passing down your mandolin

[Merritt]

I'm interested to hear from others who have made plans or are thinking about passing down their mandolin to an heir. Have you put something in your will? Thinking about it? Prefer to give it away in person down before you pass away?

I've heard stories about my great grandfather playing fiddle tunes for friends and family, but no one remembers what happened to the violin. I can't help but think about how cool it would be to have the chance to play some tunes on his violin. At the very least, it would just be nice to know what happened to it.

Regardless of the market value, I know there are plenty of members that have some seriously sentimental instruments. So what are your thoughts and plans to hand it down?

On the flip side, I'm also sure there are some interesting stories out there about inheriting a fine and/or meaningful instrument.

[Rusty Strings]

My grandfather gave me his mandolin (1920 Gibson A2) when I started taking lessons at age 9 or 10. My own grandson is only 3 now, but if he shows an interest when he gets a bit older, I plan on giving it to him. I remember how proud my grandfather was when I played at family gatherings. I don't want to leave it to him in a will, I want to share it with him and stick around to see him enjoy it.

[JeffD]

I have no plans to pass down my mandolins. I plan to play the potatoes out of them in this life, and let them be sold at market prices after I am gone. I have made some arrangements to that affect that have to be updated in light of some bouts of unchecked MAS.

[sunburst]

I'm a banjo player and I have a fine, collectible banjo and no heirs. Hopefully, I'll find or think of some young enthusiastic player who would appreciate such an instrument and give it to him/her before I "croak"... unless the market value reaches the price of a new house...

My father often mentioned a banjo and fiddle that he owned when he left home to join the Air Force during WW II. His mother died while he was away, and he never found the banjo and fiddle when he got back home. She apparently did something with them, but who knows what. I'd love to find them, but it won't happen.

[Tim2723]

I plan on handing mine down, but only for about two or three years at a time.

[Mike Snyder]

No musicians in the family. I'm gonna sell it when my gnarled fingers will no longer work, and buy a polyester leisure suit to be buried in.

[Tom Sanderson]

I have a nice Nugget that deserves to be played by a good player rather than get stuffed under a bed. None of my kids play, and so far no grandkids are interested. I would rather give it away to a great young player who would really benifit from such a fine instrument. I have thought about some kind of foundation to get good instruments into the hands of young promising players who can't otherwise afford them. You could donate your instrunent to the fondation and there would be some kind of oversight board that would screen candidates. Maybe not give them away, maybe some kind of loan. It would take a lot of work to set up and run.Just a thought.

[Dan Hoover]

i've heard stories about my grandfather playing violin too,he passed away in 1945,at the age of 45, apparently he lived a very hard life...no one seems to know whatever became it it?? i've been handed all the family picture's,copying and restoring them, and with the task of getting them to all 4 of my mothers brothers,and to my own brothers..would love to come across 1 picture of him with it...as for my own mandos,i only have 2,and i'm not done getting them...as it stands now,my dog's inherit everything...

[Cliff D]

I have the Horniman museum fairly close to me & I muse a bout gifting my instrument collection to them. Whether they would want any of my kit I'm not sure, but they currently do not have any synthesizers on display (or not when I last looked!). I apreciate this is not quite the sentiment the OP was possibly touching on, but I think most of us would like some one else to treasure, rather than trash, that which we have treasured. All things must pass in time - but it gave me joy to see a somewhat dishevelled Rickenbacker frying pan on display once outside the US of A (but under heavy plate glass) with my own eyes!

[JEStanek]

I hope my daughter and son want them. If not I hope to give them to someone else when the right time comes, ideally, before I die.

