Mandola growing in popularity?

[bassthumper]

did'nt Bill Monroe record "My Last Days On Earth" on mandola?

[robert.najlis]

- this was in reply to a previous question, but I forgot to quote it, sorry..

I ordered a Big Muddy mandola

[Nick Gellie]

Doug C. I ordered my Collings MT six months ago - only arrived this week. I can't commend the folks at Collings enough. It is one of the best instruments I have owned. I am like you I have not even bothered about the chords yet - it is such a wonderful instrument to play melody on. My wife wanted me to play a tenor voiced instrument with some of the folk songs we do together. I'll Fly Away sounds so good in C and suits her voice much better.

[RichardF]

One thing I have noticed is that I find it easier to sing back up when using my 10 string octave mandola because I use it to help my pitching.

[sgarrity]

did'nt Bill Monroe record "My Last Days On Earth" on mandola?

No. Monroe recorded that on mandolin in C#m.

[DougC]

I should make a correction. It was Kevin at Hoffman Guitars.

Also I bought a "used" mandola because at a great price. It is like brand new, and it has seen very little use. This is common in mandolas so it is great for us players.

[DougC]

Doug C. I ordered my Collings MT six months ago - only arrived this week. I can't commend the folks at Collings enough. It is one of the best instruments I have owned. I am like you I have not even bothered about the chords yet - it is such a wonderful instrument to play melody on. My wife wanted me to play a tenor voiced instrument with some of the folk songs we do together. I'll Fly Away sounds so good in C and suits her voice much better.

I could not agree more Nick. The viola is closer to the human voice in pitch. (At least most of us humans...) And there is, like people, a bigger sound from a bigger instrument. Not louder but with lower overtones like an alto singer compared to a soprano.

[Mandobar]

There are a lot of mandolas built and sold, but I have yet to encounter anyone at a jam with one, and at festivals you rarely see someone pull one out and start playing.

[August Watters]

I'm surprised that more classical folks have not chimed in yet. The mandola is a big part of classical music, doing the viola parts. And they can read the viola clef. Ha, ha.

Yes, I've been waiting too! I'm not sure how many European readers are here on the Cafe, but there are probably a few hundred mandolin orchestras active in Europe, and they all use mandolas. Of course, most of them use the older EADG instrument, which here in the US is most often called "octave mandolin."

For mandola players looking for places to play in North America: there are active mandolin orchestras in Providence, Pittsburgh, Bloomfield, Austin, Portland, Minneapolis, Montreal, San Diego, and plenty more - check them out over at the CMSA "ensembles" page.

[DougC]

There are a lot of mandolas built and sold, but I have yet to encounter anyone at a jam with one, and at festivals you rarely see someone pull one out and start playing.

This is true but things are changing, and that's why we are talking about it.

Also festival jamming is only one aspect of music on mandolins.

[Mandobar]

My point was that there a considerable amount of mandolas, as well as octave mandolins, etc. being made and sold. People will often state that they have a mandola, but it's at home. On the classical side, there are always mandola players, but most mandolin orchestras utilize sheet music. I play with one performance group that only uses lead sheets, and it can take a bit of work figuring out where to place the mandola's voice in an arrangement. It has taken a few years for me to be able to accomplish this. That said, while we talk more about mandolas here, and there are a heck of a lot more of them being made and sold, and then resold than there were when I first started visiting the Cafe, it's still pretty uncommon to encounter another mandola player sitting in the room with you, either at a workshop, a jam, etc. This past year was actually the first time that I saw someone at the March Mandolin Festival in Concord actually playing mandola most of the time during the day.

