method book recommendation?

[manwithnoname]

Hi everyone,

I've been playing mandolin for about a year and have kind of hit a wall. I'd ideally like to take some lessons, but can't really afford that right now, so am looking for a recommendation for a method book, dvd or whatever that will help me improve.

Some background on me to help give you an idea of where my playing is- I have a masters degree in music, my main instrument is percussion (timpani, keyboard percussion, drums, hand percussion in that order). I've also done a bit of composition for various media. I haven't done anything as a performer in years, although I do write a bit of music from time to time, mainly for fun. So, I have a good understanding of theory and such. I never specialized in jazz vibes, so I never really developed as an improviser, although I have a basic grip. Technically, on mandolin, I've got a decent chord vocabulary in terms of what I am able to do on the fly. I feel like my rhythm playing is pretty solid. Picking speed is on the slow side- I can handle fiddle tunes at a very leisurely clip.

What I'd like to be able to do is speed up my picking, continue to expand my chord vocabulary, and get some improvisation happening that is idiomatic to the mandolin. I'm not particularly focused on a given style- I enjoy all of it.

Sorry for the wall of text, but thought it might be relevant to anyone who wants to give me some advice. Thanks in advance!

[SincereCorgi]

I found the Mike Marshall Mandolin Fundamentals DVDs from Homespun to be extremely good for general technique and chord shapes. I sympathize with you on the speed issue- if you're already fast on a non-fretboard instrument, it's agonizing to be back at 4th-grade-band-tempo on your new instrument. Just keep plugging away.

-Trevor

[Perry]

There are two Mike Marshall books that might fit your needs(the DVD's are a visual summary of the books with not nearly the same amount of detail)

One is his chord book the other his Improv Concepts book.

check here:

http://www.mikemarshall.net/books.htm

[Manfred Hacker]

I bought 'The Complete Mandolinist' by Marilynn Mair a few months ago and really like it.
It is classical-oriented but contains a wealth of exercises (scales, positions, triplets, tremolo) that can benefit any style of playing, IMHO. There are also some traditional tunes and lots of intermediate to advanced classical pieces.
I particularly like the tremolo exercises and tremolo pieces with the emphasis on smooth and flawless integration of tremolo.
Mandolinistically,
Manfred

[manwithnoname]

Thanks for the suggestions- all look like excellent resources.

[buckles]

Hi... I'd like to revive this thread.

Can anyone recommend a more advanced book than The Complete Mandolinist? Say a book of scale exercises?

[mandocrucian]

Patterns For Jazz - Jerry Coker

Sevcik: School of Violin Technics, Parts 1, 2, 3 & 4

Rovelli: 12 Caprices for the Violin

Kreutzer: 42 Studies or Caprices for the Violin

[buckles]

thanks 'crucian... :-)

[SincereCorgi]

Those are all fantastic books. Also good: Hrimaly for scales (or Flesch for borderline masochism), and Joseph Brent has a huge mandolin scale book which is comparable to Flesch but mando-specific.

-Trevor

[JeffD]

And the dreaded Mazas.

[montana]

I bought the lessons for mando on the Django Books web site. Been working on the first one. There pretty good and will give you a new genre of music to explore.

[mandotopia]

The advanced method books I am aware of are The Branzoli Method, The Bickford Method Book I and II and I believe there is a Book III and the Pettine Method series(7 books). Branzoli does not believe in cross-picking. This forces the development (strengthening) of other picking patterns to compensate. This book has very beautiful original lesson pieces. I learned from Branzoli. I have not tried Bickford but several excellent players I know recommend it. Pettine really thought about the right hand. His method is the most comprehensive treatment of the "Plectrums Mechinism". He also wrote two books on Duo Style playing. I would recommend the Pettine set. I do not know if any of these are in print. Pettinne was from RI. The Providence Mandolin Orchestra could help you find a copy. I believe Marilynn Mair's book is rooted in the Pettine books.

[JeffPedErp]

I recommend a new book by Gordon Sobbe from Halifax, Nova Scotia. His book plus CD titled MANDOLIN CHORDOLOGY which can be obtained at his website. http://www.fiddlebooks.com. Here you can see the contents and a sample of his new mandolin book. His other books and CDs about fiddling are also excellent resources for well known fiddle tunes that can be played on the mandolin

The focus of the book is on three finger chords and knowledge of the fingerboard allowing the student to learn how to make more complex chords and use them in accompanying melodies. I had studied mandolin for two years prior to starting lessons with Gordon and it was only through his teaching that I now feel able to start to put chord theory and practice together.

I have now used the book for about 9 months and it helped me to know how to create chords easily from the three basic fretting positions rather than memorize a mutlitude of different shapes.

[Rick Schmidlin]

I bought 'The Complete Mandolinist' by Marilynn Mair a few months ago and really like it.
It is classical-oriented but contains a wealth of exercises (scales, positions, triplets, tremolo) that can benefit any style of playing, IMHO. There are also some traditional tunes and lots of intermediate to advanced classical pieces.
I particularly like the tremolo exercises and tremolo pieces with the emphasis on smooth and flawless integration of tremolo.
Mandolinistically,
Manfred

Ihave also been using this book for two years, and it has helped me develope into a more educated player with improved technique.

