Dulcimer influences on a gurdysian design

Through continued sketching of the Gurdysian Manipulator, I found myself drawing inspiration from Appalachian dulcimers for the left hand control layout.

Like a hurdy gurdy, the Appalachian dulcimer is modally keyed. Playing a melody on a dulcimer looks (and often sounds) similar to playing a melody on a hurdy gurdy: one reaches over the body/neck to play monophonic lines while the other hand excites all the strings (...usually). This design construct could be useful in the case of a gurdy inspired digital instrument.

I'm considering using 3 linear soft potentiometers (+ linear FSRs?) in a string-like configuration to set boundaries for looped audio material. This could allow for one hand control of a loop's beginning and end as well as a "set" function. Perhaps these could also be used to control effects if I design it to be multimodal.

I'll post a sketch here within the week. If this works, I think I'll change the name from Gurdysian Manupulator to Gurdulcimator.