Jamie

[fatt-dad]

In my mind, I got it all figured out. I just haven't written it into my will yet. For reference, I also don't have multi-thousand-dollar mandolins. On the matter of my guitars, I only own two (even though it looks like I own four). When I bought the Martin 000-15S I registered it in my daughter's name and the 000-28 Norman Blake, I bought in my son's name (lifetime warrantee and all is theirs to keep).

f-d

[june39]

I have been thinking about this issue quite a bit. I own several serious instruments that don't deserve to spend years under a bed only to be discovered years later. My kids had no interest in playing. I am now waiting to see if the grand kids show any interest. If there is no interest, I will put them up for sale and help fund an education. Instruments need to be played.

Doug McCash

[abuteague]

An acquaintance inherited a mandolin from a former teacher. The teacher had stated in his will that his instrument collection would be divided up among his previous music students. My acquaintance didn't play mandolin and had no plans to start. She was a banjo player. She gave the mandolin to me because I expressed interest in learning an instrument. I had no idea she had an extra mandolin in her closet gathering dust.
It was the best gift I've ever received. When I bought my own mandolin, I gave the gift mandolin to a group of musicians who were looking for instruments to start a music program for kids in the next town. Now that I see myself as a half way competent player, I feel obligated to teach mandolin and keep the spirit of the gift going.
We all know we could use a few more mandolin players in the world.

[JeffD]

and buy a polyester leisure suit to be buried in.

:))

[Santiago]

I have a nice Nugget that deserves to be played by a good player rather than get stuffed under a bed. None of my kids play, and so far no grandkids are interested. I would rather give it away to a great young player who would really benifit from such a fine instrument. I have thought about some kind of foundation to get good instruments into the hands of young promising players who can't otherwise afford them. You could donate your instrunent to the fondation and there would be some kind of oversight board that would screen candidates. Maybe not give them away, maybe some kind of loan. It would take a lot of work to set up and run.Just a thought.

That would be a really great thing to do.

[Santiago]

One of my sons, both play guitar, would love to inherrit my mandolin. The other would burn it, bury it and salt the ground so that nothing ever grew there again. :-)

[Randi Gormley]

None of my kids is interested in the mandolin, none of them is particularly sentimental, and my mandos aren't of the thousands-of-dollars kind (and I don't have any grandkids yet). I'd love to pass them on to someone who would use them as well. Wouldn't it be nice if the Cafe had a donation program or could funnel them to programs that give them to kids? Barring that, I'd probably find such an organization myself if I knew I was on my way out (or have my survivors do so) and donate them for students. I'd planned to do the same thing with my remains and a medical school anyway, so sending the mandos to students seems apropos.

[Martin Jonas]

Well, my grandfather did play the mandolin, and I do have his mandolin. He passed away in 1948 and the mandolin (a fairly basic German-made Majestic) then passed to my mother, more or less by default: everybody else in the family was playing "fancier" instruments (guitar, zither and flute). She got herself a bowlback when she joined a mandolin orchestra in the 1950s, so the Majestic spent some time with her younger sister (who went through a Russian-infatuation phase and retuned it as a balalaika) and then sat around until I had an abortive go at learning it as a teenager. I only finally got around to being serious about it some twenty years later, but that mandolin is still there.

Martin

[300win]

I have two sons, one is a musician, the other is not. I have promised ny current banjo to the one who does not play, all other instruments will go to the one who does play. On the other hand, all my firearms will go to the one who does not play, as he is the major hunter in the clan, since I can't anymore. Yes I have it written down, and have spoke to both of them about it. if it comes the time before I pass on and can't play anymore the instruments will go to the son who can play, except if there is a grandkid that comes along before I go that shows real promise as becoming a musician, then we will have to all get together and make some changes.

[Bluman]

I inherited my Father's mandolin (bought in the 30's for $2.00) on which I learned the basics. The mandolin has no financial value, however, it does have value to me so I made a shadow box that hangs on the wall. The shadow box contains the mandolin and a picture of my young Father holding the mandolin. This solved the "storing it under the bed" syndrome. I have no direct heirs so when the time comes I plan to find an interested player and make him/her a deal he/she can't refuse. As for my Father's mandolin it will go to one of his great grand children and hopefully not be stored under the bed, I know I can't control things from the grave even though I might like to.

