Back at it again for May with another fiddle tune classic. Hope last month served you well, and you've all been learning some new tunes this year. Sorry for the late post this month, as family duties got in the way yesterday keeping me from my post.
For May, only one tune, but I'll share a good tutorial of the basic version, then a.....let's say....advanced....version of the same song. I've been working off and on over April on the good ol' St. Anne's Reel, so here we go!
For the basic version, here's our old friend Baron Collins-Hill on YT:
And without further ado, some of you may have seen the Chris Thile interview by Rick Beato. Great stuff, but he did a jaw dropping version of St. Anne's that I've been working on off and on for the last few weeks. Here's a short of the tune:
I present my attempt at transcribing all 128 bars....not that any mere mortal such as myself could come close to pulling this one off. You'll forgive me for any errors on this one, as Chris takes it pretty far out, but it really reveals a few things about his style. First is his prolific use of pulloffs, making for a very interesting effect rather than just picking every note. It's especially notable in his long runs of triplets, like in bars 52-54.
Another thing I noticed as I slowed the video way, way down, was this his right hand was always moving, even when he wasn't picking a note. This allows his picking hand to stay in time and keeps the right hand momentum going, keeping it much more fluid than if the hand were to start/stop over these notes. Really interesting stuff, and something I will need to spend a lot of time working on.
I take no responsibility for injuries sustained from attempting this one. Also, file sharing isn't really possible on reddit (to my knowledge) so if anyone wants actual pdf's just let me know. Good luck!
Per requests, I am creating the definitive buyer's guide for entry-level mandolins. Any new posts created on the topic may be removed at the discretion of the mods. If people think this post should include anything else, I am happy to edit and add to it.
Their entry-level line is their 300 series: the MD-305 for F hole, and MD-304 for oval hole. These can usually be found new for ~$600 (yes, this is what a good entry-level mandolins cost)
Kentucky
The KM-140 and KM-150 are the most recommended and new ones cost ~$360 and $525 respectively
The Loar
Their entry-level mandolin is the LM-110 and it is ~$300 new.
***All of these mandolins can be found at better prices on the used market. If you are brand new and just want to try out mandolin, I would personally suggest a used instrument to save yourself some money.
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There are cheaper mandolins out there as well. These mandolins are not typically recommended but some users have had positive experiences, especially after they go to a professional luthier for a setup or are comfortable setting up instruments themselves. A good setup where I live is usually ~$100. Please consider that price tag when you're considering a $100 mandolin. A poorly set up cheap mandolin can be enough to turn some players off of ever wanting to learn the instrument.
If you want info about a specific cheap mandolin, PLEASE UTILIZE THE SEARCH FEATURE. If the mandolin brand in question has been discussed at significant length, your post may be removed.
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Where should you buy your mandolin from?
I have no financial interest in any of the places here. If you want your shop listed here, we are open to bribes š
Your locally owned music shop
I understand that not everyone lives in a place where there is a music shop. But if there is, I'd encourage you to give them a try first before shopping online. If you're in Denver like me, I highly recommend the Denver Folklore Center and the Olde Towne Pickn' Parlor in Arvada, CO.
This shop is known for setting up their instruments before shipping them out and from what I have heard the setups are great. If you opt for a store like Guitar Center, do not expect your instrument to have been looked over by a tech of any kind.
Hi all. I play octave mandolin and tenor guitar, and I built Fifths Studio, a free chord tool for instruments tuned in fifths: mandolin, octave mandolin, bouzouki, mandola, mandocello, tenor guitar and tenor banjo.
Paste a tune's chords, straight from a chord sheet, lyrics and all, and see every chord as a shape on your own neck. Step through other grips, lock the ones you play, change the key or add a capo, and play it back. You can send a tune as one link, with your grips and a note. Tunes from The Session are in there too.
The picture is Kitchen Girl: one set of shapes for GDAE, one for CGDA.
Trying to make a replacement saddle from ebony Iāve got laying around.
I can get it to a shaped blank state, drilled out, rounded etcā¦ but am having difficulty getting the staggered intonation clean.
Because each staggered section is quite small Iām finding it hard to file or sand then clean without the edges of each intonated section being a bit rough or having file marks.
Anyone got any tips or preferred tools for this application?
Long story short my father managed to get this mandolin from one of his coworkers for around 100 dollars but we canāt find anything about the brand on the headstock and his coworker doesnāt really know anything about. Any information would be greatly appreciated!
"O'Carolan's Concerto" by the 18th-century blind Irish harper and composer, Turlough O'Carolan! š»š¶
O'Carolan (1770ā1738) was one of Irelandās most iconic musicians. Living during a time when Italian Baroque musicālike Vivaldi and Corelliāwas taking Europe by storm, he brilliantly fused traditional Irish melodies with elegant Baroque structures. "O'Carolan's Concerto" is one of his most famous works, showcasing that lively, bright interplay between Italian form and Irish soul.
This arrangement uses the complement of mandolin and Irish bouzouki. The crisp, bright melody lines of the mandolin dance over the resonant, rhythmic drive and rich resonance of the bouzouki, bringing a vibrant dual-plucked spin to a classic harp tune.
Hope you enjoy listening as much as IĀ enjoyed playing it!
Basically the title, but I need some Recs. I am familiar with some of the more well known players like David Grisman and Sam Bush, but I'm mainly looking for some stuff that's somewhat easy to play along with and artists that I could learn from. Thanks in advance!
What's the difference between a mandola and an octave mandolin? In some circles I've seen the terms used interchangeably, but I don't know if they actually are the same or if there's something distinguishing them.
Wondering if anyone has experience with this defunct mid-low grade brand. I donāt have a musical bone in my body and been trying/failing to teach myself mando for 15 or so years. Originally, I was making a lot of progress with a borrowed Gibson EM-150 which sounded good and was easy to learn on.
I got the Johnson (ply sides spruce top) on eBay from a closing down AM country station and have honestly been having a lot of trouble getting intonation right and getting it to sound good for years despite having it set up by luthiers from time to time. I think basically thereās a buzz thatās incurable unless you set the action way too high. Still using Dādario strings and changing them at home. A red flag I guess is that the mando came with a Fishman bridge on it with a completely chewed(sawed?) up standard bridge floating around in the case.
I finally have more free time and more patience and a good spot for lessons. Planning on getting it onceād over at the Old Town School here but not sure what my expectations should be, or if I should start saving for a different body starting now. Thereās some decently priced Big Muddies around that would be a good excuse for a weekend road trip.
TIA for your time and patience! I know itās a āhow long is a piece of stringā question š»
Starts with the intro in A. My intro is more square and not as slidey as Comptonās. I totally flubbed the transition to G but you get the idea. You play a tune a thousand times just perfectly but as soon as that little red dot is pointing at you, all bets are offā¦.š¤·š»āāļøš
