Mel Bay Songs and Tunes of the Wilderness Road
Ralph Lee Smith was introduced to Appalachian music when he lived in Greenwich Village in the 1950s and 1960s and participated in the folk revival. He acquired a dulcimer, played with old-timey groups, and became interested in the instrument's history. Beginning in the 1970s, he made many Appalachian field trips, meeting old-time dulcimer makers and players in Virginia, North Carolina, and Kentucky. He also acquired a number of antique and traditional dulcimers, which he uses in demonstrations and displays.  Ralph has given dulcimer performances/demonstrations at the White House, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and colleges, folk festivals, civic groups, and historic sites.  Ralph holds a BA from Swarthmore College and an M.Ed. from the University of Virginia. He lives with his wife Shizuko in Reston, Virginia.   Madeline Macneil is well known for her talents as a singer and performer on the hammered and fretted dulcimers. She is equally well known for the warmth and generosity with which she shares her music and encourages others to play and sing. The silver-haired woman with the golden voice has won the admiration of countless fans across the country, performing in concerts and festivals throughout the United States. Maddie's twenty-five years as a professional musician have produced many recordings as well as two books for Mel Bay Publications. She arranged the music for Ralph Lee Smith's book from Mel Bay, Songs of the Wilderness Road. Maddie publishes Dulcimer Player News, which reaches dulcimer enthusiasts throughout the United States and in many other countries.  Her recordings include All Through the Night, A Place Apart, The Lone Wild Bird, The Crowning of the Year, and Heart's Ease, which won an Indie from the National Association of Independent Record Distributors.