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ABC files are text files that describe in an fairly readable way the notes of a song, the duration of each note, and even the chords that accompany the melody.

An ABC file is simply downloaded from a website and saved to your hard disk. Normally after you download a file it will be found in the "Downloads" folder on your harddisk.

To hear the music play from your computer you may use the ABCExplorer program. It allows you to play back the tune, pause it, slow it down, speed it up, and even edit the notes if you want.

Download the free program ->ABCExplorer<-

After the program is running, just click the File selection in the main menu and select "Open local file..".

Then you will select from any of the ABC files that you have downloaded. The file will open within the interface of ABCExplorer. Then you can click on a song title and play it.

The only thing that you cannot do from within ABCExplorer is change the key of the song. In the files that I have listed to the right of this article, most of the tunes are in keys of "D", "G", "A" and "C" . The hymns in the Open Hymnal are in quite a variety of keys.

If you are trying to play along with a tune that is in the key of D, then the DAD (dulcimer) tuning would seem natural. In the key of G, perhaps a DGD tuning would suffice. For the key of C, tune the dulcimer to CGC. The sound of the dulcimer is really quite beautiful in that tuning and you can use the same fingering patterns that you use in the DAD tuning. To play in the key of A, use the EAE tuning and the fret patterns are the same as for the DGD tuning.

The dulcimer can be retuned very quickly to these new tunings having only three strings to worry about. Use an electronic tuner and everyone at a jam will have a smile on their face.

To play in the key of E flat, tune to dulcimer to Eb-Bb-Eb and play out of the familiar DAD tuning patterns. For playing in the key of F, tune to CFC and play out of the DGD patterns. For B flat, tuning to BbFBb will enable you to use DAD patterns with the pitch of the instrument being quite deep. An alternative for playing in B flat is to use the F-Bb-F tuning and play out of the DGD patterns.

ABC Files

Contradance Jigs

Contradance Reels

Scottish Tunebook

Pre-Civil War

Songs from Land and Sea

Cape Breton Tunes

Paul Hardy's Tunebook

Jigs Collection

Polkas Collection

Reels Collectiion

Slip Jigs