Dusty Strings Music Shop, Seattle, WA
Explore Dusty Strings: A Beloved Seattle Hub Sharing the Magic of Hokema Kalimbas
At We Play Well Together, we’re always honored to collaborate with music stores that bring heart, history, and craftsmanship to their communities. One such gem is Dusty Strings in Seattle — a cherished cornerstone of the Pacific Northwest music scene for over 40 years.
We connected with the Dusty Strings team to learn more about their journey, their community, and how Hokema Kalimbas have found a harmonious home in this inspiring space. Below is their story.
1. Can you tell us a little about your store?
For forty years, we've been the Pacific Northwest’s premiere dealer of high-quality acoustic and electric guitars, mandolins, banjos, ukuleles, amps, pedals, folk harps, hammered dulcimers and mountain dulcimers, accessories, books, and much more. We also have a bustling music school! You can book private, one-on-one lessons with our professional and experienced teachers. Whether you’re an existing student or have been thinking of beginning lessons, it's always a good time to start!
2. What makes your store unique compared to larger retailers?
Dusty Strings is much more specialized than most music retailers. We cater largely to the folk and roots music community of the Pacific Northwest. There is no other location in our region where one will find as extensive a selection of acoustic instruments as here in our highly customized showroom. Dusty Strings Music Shop is also the main showroom for the Dusty Strings brand of harps and hammered dulcimers that our company manufactures here in Seattle.
3. Why did you decide to carry We Play Well Together instruments, specifically Hokema Kalimbas, in your store?
The founders of Dusty Strings discovered the Hokema Sansulas while visiting a music store in Europe. There are dealers of Dusty Strings harps and hammered dulcimers in several European cities, so the founders are frequently visiting music stores internationally and often come across unique items such as the Sansula, which they brought back to show us at the retail store. We thought the quality of these instruments was excellent and felt they would fit right in with our selection of products.
4. What has been the customer reaction to our instruments? Any favorite stories or experiences?
There is a story that I heard not too long ago that I found particularly inspiring. I might not have all the details correct, but the gist is as follows. A local Seattlite came into our store looking for inspiration and a new musical direction in his life. He stumbled upon our Sansulas and was immediately taken with them. He bought one, learned to play it and later told us how it had changed his life in so many positive ways. That customer was Brandon Blake, now a featured artist for Hokema.
5. Do you or your customers have a favorite Hokema Kalimba? If so, what do you love about it?
Our store manager, Morgan, was telling me recently how he loves his B11 Electro kalimba. He uses it with an EHX Freeze pedal and a looper to create ambient soundscapes that echo throughout his practice space, piquing the curiosity of his cat.
6. Who are your typical customers?
We cater largely to the folk and roots music community of the Pacific Northwest, but that can be anyone from absolute beginner ukulele enthusiasts to veteran Bluegrass flatpicking virtuosos. We have a product selection that ranges from the highest quality entry-level instruments up through the truly boutique handcrafted pieces from the top American builders. We love to expose people to instruments they may have never had the opportunity to try before. Sansulas are a great example of that, as well as our own harps and dulcimers. We like to think of ourselves as a hub in the local and regional musical community and want to support people in furthering their musical goals.
Where to find Dusty Strings:
We're located at 3406 Fremont Ave N, Seattle, WA
You can also find us on social media at
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dustystringsmusic/
Blog posts
Explore our Earth (C-Major) Collection
All of our instrument groups: Monochord, Tinka Tongs, Kalimbas & Sansulas, Koshi and Zaphir Chimes and Zenko metal drums are available in this tuning
Explore our Air (A-minor) Collection
The products are already available and the videos going to be released Spring 2025
Explore our Water (d-minor) Collection
Learn more about the Instruments of this collection and watch our bautiful videos
Explore our Fire (G-Major) Collection
The products are already available and the videos going to be released Spring 2025
I just took the week-long monochord training with Joule and fell in love with my Monolina. Joule is a fun, engaging and knowledgeable teacher who brings deep reverence to her instruments and the art of playing them. We got to experiment with and experience all the different ways of expressing through our monochords and came away with a proven, complete and beautiful 45-minute session we can now offer. I highly recommend this class.
Quick delivery, wonderful company and lovely instrument!
It is always a pleasure to speak to Gabriella and her customer service is top notch
this set is legit sounds like little angels 😇
I am new to the Monolina world but have been around stringed instruments all my life. I'm so excited about its possibilities as a solo instrument for use in Reiki, as well as in an ensemble setting. It helps me to meditate as well.