[Tobin]

One drawback I have found with the mandola is that the CGDA tuning isn't overly friendly to playing in the keys of D or A. It's great in the keys of C or G (it can be played with the same fingerings as the mandolin in G or D). Playing mandola in the key of D is like playing the mandolin in the key of A, which is do-able, but the 6th fret stretch gets a bit awkward and the chord shapes aren't as pleasant to me. Playing in A just doesn't work well for me on the mandola, since I end up playing only on the GDA strings, and not getting much use from that low C string (and missing the E string that I would have on the mandolin, which limits what I can do without having to shift up the neck). There just seems to be an awkwardness to playing the mandola in these keys, and I end up changing the key of the tune or going back to the mandolin.

So on the mandola, I've found a real need for a capo that I don't get with the mandolin. I figure it would make life easier to capo the 2nd fret and play tunes in the key of D with the same fingering as I would on the mandolin in the key of G. And with that capo on the 2nd fret, play tunes in the key of A with the same fingering as I would play mandolin tunes in the key of D. It's a bit of a mental exercise, but gets pretty easy to "do the math" after a few times.

The problem is, I can't seem to find a capo that works on my old H4. Nobody makes mandola capos, so it seems that a banjo capo is what has to be used. But the deep V-shape of my mandola neck is too chunky for most banjo capos. I love the Shubb capo on my guitar, but their banjo capo just wouldn't close on my mandola neck without squeezing the strings way sharp (i.e. it was beyond the adjustment range). The Paige banjo capo might work, but even that will be tight.

Maybe modern mandolas have neck shapes that are friendlier to using banjo capos. But until I find a good solution, this seems to limit my desire to put the mandola to full use when playing in particular keys. Do any others have this issue, or find that common keys just don't work that well on the mandola?

[brunello97]

I should make a correction. It was Kevin at Hoffman Guitars.

Yup. Kevin Schwab. Great guy. I play one of his early 5 string electrics that he built for me years ago. Having that low C is so much of the fun of the mandola. Big chord opportunities as well, easier--for me--on the electric with five note opportunities.

Mick

[foldedpath]

Do any others have this issue, or find that common keys just don't work that well on the mandola?

Yep, which is why I eventually just put together a custom set of string gauges for my Breedlove mandola, and kept it in DAEB tuning. I was using a capo at the 2nd fret all the time for Irish trad and OldTime keys, and not doing any music where the CGDA tuning was all that useful. So I just figured it was easier to leave it in DAEB.

As it turned out, that approach overlapped too much with what I could do with my octave mandolin, which led to selling the mandola. But I still think it's a useful approach, and I've heard of others doing this when they play mostly Irish/Scottish trad or OldTime on mandola.

Something like 95% of "fiddle" tunes never touch the G string on fiddle or mandolin, so you're able to play most of the repertoire in DAEB tuning. The exceptions tend to be things like a few modern Contra Dance tunes. Having a B note on the open top string also eliminates the pinky stretch to a high B in fiddle tunes.

[robert.najlis]

Yep, which is why I eventually just put together a custom set of string gauges for my Breedlove mandola, and kept it in DAEB tuning.

Interesting.
What string gauges did you use?

[foldedpath]

The custom string set I used on the Breedlove Zenkl mandola in DAEB might not be ideal on a standard acoustic mandola, since this was a 4-string (single course) instrument with a humbucker pickup. With only 4 strings, I wasn't too worried about stressing the archtop by tuning up. It also had a ball-end tailpiece, so I used nickel flatwound Thomastik Infeld strings from their guitar series. Anyway, just for reference, here's what I used for DAEB:

B .012
E .018
A .028 (wound)
D .044 (wound)

[Eddie Sheehy]

I use DDAAEEBB tuning on a 18.5" scale Resonator Mandola - great for cutting through a jam. I use mandolin gauge strings.

[DougC]

Yep, Mandobar. I could not agree more.
It seems also that musicians who do have a mandola or mando cello, or octave mandolin etc. are not only exploring other aspects of the instruments but are working at being better musicians. (I guess I just 'dissed' the jamming crowd. Ha, ha). No offense intended.
But it seems that generally we are starting to see folks, not just trying out another instrument, but actually playing them as a 'main' instrument, like that player at the Concord Festival.

