WCU currently accepting applications for Mountain Dulcimer Week

Western Carolina University is currently accepting applications for its annual Mountain Dulcimer Week, to be held June 24-29. The mountain or Appalachian dulcimer is a stringed instrument that is indigenous to the Southern Appalachians. WCU’s Mountain Dulcimer Week, now in its second year, is the country’s most comprehensive program of instruction and music for the mountain dulcimer, said Lois Hornbostel, director of the summer program. Many nationally recognized dulcimer musicians, including Hornbostel, Jean Ritchie, Stephen Seifert, Betty Smith, Bill Taylor and Madeline MacNeil, will instruct classes and lead musical events for experienced mountain dulcimer players and folks who want to learn to play. The week will feature nine dulcimer-playing courses for musicians of all skill levels, two big faculty concerts, open-stage performances, a “dulcimer marketplace,” dulcimer jam sessions (including one on a mountaintop), a barbecue, a “dulcimer orchestra,” and a course in building a mountain dulcimer. For more information or to register, call the Division of Continuing Education and Summer School at (828) 227-7397 or toll free (800) 928-4968, or visit the website http://cess.wcu.edu/dulcimer.