SAM RIZZETTA
Sam Rizzetta is a musician, artist, and musical instrument maker who has been at the forefront of dulcimer music since the 1960s. His award-winning, handmade instruments and his expressive playing have brought the magic of dulcimers to many people and many places, including the National Cathedral and the Kennedy Center. The influential dulcimer quartet and string band, Trapezoid, was founded by Sam in 1975. He also started the dulcimer playing workshops and taught for over twenty-five years at the Augusta Heritage Center at Davis and Elkins College, Elkins, West Virginia. In addition to recording with Trapezoid, Sam has ten solo CDs of original and traditional music. Rizzetta dulcimers have been exhibited at the Smithsonian Institution and the National Folk Festival, and featured in the first issue of Fine Woodworking Magazine. Many of Sam's design innovations have become essential to the modern dulcimer and are enjoyed by almost all of today's dulcimer players, performers, and builders. His invention of the Piano Dulcimer has made it possible for many more musicians to understand and play the dulcimer and to use it for a greater variety of music. Sam also designs instruments for dulcimer manufacturer Dusty Strings of Seattle, Washington, writes the Technical Column for Dulcimer Players News and builds instruments in his West Virginia studio. Sam and his wife, Carrie, grow hollyhocks and share ten acres with assorted birds, fish, cats, and deer.