Sam Rizzetta (born May 23, 1942 died October 26, 2021) was a

hammered dulcimer The hammered dulcimer (also called the hammer dulcimer) is a percussion-stringed instrument which consists of strings typically stretched over a trapezoidal resonant sound board. The hammered dulcimer is set before the musician, who in more trad ...

player, builder, and designer originally from Chicago, had lived in

Inwood, West Virginia Inwood is a census-designated place (CDP) in Berkeley County, West Virginia, United States, located south of Martinsburg in the lower Shenandoah Valley. The population was 2,954 at the 2010 census. It is located on U.S. Route 11. History In t ...

. Rizzetta discovered the hammered dulcimer while working in the repair of

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

s and illustrated books in the 1960s to put himself through graduate school. His first exposure to the instrument was hearing the traditional player

Chet Parker Chet Parker (August, 1891–1975) was a hammered dulcimer player from Michigan. Chet Parker was born the son of a blacksmith. His first instruments were the snare drum and the fife. He also learned to play the fiddle (his father was a fiddler) and ...

. Sam and his wife Carrie moved east around 1968, and he took a job with the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

. Within a few years he transitioned to playing and building instruments on a full-time basis. In 1974, Rizzetta and

Paul Reisler Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

formed a string band called

Trapezoid A quadrilateral with at least one pair of parallel sides is called a trapezoid () in American and Canadian English. In British and other forms of English, it is called a trapezium (). A trapezoid is necessarily a Convex polygon, convex quadri ...

, along with Pete Vigour and Paul Yeaton. The group's trademark was hammered dulcimer quartets, which included soprano and bass models designed by Rizzetta. Rizzetta performed with the group until 1978, when he decided to pursue solo playing, and concentrate more on building and composing. As a performer he is best known for his hammered dulcimer playing, but his recordings often feature the

Appalachian dulcimer The Appalachian dulcimer (many variant names; see below) is a fretted string instrument of the zither family, typically with three or four strings, originally played in the Appalachian region of the United States. The body extends the length of ...

as well. He was active in teaching the dulcimer at the

Augusta Heritage Center Augusta Heritage Center in Elkins, West Virginia, United States, is a non-profit organization which fosters the scholarly study and practice of traditional arts in music, dance, craft, and folklore. The program started in 1973 as a summer program ...

Davis and Elkins College Davis & Elkins College (D&E) is a private college in Elkins, West Virginia. History The school was founded in 1904 and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. It was named for Henry G. Davis and his son-in-law Stephen B. Elkins, who were b ...

for many years starting in 1981. Rizzetta has also been a regular columnist in ''Dulcimer Players News'', writing the ''Technical Dulcimer'' column. Rizzetta is particularly noted for a number of innovations in hammered dulcimer design. These include bridge markers (a standard feature of modern instruments), chromatic designs, extra bridges, damper pedals, and many more. Rizzetta has collaborated closely with the Dusty Strings Company of Seattle, Washington; they have produced a "Rizzetta series" of chromatic models for many years.

Discography

*''Trapezoid'' (self-titled), 1975 (reissued, 1998) *''Bucks & Does'', 1982 *''Seven Valleys'', 1987 *''When You And I Were Young'', 1989 *''Christmas In The Air'', 1991 *''In The Garden, Hymns For Hammer Dulcimer'', 1992 *''Ocean's Edge', 1993 *''Flowing Waters'', 1993 *''Saving Trees'', 1999 *''Dulcimer Boogie'', 2000 *''Peace Of Christmas'', 2003

References

External links

Smithsonian pamphlet on making a hammered dulcimer, written by Rizzetta
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rizzetta, Sam 1942 births American folk musicians Hammered dulcimer players American musical instrument makers Musicians from Chicago People from Inwood, West Virginia