[tree]

I'm just hoping I can pass along my love of playing music - the instruments would be secondary. My boys are 15, though, and if they don't take up something in the next 5 - 10 years, they may never really pursue it.

[Dave Schimming]

I only have one son who happens to be a very good musician - any instruments I have will get passed on to him as he will play music on them that I can only dream about on a good pickin' day.

[allenhopkins]

Thought about this quite a bit, as I have a collection-slash-accumulation of 75 or so instruments. Guess my plan is to let each of my sons choose any he'd like, and put the rest back on the market through one of the local dealers with whom I've worked over the past decades. Both Dave and Pete play guitar and electric bass, and so might be interested in some of my instruments, but I doubt they'd want all of them. And the weird ones -- charango, guitarron, bowed psaltery etc. -- well, you'd have to find just the right musician who'd want 'em.

[Backlineman]

Check out my Mandolin Orchestra blog. It features a 1915 Gibson F-4 Mandolin ,and an 1921 H-2 Mandola, that came from my great grandfather, to my grandfather, currently owned and played by my father, and God willing will eventually be in my possession. I have no children, but am already sizing up my sisters daughters for any interest.
Check out the blog:
iversmandolinorchestra.blogspot.com

[Tom Sanderson]

I only have one son who happens to be a very good musician - any instruments I have will get passed on to him as he will play music on them that I can only dream about on a good pickin' day.


You are a Lucky Man

[jim_n_virginia]

I have seen it several times. A musician passes away and leaves a expensive instrument to a family member who doesn't play. They either sell it out right as soon as they get it and not knowing the value of it they usually sell it cheap or they keep it a while and when times get tough they end up selling it for a song!

If I had an heir who played I might but there are none. So I plan to play mine until my fingers are too gnarled to play and then sell them for Bingo money or if I croak sell them in my estate sale and it gets distributed to whatever my will dictates.

I do however have a beautiful vintage fiddle that was passed down to me by an elderly neighbor who gave it to me when he decided it was time to go to a nursing home. He has since passed away. He was 90 about 10 years ago when he gave it too me and he and his brother took lessons in the early 1900's when they were kids and that was their fiddle.

He gave it to me because I used to fix a lot of things around his house for him and his wife. It means a lot to me and I would never sell it.

:mandosmiley:

[billkilpatrick]

i hope one of them will go into the box with me ... "rosebud!" - fate will deal with the rest.

[fishtownmike]

Since i have no other musicians in the family probably not. I'm not just leaving my instruments to family members who at the first chance will ebay them for far below their value for a fast buck. I see these auction all the time on ebay. I have thoughts of leaving them to some type of music program like a schools or maybe a churches. Where they maybe come in handy to others to learn an instrument.

[GRW3]

I don't know what to think. Sure, my kids might sell them on ebay but I won't care at the time. On the other hand, my father just died and didn't leave a will, everything went to my step mother. He didn't have a lot but there was the .22 I shot as a kid. His record collection. The picture of him in the Navy. The license plates on the wall in the garage from 54 to when Texas quit giving out new plates every year. She said don't bother coming by.

So maybe you don't think they'll take a shine to it but don't discount how they might feel. If you're worried about them getting gypped then put a piece of paper in each instrument saying how much it's probably worth.

[Coy Wylie]

I am part of a circle of friends who all own a few expensive and collectible instruments. Aside from our kids or grandkids taking a real interest, we have all instructed our wives to contact our picking buddies for advice on selling them when its our time to go.

We saw this play out when one friend passed away a while back who had one of the finest old Martins I've ever played. Instead of going to the hands of a musician who could make the most of it, his son kept it for sentimental value. The son plays a bit I understand and I hope the guitar will inspire him to play it a lot. However, I really wish it could go an aspiring artist seeking the instrument of a lifetime and treasured for what it is, not sentiment. But then, that was my friend's decision and I respect that.

