No Strings Attached legend still looking to the future
By Fiona Potts
The band No Strings Attached (NSA) first appeared on the cover of DPN in 1986. Hammered dulcimer player Randy Marchany is there on the right. At that time NSA was a five-member group, four of whom were original. Members continued to change through the years, with the final lineup consisting of Wes Chappell, Jimmy Crawford, Rusty May, and Randy Marchany when the band retired from performing in 2018.
In 1986 the group had produced three folk-fusion albums, with a fourth in progress, with music Randy described as “Else-where-ish music from elsewhere.” That was due to the wide variety of musical backgrounds of the players, each member bringing something new. Three band members played hammered dulcimer at that time, and all were Sam Rizzetta designs: “Randy’s Sam Rizzetta prototype for the Dusty Strings concert model, Suzy [Gorsline Irwin]’s Rizzetta, which is a compact chromatic model, and Wes’s Rizzetta Augusta Grand, made by Nick Blanton.”
The Vegematics
“You had to be there (and another year you should be in Texas for the Lone Star State Dulcimer Festival; it’s fun), but perhaps I can share a bit of the festivity. Each year at the festival there is a contest for the most revolting performance by a group or individual. The Vegematics are by no means a new or unrewarded group. Members change from year to year, but the high standards of mediocrity are revered by honored new participants.
“This year your editor was a member along with No Strings Attached, Steve Mayfield, and Dana Hamilton. I sang “You Are My Sunshine” (despite the tunes being played), Wes Chappell of No Strings Attached played vacuum cleaner. Our other members were equally inventive with instruments old and new. We were wonderful. Our score was minus the square root of 3. Thank you, judges.”
– Maddie MacNeil, “Dear Readers,” Vol. 15 No. 3 (1989)
The 1986 article described them as creating “Folk Music of the Future.” Almost 40 years later, I asked Randy what his thoughts are on folk music today. He replied, “Folk music today is much more receptive to electronics than it was back in the 80s. We were one of the first dulcimer groups to incorporate synthesizers into our music and live acts. There were some promoters who didn’t like us bringing in synths. I basically told them it was easier than moving a piano.”
Albums in the Archives
No Strings Attached albums in DPN’s “Reviews” & “What’s New?” through the years:
- Just Another Hammer Dulcimer Band, editorial, Vol. 9 No. 3 (1983)
- Isles of Langerhans, by Dave DePasqua, Vol. 12 No. 1 (1986)
- Dulcimer Dimensions, by Bonnie Carol, Vol. 14 No. 1 (1988)
- Take 5, by Mitzie Collins, Vol. 15 No. 1 (1989)
- Coffee at Midnight, by Mitzie Collins, Vol. 17 No. 2 (1991)
- Blue Roses, by Carrie Crompton, Vol. 19 No. 4 (1993)
- Bellinzona, by Neal Walters, Vol. 23 No. 2 (1997)
- Coffee at Midnight and In the Vinyl Tradition, Vols. 1 and 2, by Neal Walters, Vol. 35 No. 04 (1999)
- Old Friend’s Waltz, by Neal Walters, Vol. 29 No. 1 (2003)
Want to listen? The NSA CDBaby page should be active again in a few months. In the meantime, visit randymarchany.com for a sampling of songs or catch up with him in Bardstown at Kentucky Music Week in June where he will have CDs for sale.
Listen to the playlist
In the 1990 followup article in DPN, Randy explained that the group started playing old time dance tunes, and “were heavily influenced by Trapezoid, Bill Spence, Walt Michael, Malcolm Dalglish, and John McCutcheon… then as we became more skilled playing the dulcimer, we started branching out.”
Randy says some of the influences on the band’s change in direction include Michigan hammered dulcimer player and builder Jay Round’s album “Don’t Get Around Much Any More,” featuring jazz and swing standards, and New England hammered dulcimer player Bob Wey, who used a synthesizer while recording the Beatles’ song “Here Comes the Sun” on his 1983 album. “When I heard that, I had synths already and had one of those ‘duh’ moments,” he explains.
Not everyone was accepting of the new sound at that time, he recalls, “but by the 2000s, things were more accommodating. It’s refreshing to hear what today’s folk musicians are doing these days. It’s especially nice to hear what some of the younger HD players are doing with their original compositions and arrangements. YouTube is a wonderful way to get your music out these days.”
He says his biggest concern for folk music now “is the slow disappearance of live venues for folk music. They seem to be dropping off the circuit.”
Fortunately, you will be able to see him live and in person this year at Kentucky Music Week, June 23 – 28, in Bardstown, Kentucky. He will be teaching four classes, including one on “some of NSA’s waltzes that I wrote, as well as some of the band’s most requested songs.”
Marchany’s Dulcimer Drills
There are a great many excellent dulcimists in this country. This issue’s column will bring you ideas from two of my favorites. Randy Marchany plays with the award-winning group No Strings Attached. The group has released 5 albums, the latest of which is “Take Five.” Randy’s technical virtuosity and joyful manner make him both a delightful performer and workshop leader. He is noted for expanding the styles of music played on dulcimer and for developing innovative techniques of playing. Several of my students attended a workshop given by Randy and Wes Chappell and came to me with rave reviews. This is part of the material from that workshop, included here with permission.
Drill 1: Trills, Double Hits, Triple Hits, Mordants, Turns
Purpose:
- To develop control of hammer strokes
- To work on dynamics (soft vs. loud)
- To be able to hit notes accurately and quickly
These drills are very easy to do and can be done in 10 minutes. Practice these drills every day and you will see a marked improvement in your playing style.
- Use this hammering pattern: L R L R L R, etc.
- Start the pattern at 1. Start slowly and increase your speed, then slow down to your original speed. Remember, as you go faster, Do Not play louder!
- Start the pattern with LH at 1, RH at 2. Follow same procedure as in the previous step.
- Start the pattern with LH alternating between 1 and 4, RH at 2.
- Start the pattern with LH alternating between 1 and 4, RH alternating between 2 and 3.
- Start the pattern with LH alternating between 1 and 4, RH alternating between 2 and 3.
Some advanced tips:
- Try hitting LH loud, RH soft and vice versa.
- Change the basic hammering pattern L L R R L L R R and repeat the drills.
- Change the basic hammering pattern to L L L R R R L L L R R R and repeat.
– Linda Lowe Thompson’s “Hammer Dulcimer Column,” Vol. 13 No. 4 (1987)