[Eddie Sheehy]

The custom string set I used on the Breedlove Zenkl mandola in DAEB might not be ideal on a standard acoustic mandola, since this was a 4-string (single course) instrument with a humbucker pickup. With only 4 strings, I wasn't too worried about stressing the archtop by tuning up. It also had a ball-end tailpiece, so I used nickel flatwound Thomastik Infeld strings from their guitar series. Anyway, just for reference, here's what I used for DAEB:

B .012
E .018
A .028 (wound)
D .044 (wound)

What's the scale length?

[foldedpath]

What's the scale length?

I don't own it now so I can't check, but I think it was close to standard scale for a Gibson-derived mandola (whatever that is).

[Tobin]

Yep, which is why I eventually just put together a custom set of string gauges for my Breedlove mandola, and kept it in DAEB tuning. I was using a capo at the 2nd fret all the time for Irish trad and OldTime keys, and not doing any music where the CGDA tuning was all that useful. So I just figured it was easier to leave it in DAEB.

As it turned out, that approach overlapped too much with what I could do with my octave mandolin, which led to selling the mandola. But I still think it's a useful approach, and I've heard of others doing this when they play mostly Irish/Scottish trad or OldTime on mandola.

Something like 95% of "fiddle" tunes never touch the G string on fiddle or mandolin, so you're able to play most of the repertoire in DAEB tuning. The exceptions tend to be things like a few modern Contra Dance tunes. Having a B note on the open top string also eliminates the pinky stretch to a high B in fiddle tunes.

Interesting. I can see the value in going to a DAEB tuning with custom string gauges so as not to overstress my vintage mandola. But I would sure hate to lose the power of that low C, which sounds really great with a distinct growl when I'm playing in particular keys. Plus, then it would offset the beauty of playing in the keys of C or G (or F, for that matter, not that I do it much). I'm thinking the capo route would be the most versatile for me.

And yeah, for standard melody playing in fiddle tunes, that top string doesn't get much use. But for playing chords or doing double-stops and drones, I use the heck out of it on my mandolin and fiddle.

[k0k0peli]

When is comes to "Why mandola?" I'd say it's for when 1) I want more bite than a wee little mandolin gives and 2) I want a range that better fits my voice than the same fingerings on mandolin. And I don't need those ultrasonic dog-whistle notes.

One drawback I have found with the mandola is that the CGDA tuning isn't overly friendly to playing in the keys of D or A. It's great in the keys of C or G (it can be played with the same fingerings as the mandolin in G or D).

I'm not huge in ITM but I love open fingerings and 'Irish' tuning -- I keep one A-type mandolin in GDAD and my mandola in CGDG. That loses a smidgeon of tonal range but makes standard chording pretty straightforward. Mandola stretches are a stretch indeed, but I manage to adapt. Basic chords aren't difficult for D E A and even F or B.

My one gripe now is lack of printable literature on CGDG tuning, whether for mandola or tenor or bouzouki or whatever. I've sketched-out my own tabs reference but more would be good. Can anyone point to sources of chord charts and song tabs?

[sgarrity]

This is what convinced me that I needed a mandola....

[Jim Bevan]

Well, count me in.

I play Irish Trad, and I've gradually worked my way down from mandolin to ten-string to mandola.
My current IT gig/session instrument is a 1921 Gibson H2 that was so beat up that it was "ok" to modify it -- it now has a radius neck, Golden Age tuners, a Cumberland saddle, a James tailpiece, and a K&K pickup.

It's lots of fun, playing the melody in the banjo range, or "showing off" with justification ("I ain't got no E-string!") going up the neck to play a tune in the fiddle range.

[DataNick]

This is what convinced me that I needed a mandola....

OK you MAS (Mandola Acquisition Syndrome) enabler Shaun; I NEED a mandola...LOL!