A Multi-Instrument Evening with Dale C. Evans

Everyone agrees that musical instruments can be expensive. Especially if you choose instruments with names like the Nyckelharpa, Hurdy Gurdy, Hammer (or Hammered) Dulcimer, Ukelin, etc. How do you resolve this dilemma? If you are Dale Evans, of Bloomington, IL, the answer is ~ build it yourself.
Dale got his first guitar when he was 15 years old; it was bought for $5.00 at a garage sale and the strings were as far from the neck as a dobro. He also was blessed with an aunt, Beuna Bratcher, a lady who stood 6'2" and played the guitar. By listening to the WLS Barn Dance, where his favorites were the Hoosier Hot Shots, and to the Grand Ole Opry, Dale received his start into the love of old time music. He had nine weeks of music training in junior high, and later attended an Art School in Indianapolis. He had no television with which to waste time, only a record player and a banjo, so he had plenty of time to hone his musical skills.
Dale continued to play while he was serving with Uncle Sam. He was a  Bloomington resident by the time he was discharged, and continued his musical odyssey with the ISU Group "New Friends of Old Time Music," area bluegrass festivals, fiddlers conventions, etc. It was around this time that Dale built his first hammer dulcimer. Other players liked the "Dale Evans" model dulcimer, and asked if he would make them one. Before it was all over, he had built and sold 270 units and shipped them all over the U.S.
If you would like to have a taste of old time music, Dale and his fellow musicians meet at the old court house in Bloomington (now the McLean County Historical Society) every Tuesday evening from 6:00 - 8:30 p.m.  Dale also teaches a course in clawhammer banjo at Heartland College a couple of times each year.
Excerpt from the Illinois Country Music Association news letter, May/June 2010: www.ILcountrymusic.com