[ColdBeerGoCubs]

Some bar owner is probably going to have to pry mine out of my cold dead hands. He can do what he wants with it after that.

[BradKlein]

I have thought about some kind of foundation to get good instruments into the hands of young promising players who can't otherwise afford them. You could donate your instrunent to the fondation and there would be some kind of oversight board that would screen candidates. Maybe not give them away, maybe some kind of loan. It would take a lot of work to set up and run.Just a thought.

Programs to lend instruments to students exist at major music schools, and for those who own professional quality instruments, a donation like this could be real option (and a cool legacy). Here's a link to the instrument collection at the local music school, Julliard. (http://www.juilliard.edu/update/journal/j_articles945.html) I don't know if Berklee or any other schools that offer mandolin programs have similar systems, but I suspect they might be open to the idea.

[fishtownmike]

I'm wondering is anyone here taking it with them? Anyone have plans to be buried with one? :)

[Nick Triesch]

I'll leave my mandolins to my Son. They will buy him a great Honda SI! Nick

[f5loar]

As I recall reading Dave Apollon was buried with one of his mandolins. I plan to have at least my first mandolin to be buried with me.
The rest my wife knows to call George Gruhn if he is still living and tell him to bring a big van to the house for a huge pickup of instruments for consignment.

[Nick Triesch]

The trouble with being buried with a mandolin is that in just a two year period the coldness and wet envirement will ruin the mandolin in no time. Would be better just to go to a nice guitar store where it can find a nice home for 50 more years! But if not, down tune and get a great case. Nick

[Pen]

+1 for finding a way for the instrument into a players hands.

I happen to be the benificiary of a '58 Gibson A40. My buddies dad played until his health failed, not allowing him to pick up the mando anymore. He passed it down to his son (a very accomplished guitar player). However, he has no desire to learn mandolin.

After getting to know the son over the course of a couple years, he has given the Gibson to me on indefinate loan. He couldn't bare to think of it sitting in a case for years on end. He's inspired me to move my instruments to players after I'm gone. My kids are both under 3 - so who knows if they'll play. I'll do what's necessary to ensure my instruments aren't boxed up.

I have to say - I will be dissappointed if my son and daughter aren't playing them 50 years from now....

[Sergio Saldivar]

Mi father used to play the violin and he flew to San Diego a few weeks back to pass his instrument to his granddaughter, who is a gifted musician at 15 (she started playing the clarinet and the flute at age 6, and recently showed an interest in the violin, which she has learned fairly quickly). My dad even had this little eye-watering ceremony, very moving. Since I don't have children myself, I did not realize until then how important it was for him that his beloved instrument was passed to the right hands to be appreciated, cared for and lovingly played.

[Mandolin Mick]

This thread got me thinking ... Most likely, I would will my instruments to my younger brother. He was a drummer when we were kids and our link to this day is music.

My daughters aren't musicians. They inherited my love for the Beatles ... but not bluegrass or the mandolin. They actually find it annoying. But, they would display my mandolins if I requested it, because they like the way they look.

They would want my Hofner Bass because they loved it when I was in the Beatles tribute band, Apple Core. I don't care what they do with my guitar or keyboards.

[John Flynn]

I plan to be buried with mine, so I can play "The Song of the Volga Boatmen," using lots of tremolo, as I'm being ferried across the River Styx.

Seriously, I don't have anyone to pass them down to who would play them. So they will just get sold by my estate, probably to pay my bills!

[JeffD]

The trouble with being buried with a mandolin is that in just a two year period the coldness and wet envirement will ruin the mandolin in no time. Nick

:))

What ever happens to me in that coffin is far worse that what will happen to the mandolin.

:crying:

[Nelson Peddycoart]

My daughter is only 6, but is musically inclined. I will leave my instruments to her to do with as she pleases. She can keep, sell or donate them.

