Heidi Muller is an award-winning songwriter, guitarist and mountain dulcimer player
from Joseph, Oregon. She’s played dulcimer since 1984, first influenced by the 4-
equidistant-string style of Lorraine Hammond, and then discovered old-time fiddle tunes.
Living in Seattle, she gave workshops across the Pacific Northwest for many years. She
later lived in West Virginia and taught at festivals nationwide. She has nine CDs,
including four recorded with her partner, Bob Webb, and nine dulcimer songbooks
ranging from waltzes, duos, and fiddle tunes to the songs of Bill Staines.

Described by Dulcimer Players’ News as “one of the dulcimer community’s best songwriters and
performers,” her tune “Leaving the Methow” appeared in the Masters of the Mountain
Dulcimer CD series. Her original songs “Cassiopeia” and “Sacred Ground” were
published in Rise Again, sequel to the Rise Up Singing songbook. Heidi and Bob also
host the music camp, Dulcimer Week in the Wallowas.

For more information, please visit www.heidimuller.com and www.wallowadulcimer.com.

Neal Hellman, nationally acclaimed performer and teacher of the mountain dulcimer has been active in performing, writing, teaching, and recording acoustic music for the past 40 years.

Neal's recordings include Emma’s Waltz, Autumn in the Valley, Dream of the Manatee (with Joe Weed) and Oktober County, all on the Gourd Music label. In collaboration with Joe Weed, Neal wrote the score for “Princess Furball”, a children's video by Weston Woods which won a 1993 American Library Association Commendation.

An original composition, written by Neal and performed by Jay Unger and Molly Mason, is featured on the Ken Burns production Not for Ourselves Alone. Neal has placed several other tracks on the films of Ken Burns including Horatio's Drive, National Parks: America's Best Idea, The Dust Bowl (2012) and American Buffalo (2023).

He is the author of many books on the Appalachian dulcimer, including:
Mountain Dulcimer Arrangements from Both Sides of the Atlantic, Celtic Songs & Slow Airs for Mountain Dulcimer, The Dulcimer Chord Book, The Hal Leonard Dulcimer Method, and Music of the World for Mountain Dulcimer.

As founder, director and one of the primary artists of the Gourd Music record label, Neal has produced over fifty recordings including Simple Gifts, The Fairie Round, Tender Shepherd, The World Turned Upside Down and Jefferson’s Fiddle, creating a uniquely distinctive sound, featuring a variety of acoustic instrumental ensembles, rich in texture and tonal color.

Neal was music director for a production of The Grapes of Wrath, which played at The Crocker Theater at Cabrillo College in 2009 and in 2013 he produced: A Musical Celebration of the Life and Times of John Steinbeck which was performed at The Kuumbwa Jazz Center and at The National Steinbeck Center. He served as musical designer for the Conner Mc. Pherson play The Weir which ran at The Jewel Theater in Santa Cruz February 2022.

“It’s the easiest stringed instrument to get music out of, but it can be more complex than any other one, and that’s what intrigued me.”    - Hunter Walker

Hunter Walker is one of the younger generation of musicians dedicated to playing and teaching traditional mountain music. He’s a native of Beckley, West Virginia, and is a frequent and in-demand instructor at workshops around the country. Hunter has learned from many traditional players, most especially his uncle Dave Haas. He has performed at prestigious venues such as Theatre West Virginia, the Vandalia Gathering, and Mountain Stage.

​While proficient at guitar and mandolin, he is best known for his virtuosity and innovation on the mountain dulcimer and the banjo. His skill on the dulcimer has merited him the title (four times!) West Virginia State Dulcimer Champion, Tennessee Open Grand Youth Champion, three time Galax Old Fiddlers’ Convention Dulcimer Champion, Mid-Atlantic Regional Dulcimer Champion, as well as numerous other first place finishes at Fiddlers’ Conventions.

 Hunter has made one solo recording, Down Yonder.

In 2010, at sixteen years of age, Hunter won the Vandalia Gathering Dulcimer contest in an upset over many older players. (Link to video of this performance).

​He is excited to see the rich Appalachian music heritage passed on.

Mark’s dulcimer journey began in 1980 by learning to play and build dulcimers at about the same time. Once introduced to the idea of 4-equidistant strings, he soon discovered there was so much more expressiveness than he could ever imagine just waiting to emerge from this so-called “simple” instrument…and so he was hooked! 

He soon began performing, recording, and teaching professionally and won numerous playing competitions including two National Mountain Dulcimer Championships in 1986 and 1991.

He took about 25 years off from “dulcimering” full-time to work a “normal” day job in order to raise a family, but now he’s back…like version 2.0! He is thrilled to be playing and building once again, and is excited to share his favorite musical instrument with others.

For more information, please visit www.tindlemusic.com