Geoff Black is a mountain dulcimer player, dealer and tutor (not necessarily in that order) from Herefordshire, England. He has played the dulcimer on and off since the 1980s, but more seriously since 2009. You will find him at Nonsuch Dulcimer club gatherings as well as teaching at a number of folk festivals in the UK. He’s also a regular teacher on the online dulcimer festival circuit, teaching with his playing partner Duncan Gibbs (who lives in Wales).
STEVE: Where to start? You are a man of many talents Geoff, so if you’re happy to do this can we start with Revels Music? When did you start up and was it solely to deal in mountain dulcimers?
GEOFF: Well, it started with my four children and the desperate search for playable and affordable instruments when they were growing up. They were into woodwinds (despite my best efforts!) and I ended up importing cheap old band instruments from the USA. So it was natural, later, when I found it difficult to get decent quality dulcimers over here, to import them. I started getting instruments just for myself, then thought perhaps other would-be dulcimer players might be interested too. So I started Revels Music, got a website ….and the rest is history.
STEVE: You must have come across some really interesting instruments. Any unusual ones to tell us about – or instruments with an interesting backstory?
GEOFF: I’ll pick one English and one American. A few years back I was scanning an old Fairport Convention fan site and noticed a post from Judy Dyble, their first female vocalist. She said she had an under-used dulcimer which she was thinking of letting go. I contacted her, met her and did a deal. It’s a lovely thing, made by Frank Bond in London – who was the fashionable maker at the time (1968). And it was chosen, we believe, by either Ashley Hutchings or Judy’s boyfriend at the time, Richard Thompson – so it has some pedigree! I also have a quite rare dulcimer made under June Ritchie’s name in 1967, with a handwritten label inside, signed by her. Her uncle did the woodworking and she did the fretting apparently…and one of the frets is a bit off, sadly!
STEVE: And which instruments do you tend to play for your own pleasure?
GEOFF: I have three Modern Mountain dulcimers, one a baritone, which I particularly like. Quite beefy things with good volume, but also capable of some sweetness and delicacy. There’s a more delicate-sounding McCafferty I like which I often play in DGD; a tiny old Orthey for DAA; and I’m a great fan of luthier Ron Ewing from Ohio – my koa Ewing baritone with natural soundholes is to die for!
STEVE: I have attended some of your online tutorials which you run with Duncan Gibbs. How long have you been teaching for and how did you hook up with Duncan?
GEOFF: Well I was a real teacher for 10 years, until my career changed directions 40 years ago, so it seemed natural to share my enthusiasm for the dulcimer with others, by teaching the odd workshop for Nonsuch. It really took off over lockdown, however, when big US online festivals started up. Stephen Seifert invited me to teach some classes at the 2nd Quarantunes and Duncan was the obvious choice as partner. I’d been playing on and off with Duncan for about 5 or 6 years, having met through a mutual friend. He is a brilliant dulcimer player with a very different style to me and I like to think we complement each other nicely! He’s also introduced me to the joys of baroque music…and modern rock, transcribed for dulcimer!
STEVE: Talking of online ventures, I joined your monthly Nova Scotia sessions at the start of 2023. I am finding them a great source of new repertoire as well as a great space to see what other MD players are doing. Did these sessions start as a result of the pandemic and are you intending to keep them going – there’s a lot of work goes into putting these together and hosting / MCing them?
GEOFF: Thanks, Steve, I’m glad you’ve enjoyed the online sessions. They started just for our little regional group, which used to meet at the Nova Scotia pub in Bristol, and of course, the pandemic brought all that to a halt. Then other UK-based players joined us online and the word got out – so much so, that we had a player from California joining us at 6 a.m. local time and an Australian staying up past midnight! We’re just weighing up the future of the sessions, now that live music opportunities are more available. And yes, it does take a lot of work, unless you have a solid group of other players prepared to take their share of selecting, arranging and leading tunes.
STEVE: Through your involvement with all things dulcimer you have met many of the great players. Any favourite stories to tell?
GEOFF: To my regret, I never met some of the widely influential players like Jean Ritchie, Roger Nicholson or David Schnaufer, but was lucky enough to be taken under the wing of John Shaw, our late lamented British player/arranger. No stories as such, but he was a lovely man, cultured and well-read, who had a light and fluent style which seemed effortless. By contrast, I’ve always admired Don Pedi, who works the dulcimer hard and plays lightning fast fiddle tunes – but also sings great old time songs! Stephen Seifert always inspires as player and teacher, with such a great sense of humour. I recall driving him and the HD player Dan Landrum to a folk festival in Yorkshire, trying not to fall apart as they improvised a dulcimer podcast the whole way up the M6!
STEVE: Thanks for the chat Geoff - see you online soon! And if anyone is looking for a dulcimer to add to their collection (aren't we all?) check out https://revelsmusic.co.uk/