Diane Taraz
Dream Lover

Bobby Darin, 1959. License purchased from Alley Music Corp. and Trio Music Co., Inc.
Recorded and mastered by Larry Luddecke at Straight Up Music in Arlington, Mass.
Produced by Diane Taraz.

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Diane Taraz
vocals, dulcimer

Peter Tillotson
bass

Larry Luddecke
piano

An all-time favorite, Bobby Darin's wishful classic goes beautifully on the dulcimer, with Larry's piano and Peter's bass creating a great foundation. The only percussion is me striking the dulcimer strings with the side of my hand during that inspired chorus.

I used to retune to get into a major (mixolydian) or minor (ionian) mode, but I have figured out how to work in just one tuning, mixolydian. It's usually D-A-D, but I use C-G-C for a richer sound. My Folkroots dulcimer is off-the-shelf, but it's an inch deeper than most, so its natural resonance combined with a lower tuning gives it a more rounded sound than most dulcimers. I've also been playing it gently for a couple of decades, so the wood cells have aged beautifully. It's a very happy instrument and makes me very happy as I keep finding new ways to get music out of a hunk of wood with just four strings -- and two are doubled, so it's really a three-string instrument.