When The Trees Dance

When the trees dance, they just may be dancing to Ruth Barrett playing her dulcimer. I had the great priviledge to hear her play at Sacred Paths Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota last Spring. That was before I was thinking of taking up the Mountain Dulcimer, and was studying hard on my Autoharp. My husband and I had heard of Ruth before, being fans of anything to do with Mother Earth. So it was natural that we would go to see her live. It was a wonderful performance, with a full house in an intimate space.

I remember being enchanted with the clear tones of the dulcimer supporting Ruth's strong voice wonderfully. She played songs that spoke to the time of year, which was an in-between time. Warm enough for short sleeves indoors, cold enough for jackets outside. Winter had passed, and Spring was arriving. After the show, our big decision was which CD to take home with us. We decided to with the new one "Garden of Mysteries" because we loved the picture of the tree with the green lights all around it. Lights that were not added by any kind of digital trickery, just the tricks of the Gentle People who dwell near the sacred trees.

When I got the CD home, I was so thrilled with it, the wide variety of songs were an absolute delight. There are two instrumentals featuring the dulcimer as well, which I love to listen to as I wait for my own teardrop dulcimer to arrive. I think one of my favorite's is Archibald McDonald of Kippoch, which is a wonderful traditional tune, and this version combines dulcimer, guitar, fiddle, whistle, viola, and concertina beautifully. Of her original tunes, I think I like New Crone Rising the best, as it celebrates a woman entering her wisdom. This album was new a year ago, she has now journeyed farther into the enchanted realms with "Songs of the Otherworld" which is next on my list of inspirational recordings, along with "A Dulcimer Harvest" of course.

The latest news on the advent of my own dulcimer is that it was released for shipping today, so hopefully I'll get a tracking number tomorrow so I can follow it's progress. This is so very exciting! The waiting has been an experience in patience for me. My fingers are itching to get their hands on the new instrument, and my eyes are longing to devour every detail.