[buckles]

Thanks everybody for your replies. I was surprised by how many of the posters pointed to violin technique books, of which I have a few, such as the Flesh studies. I'm curious about the Branzoli method and also perhaps about Gordon Sobbe... one interesting non-mandolin book of his is titled "Twelve Things Your Right Hand Should Know"...:) .

On Amazon I saw some sample pages from The Complete Mandolinist and while it seems to cover a lot of the bases it starts at a relatively simple level including the names of the strings, etc. Thus for budgetary reasons I'm probably going to skip it.

Thanks again for all the great suggestions...!

[SincereCorgi]

On Amazon I saw some sample pages from The Complete Mandolinist and while it seems to cover a lot of the bases it starts at a relatively simple level including the names of the strings, etc. Thus for budgetary reasons I'm probably going to skip it.

The Marilyn Mair book is – I've gotten flack for saying this before – poorly-organized. The absolute beginner stuff only lasts a couple pages and then you're immediately into early-intermediate exercises, mostly culled from various famous violin methods- you can get the whole of Mazas and Wohlfahrt together for less than the price of this book. Little or no effort is made to graduate the difficulty or explain new concepts and difficulties. However, it does have some Pettine in it, which is nice, and versions of the Beethoven and Mozart mandolin stuff. It's an okay grab-bag, but I think everybody would be happier with a reprint of Pettine. Why, they could sell dozens...

[buckles]

I found this one listing for Pettine on bookfinder.com

"facsimile of ca.1900-1909 originals. 9x12, staple-bound wraps, 44, 56, 60, 29, 37, 82, 34pp., somewhat musty..." cost approx $253!! Which is a lot for musty old copies. Or, if you think of it as buying 7 books for about 35 bucks a piece, maybe it's not that bad.

[Perry]

Here's another one off the beaten path:

I like the format of this book...loads of tidbits you can inject into your playing (standard notation only)

http://www.amazon.com/Licks-Bluegrass-Fiddle-Stacy-Phillips/dp/0825602890

[Manfred Hacker]

Thanks everybody for your replies. I was surprised by how many of the posters pointed to violin technique books, of which I have a few, such as the Flesh studies. I'm curious about the Branzoli method and also perhaps about Gordon Sobbe... one interesting non-mandolin book of his is titled "Twelve Things Your Right Hand Should Know"...:) .

On Amazon I saw some sample pages from The Complete Mandolinist and while it seems to cover a lot of the bases it starts at a relatively simple level including the names of the strings, etc. Thus for budgetary reasons I'm probably going to skip it.

Thanks again for all the great suggestions...!

buckles, The Complete Mandolinist comprises more than 200 pages! What you call the 'bases' are on the first 20 pages or so. Then it gets into scale exercises, positions, tremolo etc. very quickly. There is no lack of difficulty in this book. I think I can call myself an intermediate player, but a lot in this book is still beyond my skills.
No financial interest, by the way.
Manfred

[CES]

NFI either, but Ted's Jazz Mandolin book has a ton of FFcP exercises which improve dexterity and, with practice, speed. I'm not deep enough into it yet to comment on the later material and help with improve skills, but I like what I've done so far.

For reference I'm very much at a beginner level but have played stringed instruments for about 7 years or so. I played sax back in the day at an intermediate level but am certainly NOT a music major...basic theory is something I'm still working on and I'm also relearning what I know from a mandolin-centric viewpoint...

[JeffD]

In a recent discussion of a similar topic I heard this statement: (put into the context of this thread)

The method book you actually use is better than the higher quality book you don't open.

[Andrew DeMarco]

Ffcp!!

[violmando]

This all being said, MandoCELLISTS are always looking for books, and since the Sol Goichberg book is in Universal Clef and there's not much else out there, they should also be looking into bowed string technique....the Lee studies for Cello, Goltermann, etc. I spent my bowed cello days on that stuff and it's come in VERY handy for cello dexterity and reading speed. Yvonne

[manwithnoname]

wow- alot of good stuff here!

[manwithnoname]

I have the FFCP book, and honestly, while the concept is brilliant in my opinion, I think the presentation isn't the most user-friendly. I'd like to see a few more tunes and melodies using the fingerings introduced early on and less scale pages (at least in the beginning of the book). Throwing the user a bone, if you will. Those first few pages are brutal (at least if you're just getting into playing, as I am)!

That said, the framework absolutely makes sense and I intend to get it under my fingers, at least eventually lol.

[John McGann]

Actual music (as heard through the air) is one of the best 'method books'.

Developing your ear is at least as important as ANYTHING involved in playing music, so by doing your own transcribing of music you love (or just 'learning it by heart' without writing it down), you will gain things that no method book can give you.

The Bach Cello Suites are a good start...the Sonatas and Partitas will keep you busy 'a little while'...hundreds of jazz solo transcriptions that can be applied to our instruments...the Amazing Slower Downer is a good friend and will let you take light speed music into the realm of manageable...great for fast bluegrass!

[buckles]

Actual music (as heard through the air) is one of the best 'method books'.


The Bach Cello Suites are a good start...

somewhere i came across a transcription of those for violin...