This is an arrangement of the Scottish tune Old Gray Cat. Though it starts out fairly traditional, I had fun playing with the various rhythms and harmonies that make up this arrangement. Shifting into 5/4 time for the final time through the tune adds some extra pep, and utilizing the pedals really makes some of the rhythms pop. The cat even joins in with a jolly meow at the end of the piece!

This video was recorded at Stuart Recreation Area in Elkins, WV on September 23, 2023. Video was recorded by Stephanie Miller and myself. I am playing here on a Masterworks RCE 17/17 XR-RS. This arrangement has the range of D2 to E6.

This is an arrangement of Walking Song for hammered dulcimer. It was originally composed as a solo piece for lever harp composed by my wife, Stephanie P. H. Miller. It was inspired by a walk on a windy autumn day in southwestern Virginia. The opening section in 4/4 represents walking out into an autumn forest, looking at all the colorful leaves and taking in the surrounding beauty. The second section in 6/8 introduces the wind as it comes rippling through the trees, causing the leaves to fall gracefully. The walk continues, building in intensity and wonder as the leaves dance on the breeze.

I have always loved this piece. This is one of the first songs I set out to learn when I started playing the hammered dulcimer in the fall of 2017. I performed this as one of my competition pieces when I won the 2019 Mid-East Regional Hammered Dulcimer Championship at the 45th Coschocton Dulicmer Days in Coschocton, OH. I continued developing the second half of the piece, and this arrangement is the result.

Walking Song fits well on a 15/14 hammered dulcimer.

Dreaming in the Morning is the first song I composed for the hammered dulcimer. It started as a melody I was hearing in my dream one morning. I was able to capture it and develop into the piece heard here. It fits on a 15/14 dulcimer with a range of D3 to B5.

This is my hammered dulcimer arrangement of The Green Room by Wayne Gratz. This was one of the first songs I wanted to learn to play on this instrument, and it was one of my competition pieces when I won the 2019 Mid-East Region Hammered Dulcimer Championship.

Here is my arrangement of Memory from the musical CATS by Andrew Lloyd Webber on Hammered Dulcimer! It's a beautiful song, and it's been a joy to work on this arrangement. Thank you to my teacher Karen Alley for her input and guidance. I hope you enjoy the arrangement, and the scenery!

I am playing it on a Masterworks RCE 17/17 XR-RS using hammers by Katie Moritz. This video was filmed at Smith Mountain Lake, VA on April 25, 2021.

Let yourself be carried away with this beautiful classic song from Beauty and the Beast. I've always loved this song, and I am happy to share my arrangement with you all. I played this as my encore after placing 2nd in the National Hammered Dulcimer Championship at the Walnut Valley Festival in September, 2022.

I am playing a Masterworks RCE 17/17 XR-RS, and this arrangement utilizes the full range of the instrument, D2 - A6.

Sheet music for this arrangement is available through SheetMusicDirect.com and can be found here: https://www.sheetmusicdirect.com/en-US/se/ID_No/1220612/Product.aspx.

This is the famous Prelude from Cello Suite No. 1 by J.S. Bach.

Here is the second movement from Cello Suite No. 1 In G Major by J.S. Bach. This lovely spot is located in Fall Run Park in Glenshaw, PA.

This is the Courante, the third movement from Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major by J.S. Bach for the hammered dulcimer. I played this piece on my Masterworks RCE 17/17 XR-RS.

This video was recorded atop Breakneck Falls at McConnells Mill State Park in PA. I found a beautiful spot beneath the Breakneck Bridge to set up to play and the additional shots in the video were from the bottom of the falls. The fast passages in this movement reminded me of the water cascading down the rapids and over the rocks below, and I was happy to be able to pair the music and the location in the video!

This is the Sarabande, the fourth movement from Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major by J.S. Bach for the hammered dulcimer. I played this piece on my Masterworks RCE 17/17 XR-RS.

This video was recorded in a field of Lance-leaf Coreopsis at Hartwood Acres in Allegheny County, PA. The peace present in the midst of the flowers seemed like the perfect location for this reflective movement from the Cello Suite.

The Minuetto in E Minor by Johann Joachim Quantz was originally composed for solo flute. Here it is for hammered dulcimer, arranged by Karen Alley. I thought the spaciousness of this location matched the feel of the song. This recording was made at the Pavia Lookout at Blue Knob State Park in Bedford County, PA. I am playing here on a Masterworks RCE 17/17 XR-RS.

Here is a version of Cantiga de Santa Maria #166. I used a Shruti box with a foot pedal for the drone to accompany the tune. This was my first time combining the two. I'll definitely be doing it again!

This video was recorded at the Spring Arts Fair hosted by Pittsburgh Vegan Expo. The fair was on April 2, 2023 at Thrive on Health in Brookline, PA.

This arrangement of The Holly and the Ivy grew out of an exercise from my hammered dulcimer lessons with Karen Alley. The challenge was to create a pattern with specific features, such as the double bounces on the upbeat of beat 1 in the first measure and on beat two of the second measure, and then add that into a song. As it was around the holidays, I looked to pair the pattern with a Christmas song, and The Holly and the Ivy was a great fit! It shifts the original meter and style while remaining a cheerful tune that’s fun to play!

The range of this piece is D2- D6. It was arranged on an RCE 17/17 XR-RS with the superbass bridge on the right hand side.