1974 Sobell Dulcimer for sale
Now Sold
1974 Sobell dulcimer. Click for larger image.
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One of my early Appalachian style dulcimers has come up for sale at St Luke’s Hospice in Sheffield, Yorkshire, England. It has a hand written label ‘Stefan Sobell, Black Gate, Newcastle upon Tyne, March 1974’ It is being sold on behalf of the hospice charity. It looks to be in excellent playing condition.
The Black Gate was the gatehouse to Newcastle castle (now separated by a railway viaduct). Liz and I and our son Jason lived there from 1969 until 1975. We had an oddly shaped flat at the top of the building and Liz was responsible for the library and museum on the floors below. Liz received a tiny wage, but it was a fantastic place to live.
I built my first dulcimer there in around 1971 (and my first cittern in 1973), so this is one of my later Black Gate dulcimers. Early versions were all different from one another, but by the time this one was built the design was settled and remained unchanged.
It has a Western Red Cedar top, mahogany back, sides and headstock, and ebony fingerboard and tail. The nut and saddle are bone. I bought the bone from the local butcher and boiled it to try and bleach it, before cutting it up by hand; pre internet, all sorts of things were hard to source.
Unless it has been refinished, which is unlikely, it will have before been lacquered with a thin coat of shellac.
The Black Gate in the 1970s.
I built instruments in the front room at the top.
When designing my dulcimers, I used the basic shape, structure and fretting of the Appalachian dulcimer. However, many details were different, giving a distinctly different resonant sound. They quickly became popular in folk music circles, and I probably made a couple of hundred in all I built my last dulcimer in the mid 80s, after which I concentrated on citterns and guitars. Later dulcimers, from around 1990, were lacquered in two pack lacquer by Dave Wilson, who still lacquers my instruments.
Scary that I built this instrument over 50 years ago. Great that it’s in such excellent condition.
For more information, contact Peter Bower by email: peter.bower.bower@btinternet.com or telephone 07850 760365
Information about St Luke’s Hospice here: https://www.stlukeshospice.org.uk/