Choke mandoloin chords

[Bluebird]

Doe anyone know how you choke a chord. Not a chop chord but like a two finger chord then you choke or mute the other strings with your fingers. Do you do it like a chop or let the mando ring?

[pdlstl]

I utilize both methods.

[earthsave]

I always thought choke meant to bend a string, which is much easier to do on a guitar or banjo but can be done on a mando. The short scale and double strings make it tough though.

[Bluebird]

Maybe what I am asking is what different Rythmic Dynamics do you use while playing backup. Boy, I knew I messed up this thread when look up and saw I misspelled MANDOLIN.

[John Flynn]

I have never called it a choke, but I do what you are descibing all the time. I usually refer to it as an "open chop." Depending on the chord, I mute the strings either with the finger that is fretting the G string, because it crosses all the strings, or with my pinky, laid across all the strings. I can get a decent chop sound out of it by synchonizing the muting with my strum, or I can let the chord ring before muting for a different effect.

[mandocrucian]

There's a whole variety of muting and dynamic techniques that can be used, coming from both hands. #Right hand palm muting, muting with the side of the thumb or the blade of the hand. Pick + finger(s), or just the RH fingers. Palm or thumb slapping too. There's a number of sonic attacks.

Left hand can also mute (varying degrees of mutedness), or control the amount of time notes rings, which can drive the rhythm.

Of course, doing this type stuff means you are now tending to play the instrument a lot more as if it were an electric guitar.

Niles Hokkanen