I have been designing and crafting primarily Hammer Dulcimers for over 45 years now.  I started building in a basement workshop I set up in a house I rented back in the early 70's.  The house sat on 3 acres of land with streams in both the front and back yard.  I drove a little Toyota Corolla station wagon I had traded for a Hammer Dulcimer, heated the house with wood and paid the "outrageous" sum of $60 a month for rent (for 5 years!).  I was forced to move my workshop to my showrooms present location in the summer of 1980 when I couldn't afford to buy the house .  They were asking $20,000 and I couldn't imagine borrowing that much money.  It's ironic but, after moving out, I ended up investing $10,000 in my first recording "The Strayaway Child."  That turned out to be a far "wiser" decision. About 24 years ago now, after a long and delightful journey, I realized a long-held dream ... to get my workshop ... "back home."  My workshop is now just a few steps outside my front door ... up through the Rhododendron and Oaks. 

If you are headed to the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Asheville area and would like to visit my musical instrument workshop, there is a good chance I can accommodate a visit if you call and make an appointment in advance.  I enjoy giving tours of my shop and sharing my experiences with wood, acoustics, tools and instrument making.  I certainly don't know everything about these subjects but I love discussing ... and ...  I've learned some very interesting things from my guests.  So ... please ... don't be a stranger!