of satisfaction and personal music for another human being.”
2.189 (formerly 2.158) Timbre Hill 4 String 3 Course Dulcimer #68, undated but probably 2006. £335 385 + customised hard case £30
Handwritten in ink: “Timbre Hill/ No 68/ Paul Conrad”. This appears to be the exact display model shown on Conrad’s website to illustrate Form A – the standard model of the three he offers.
Chunky, but very lightly built, hourglass with stunning multi-coloured intarsia (or intarsio) body, constructed mainly from cherry with walnut and white oak (?) detailing. Walnut sides. Trademark wide walnut pegbox (for easy string changing) with chrome enclosed tuners, and walnut scroll with hole through it for leather hanging strap. Walnut fingerboard with 6+ and 13+ frets. Odd bone/wood laminated “nut”/guide, zero fret and even more unusual walnut (?) lozenge-shaped floating saddle, with tall ebony bridge insert (compensated slightly for better intonation). Plain pins as string anchors on tail end, with small protruding ledge at bottom of tail.
Overall length 34½”, upper bout 6¼”, lower bout 7½”, depth 2¼”, FBW 1½”, VSL 27″ (medium scale), weight 1lb 11oz (767), strings now 12/12, 14, 24w. Has a 6+ and 13+fret.
An original and ambitious design with a very responsive body and light, low action (after some work on fingerboard). Good volume, with excellent note clarity and intonation. Rather bright sound. Good for fingerpicking.
Click on images below to enlarge. NB these show dulcimer as it arrived, set up for LH playing. Now converted for RH operation.
2006 Timbre Hill (Paul Conrad) 3 String Hourglass £Sold
Dulcimer #79 dated May 22nd 2006. Nicely constructed, it has a bookmatched elm back and elm sides/top. Soundholes are pairs of different size diamond shapes. Large trademark headstock with “scroll”, allowing easy string replacement. Unusual high saddle set on small walnut lozenge. Banjo style geared tuners. 27⅛” VSL. 6+ and 13+ frets.
Very light construction makes for good volume and full, transparent sound across the range. This is an attractive and nice-sounding instrument with very good intonation, suitable for players of all abilities.
Click on the thumbnails below to enlarge each photo:
