Unusual Instructional Resource

[pushinforty]

Hi Everyone, I'm a new poster and a relatively new mando player. I played Irish fiddle for many years and fingerstyle blues guitar for many more. I now have a Weber Gallatin and I'm interested in learning more on mando. I don't really want to play bluegrass and I don't want to rehash the (few thousand?!) Irish fiddle tunes I know. What I'd like to learn are some solo mandolin pieces, with our with out vocals, that have an old timey modal sort of feel (minor or major keys, droned strings, solid rhythms. etc). Basically, this is the sort of thing I wander into when I'm noodling. The closest familiar reference I can think of might be something like Shady Grove.

Can anyone suggest a good instructional CD or DVD, or even a recording I could learn from? I'm sorry to be so obscure. It's just that I know what I want to play and I'm not sure how best to describe it. Thank you for any help. Regards, Michael

[mandocrucian]

There are some clawhammer mandolin columns in back issues of The Mandocrucian's Digest.

Lots of other stuff amongst those issues too: fingerpicking, Cajun mando, ....

There are also some clawhammer style arrangements in The Mandola Sampler and Hot Solos For Bluegrass Mandolin ("Shady Grove") books. Same link as the one above for descriptions, etc.

Niles Hokkanen

<span style='font-size:8pt;line-height:100%'>Rhythm Mandolin Boot Camp
October 23-26, 2005
Holiday Lake 4-H Center, Appomattox, VA</span>

[pushinforty]

Thanks Niles. When you say "clawhammer" mando are you referring to picking the melody on the lower strings with higher string drones (using a standard flatpicking approach) or this also a right hand modification a la clawhammer banjo or guitar? Thanks, Michael

[mandocrucian]

I tend to use pick and fingers, I prefer a softer, less obtrusive sound on the drones. Melody is usually on the bottom. Lots of slurrings.

It's the clawhammer banjo rolls/vocab/"sound" put onto the mando neck. There's some similarity to Andy Irvine's playing, but then again, he has said that he was influenced by old-time banjo players.

NH