[barney 59]

I have already burdened my sons with my overflow. One of them I suspect is going to have more success at this (music) than I ever did and already at 24 is making more money than I do. The other plays some but isn't all that motivated.He's in college and is mostly motivated by girls and soccer. If I ever get to the point that I can't play I'm also,most likely, going to need the cash. My Mom was a concert violinist and had some valuable violins,one particularly valuable and would be worth multiples today of what it sold for at the time. When she had to give it up they all were converted to cash. If I were to drop dead everything I have will of course go to my family and they can work it out,I don't think I'll be caring very much at that point.

[Les Corley]

My Grandfather on my Mothers side was a fiddle playing preacher & it sure sounded good. He got it in the late 1800s, don't know what kind it was . He gave it to one of his sons, my uncle who has no interest at all in music. Sure would like to get my hands on that one, I would give it to my Daughter who plays in a church worship group.

[mcH]

I was handed down my grandfather's violin and it really isn't anything to write home about. It's a cheap German violin which sounds loud and screechy. We've tried putting a new bridge on it, different strings, soundpost setup, etc; it's just really not much better than a student instrument. For those of you wondering where your family heirlooms went, you might not be that impressed if you had them. That being said, we still have it, as it was my grandfather's.

[Bill Van Liere]

I am going to leave all my instruments with my wife, she is the one that has put with all the tuning until I can't do so any more.

[Bob A]

I've got way too many mandolins, and six grandkids. I figure one apiece, the rest go to players who deserve them.

It's always a good idea to "seed" a household with a mandolin or two, especially if they're decent instruments. More than one fine player has been sparked by finding an attic mandolin in his/her youth. (Pack them with a couple extra sets of strings and a note about the instrument).

[D C Blood]

My wife's children aren't pickers (except her daughter who is rhythm guitar in the band). The grandchildren aren't pickers or even interested in the music. I plan to find a young talented picker who needs a better mandolin than what he (or she) has or can afford, and pass it on to them on my death. I only have one instrument so it won't be too hard...

[Andrew Faltesek]

Fortunately my children have taken an interest in music (guitar and violin), and have both tried out the mandolin. I expect that they would appreciate having my instruments after I pass on.

As I grew up and took an interest in art and craftsmanship, which was a thread of skill passed from my father; the love of music and ability to play instruments was added. Now my children have carried on artistic skills, and developed ability to play instruments as well. I know they will retain and pass these skills on, and maybe add something else.

By exposing children to, and encouraging enjoyment of music and ability to play, and then passing on our instruments to the next generation, we give them a good start with tools early on...hopefully retaining another thread of skill and enjoyment in the fabric of our family's history.

[Chris Biorkman]

I plan on living forever.

[Bluman]

Chris you remind me of a fellow I new that bet people $5.00 he would live forever. When he was challenged how people could/would collect if they saw him in the coffin, he told them the $5.00 would be in his shirt pocket.

[Laird]

I have thought about some kind of foundation to get good instruments into the hands of young promising players who can't otherwise afford them.

That's a beautiful idea, Tom! If starting up a foundation is too much work, which I'm sure it is, maybe Mando Cafe could help make arrangements to get these instruments in the right hands? Or maybe you find out who teaches mando in your neck of the woods and ask them to pass along your mando to someone in need.

[Laird]

If my little boy (four months old at the moment) doesn't take to the mandolin, I guess I'll just have to haunt him. Down from the attic, night after night, will come another round of failed attempts to nail all those fiddle tunes that perplexed me in life, each flubbed note punctuated with some muffled curse.

Just kidding, of course, but I sure dream of him wanting to take it up!

[Rroyd]

I am planning to have a Viking funeral, to be held at a large pond just down the road from my house. All my instruments are to be placed on a wooden raft with my remains, and the raft will be set afire and pushed out into the pond. My children have promised me that they will honor my wishes, but then they laugh, so I suspect the raft might be loaded with Rogues and WalMart specials, with the good stuff hidden in their car trunks.