My First Nice Dulcimer

By the time Dad and I went to our first NGFDA Fall Festival in 2007, Dad knew that I was really getting into the dulcimer and probably needed an instrument upgrade. So I went into the festival pretty much knowing that I was going to get a new instrument. So of course I was looking around seeing if there were any instruments I liked. There were several that I thought were nice, but one really stood out from the rest in my mind was a Cherry-Walnut TK O' Brien. I really liked the looks and sound of it. I now know that it was a very reasonable price, but since my first dulcimer cost $75, the $285 on the price tag sounded like a lot. So I didn't think I was going to get it.

But Dad could see that I really wanted it when I kept asking if we could go back and see if it had been sold.

In the end I walked away with the dulcimer!

Like my first dulcimer (the one we built) I don't play the TK O'Brien much anymore, but it is still a beautiful instrument and has a very special story. And it's still the dulcimer that Dad plays the most.

-Nathaniel