We have a full set of crystal bowls, and the low C monochord adds a wonderful depth to their sounding. I also find myself humming/singing over the low C drone in a quite natural way. Very happy with my new instrument.
I've wanted to purchase a Sansula ever since I first heard one, two years ago. I finally purchased one and upon receiving it was disappointed in it's sound. Customer service was extremely helpful and promptly replaced it. Couldn't have been a better experience. I highly recommend the instrument and the company is top notch.
Works well. Delighted to have the ability to tune my Sansula myself.
We Play well together has been a resource for instruments for, at least, 5 years. The quality of the instruments, customer service, kindness and expertise of the staff has been a huge bonus and blessing in our interactions. I am grateful for their service, friendliness and flexibility. thank you so very much VLamura
These mallets are super fun to use and I love the sounds they create. I purchased a pair of each set of mallets and I love them all so much, I'm planning on keeping the pair I thought I would send back originally.
I have a set and love these so much. They are well made, and the sound is solid and carries well in small and large spaces. Highly recommend!
Wonderful instrument. It’s easy to travel with and well crafted. Customer service is wonderful as well. Very responsive. I am always impressed with the attention to customer service and care of the instruments. This instruments complement my crystal singing bowls and monalina nicely.
My G Monolina is perfect! Beautiful to play in a group, as well as on the body.
Absolutely in love, but should have ordered the bag! Ordering it now as it is was too fragile to travel with without the bag.
The instrument brigs such an amazing quality and super easy to play
I recently purchased a D Monolina. Meditative and meditative; a full immersion sound experience that simply wraps you in a beautiful feeling and sound. What an incredible instrument this is! I highly recommend purchasing one, or more, for meditation, relaxation, or sound baths.
This set elevates one’s instruments to the next level. Having all these components really sets one up for success and allows room for growth to grow into your sound practice.
The versatility that comes with having the leg extensions allows the player to be comfortable in a variety of ways while playing. The mallets add additional ways to play.
Tuning is a breeze with the template. When not being played or on the go with this monolina, the mats keep everything safe and the backpack makes it so you can take it to the studio or out into nature to play.
I can’t say enough great things about it, it’s a must have in the sound tool kit for sure.
The floor model sale price feels too good to be true for such a fabulous instrument. So easy to create varied, beautiful sounds. This is the 3rd instrument I've purchased from WPWT and they're always efficient, friendly and helpful.
My first experience with a Hokema Kalimba was at the gift shop of the Music Instrument Museum in Phoenix, AZ. I was blown away by the big, beautiful sound of those instruments, but I wasn’t ready to plunk down $200 for it.
Fast forward, I read about the Twin Kalimba and was encouraged by a review that suggested it was great for events. This particular person, evidently a musician like me, gave out ten of these during his shows and was thrilled by how the audience members enjoyed the experience.
So, given these two experiences, I had high hopes for the twin.
It is a sweet sounding instrument, but the sound is very quiet. The wood is solid so it doesn’t resonate like its higher priced solo cousins (that feature a resonator) or traditional kalimbas that have found holes.
So, I’m a little underwhelmed by the sound, but it’s still a great concept. Perhaps it will be fine and dandy when I share it with audiences. Let’s see!
Joule is an excellent teacher! Her lessons flow from topic to exercises with so much ease and class time is so enjoyable. Joule makes sure everyone's questions are answered before going to the next lesson. Before this training, I had no idea of all the many different ways to play the monochord. After this course, I now have so much more knowledge and I'm able to tap into my creativity with a deeper love and appreciation with this beautiful instrument.
I love the "water" collection and this chime is one of my favourite instruments (so far!). The D minor tuning is said to be the "saddest" key, but I find it soothing, ethereal, and utterly charming. The gentle tones of this chime bring gentle, meditative tones. Do yourself a favour if you can and get the matching Koshi chime. They sound absolutely amazing together!
Thank you for sending me the Hokema Sansula Deluxe. I am enjoying the unique sound as I relate it to similarly designed instruments in parts of Africa. It creates a beautiful sound world with which you can improvise and expand infinitely. I will be using the small ones for my gatherings. It's a beautiful instrument and as I explore and improvise with it, I'm sure I will find something new that I will want to share with you. - Kevin Nathaniel
Wonderful, perfect to play on top and bring my sansula basic everywhere!
E
Hokema - B9 Kalimba It’s my first Kalimba and I absolutely love how it sounds, such a magical instrument