# Marcy Prochaska: Hammer Dulcimer

## Summer 2003

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### Summer at Last

Spring was a long time coming; there just wasn't much of it before summer came around. But eventually a warm day dawned, and then it was back to such outdoor activities as busking on the Commons and playing at the Farmers Market.

I also had the privilege of providing music for a baptism; the ceremony was held in the family's gazebo, followed by a brunch inside.

Two ensembles born earlier in the year got to play some more this summer. The group that played the benefit contra dance in January became Southwind, and we played the TCCD Bethel Grove dance at the end of May. The mostly Celtic trio Trim the Velvet, featuring Jerry Drumheller on fiddle and Harry Lawless on bouzouki and banjo, was put together for an April art gallery opening, and we also played for the Downtown Summer Concert Series and the Farmers Market.

Then, the week after the Ithaca Festival, the Tompkins County Country Dance summer Monday contra dances started up again on the Commons. "Your Friends and Neighbors" provides the music; Jerry and Harry are regulars in this open band.

### "The River" Coffeehouse

Friday evening, July 18, found me in Bristol, Vermont, performing at "The River" Coffeehouse.
Back in high school, I had borrowed a tape from someone at church. There was a communion song titled "Remember Me" on it that had really moved me, and this spring, I finally learned the piece. I emailed my old church to get contact information for the musicians, Rodger and Marisa Hamilton, so I could ask permission to perform it. Then Marisa and I started chatting by email, and in the course of the conversation they invited me to play for their monthly coffeehouse.

Besides my usual mix of folk, classical, and original material, I included several vocals, some with dulcimer and some with guitar. The audience even got to sing on the choruses of "On the Loose."

I spent the rest of the weekend visiting with Rodger and Marisa and their family. Even though we'd just met, I felt as comfortable with them as with old friends. And it was so cool to put faces (and personalities, and children, and pets, and so on) with the names and music I'd remembered from high school.

This page: Summer at Last | "The River"
Home | Gallery Menu | Fall 2003 | Winter 2002-2003