Tenor Technique

[JeffD]

I thought I would try playing my new tenor guitar (CGDA) chromatically, i.e. a fret for every finger. After three cups of coffee I found the mind trick to make it happen.

Now it really is a different instrument.


So those of you mandolinners suddenly playing a tenor tuned in fifths, are you going to chromatic fingering, and how is it going?

[Jess L.]

I use that, love it, although it took a while to get used to it.

And then, at first, going back to mandolin seemed weird, using standard fiddle/mandolin fingering, even though fiddle and mandolin was how I'd started out.

It was like knowing how to speak in two different languages but temporarily forgetting *which* language you're supposed to be speaking, and inadvertently switching to the wrong language (the different fingering pattern).

I'm kind of a slow learner with this sort of thing, so it took me a lot of hours of practice to get comfortable with *both* approaches. By "practice", I just mean playing tunes and stuff that interests me, relaxing stuff, not a regimented program or anything.

But, I always use the same tuning on nearly everything (GDAE or variants thereof such as GDAEB or CGDAE depending on how many strings are available) so at least all the important notes are in the right places, that helps.

[Freddyfingers]

I a not sure what you mean by chromatic. I play mandolin and the tenor guitar/banjo, and a Mandola. Are you referring to the spacing difference in the neck? Although they are similar , as in tuned in fifths, I approach them tenor differently. I play it more like a guitar than a large mandolin.

[Beanzy]

Yep that's my approach CGDA.
Chromatic fingering, except I will shift and extend back more often than try to stay in position.
Also use the tenor banjo standard chord melody shapes more than the mandolin ones as otherwise it can get a bit klunky on changes.
Linear melodies with double stopping are lovely on tenors in CGDA and work alongside 6 stringers in a way I couldn't get GDAE or Chicago to do.
It's a lot of fun and doing it in that tuning while playing the mandolin too will open up other possibilities such as 5 course mandola and maybe liuto cantabile too.

[Ted Eschliman]

I still approach mine like a mandolin/mandola (every fret a finger). The difference is I hover above the 5th fret and use the closer fret spacing in closed position. I also depend mostly on 3-note chording on the thickest strings for rhythm playing.

[Martin Jonas]

Mandolin fingering for me, at least for single note playing. Rhythm playing is mainly chords using closed moveable shapes. Most chords you'll ever need for rhythm are covered by only four closed shapes (major, minor, major 7th, minor 7th) which have only a two-fret spread and therefore are easy to finger regardless of scale length. These shapes also have the root in the bass, which is good for a bass note/strum rhythm.

Martin

[JeffD]

I a not sure what you mean by chromatic. .

The way it was explained to me chromatic playing means every finger covers one fret and the next fret is the next finger. Shows up especially when you play a scale, because when you skip a fret you also skip that finger. Chromatic because if you go up one finger at a time in the normal progression you get a chromatic scale of every single note.

Mandolin, like violin, is played diatonically - every finger is responsible for two frets. Diatonic because if you go up one finger at a time in the normal progression you get a major scale. You don't skip a finger to play a scale.

The frets are so far apart on my tenor guitar I can't make the reach in first position playing diatonically like a mandolin. I didn't have this trouble with the mandola I used to play.

[JeffD]

It was like knowing how to speak in two different languages but temporarily forgetting *which* language you're supposed to be speaking, and inadvertently switching to the wrong language (the different fingering pattern).

Very much like that. I kind of have to think of myself in "tenor world".

I have found that every excursion to an instrument other than mandolin has actually strengthened my mandolin playing as well, so I am hoping this is the case here too.

[WillFly]

For me, playing the tenor guitar has one big difference from the mandolin (and perhaps my mandolin fingering is imperfect): the use of the little finger is absolutely important for getting to grips with the fret distances and melody requirements. So, for a lot of the stuff I play, fingers 1, 2, 3 & 4 cover frets 2, 3, 4 & 5 respectively, with some ducking and diving on to the 1st and 6th frets where required.

Whether this counts as "chromatic" or not, I don't know but, as usual, a picture speaks louder than words, so here's a Norman Blake tune to illustrate what I mean:

[JeffD]

Yes Will that is what I mean. In fact, it was one of your videos that convinced me I really should bite down and learn to play that way.

First of all it ain't easy - i.e. nothing worth doing is easy.

But to my experience the fingers are the easier part. Its my brain that is getting in the way. Its like I have developed a stammer, where I will my fingers to do something and they hesitate and get all confused.

Its going to be fun.

[WillFly]

It's not easy at first, Jeff! Even now, I occasionally get a little strain in my little finger from a lot of tenor playing - but that might just be down to age (72). I do break the rule if I want to get some vibrato or a bend on the 5th/6th/7th fret - and use the 3rd finger - because the 3rd has more strength in it for that kind of activity.

[JeffD]

What keeps me in the game is that the tenor guitar has such a nice voice I really want to do something with it.