Gdae/eadg

**Pen** · Oct-25-2006, 4:19pm

How did you first learn to remember the strings on the mando?

For me, I came up with "God Darn Area (of) Effect". I know it won't make sense to most - but I play a game called Everquest where that means sumpin. I know it's stupid - but the first day I started learning I came up with it - and it stuck.

**kww** · Oct-25-2006, 4:50pm

It's four letters long. I should need a trick?

**hendrix2** · Oct-25-2006, 5:09pm

I play guitar for many years now, and as you probably know a guitar is (normally) tuned : EADGBe. so when I started to play mandolin last year I memorized it as the opposite of the four lowest guitar strings.
So: EADG --> GDAE

**B. T. Walker** · Oct-25-2006, 5:12pm

Gosh darned apple eaters. You get the drift.

**johnwalser** · Oct-25-2006, 5:19pm

Being slow witted enough that EVEN four letters is a stretch for my ever diminishing intellect, I came up with " Every Artist Does Great".
John

**ShaneJ** · Oct-25-2006, 5:20pm

My trick is "GDAE".

**psann** · Oct-25-2006, 5:22pm

Give Dad An Earful

**JEStanek** · Oct-25-2006, 6:23pm

I put on my most outrageous Crocodile Dundee / Steve Irwin accent and say G'Day!

Jamie

**red7flag** · Oct-25-2006, 6:28pm

Each is a fifth. Start with G and work from there.
Tony

**JEStanek** · Oct-25-2006, 6:48pm

This may help some... Maybe not others...

**G'DAE** · Oct-25-2006, 6:54pm

I just think of G'day, mate!

**arbarnhart** · Oct-25-2006, 8:02pm

Originally Posted by (psann @ Oct. 25 2006, 18:22)

Give Dad An Earful

Wish I'd said that! (look left - that's been there from day 1)
I have 4 kids, so it just seemed right...

**JonT** · Oct-25-2006, 8:34pm

I started playing fiddle as a little kid. It seems like I've always known what note those four strings are tuned to. I recently found my old original violin method book. Its first lessons have the reluctant young player sawing away on, say, a D string for what seems like hours. Whole notes for many measures, working to perfect tone, then half notes and then quarters. Then he does the next string, and then the next. Hard to forget their names after that.
Peace - Jon

**psann** · Oct-25-2006, 8:43pm

Wish I'd said that! (look left - that's been there from day 1)
I have 4 kids, so it just seemed right...

Uh huh, that's where I found it.

**Walter Newton** · Oct-25-2006, 8:45pm

In Simon Mayor's first mandolin book, for learning the lines of a treble staff he suggests "Eating Gerbils Brings Dire Flatulence".

**Hoovetone** · Oct-25-2006, 9:07pm

Eat A Dead Goat #Start with the first string # E A D G - also the B part of "Rawhide"(key of C) and the progression of "Salty Dog"(Key of G)-G Em A D G.

**ApK** · Oct-25-2006, 9:16pm

Originally Posted by (kww @ Oct. 25 2006, 17:50)

It's four letters long. I should need a trick?

I was thinking that. Didn't want to say it. ;-)

Seriously, though, Like hendrix2 above, I learned it after the guitar, EADGBE, and after bass, which is EADG, so it was not an issue.

I learned guitar strings, however, as "Eddie Ate Dynamite, Good Bye Eddie."

ApK

**ApK** · Oct-25-2006, 9:19pm

Originally Posted by (JEStanek @ Oct. 25 2006, 19:48)

This may help some... #Maybe not others...

That's great. I'm not much a drinker, soyou'll have to tell me, is each of those bottle a fifth? :-)

**siren_20** · Oct-25-2006, 10:03pm

The best way to remember "GDAE" is to remember that it's the tuning for both mandolins and violins.

**F5G WIZ** · Oct-25-2006, 11:25pm

Originally Posted by (JEStanek @ Oct. 25 2006, 19:23)

I put on my most outrageous Crocodile Dundee / Steve Irwin accent and say G'Day!

Jamie

Me too.

**MandoJon** · Oct-26-2006, 3:59am

It's never been a problem but then maybe I subconciously do the 'upside-down guitar' thing that somebody mentioned (being a guitarist as well).

Of course, if you know the circle of fifths then you only need to remember to start on 'G' - BUT if you DON@T know the circle of fifths, well you've just learnt about a third of it.

**mingusb1** · Oct-26-2006, 7:20am

Originally Posted by (siren_20 @ Oct. 25 2006, 23:03)

The best way to remember "GDAE" is to remember that it's the tuning for both mandolins and violins.

It seems that the fiddlers I play with are rarely in "standard" tuning. Those crazy oldtime players!!!

How about:
Good
Dogs
Aren't
Everywhere

In memory of my recently passed pal Sonny.

Z

**jim_n_virginia** · Oct-26-2006, 7:29am

Hey I remember it as a Austrailian G'Day too!

And once you remember the strings the next trick the teacher taught me was

G 1st string, 1 flat in the G scale
D 2nd string, 2 flats in the D scale
A 3rd string, 3 flats in the A scale
E 4th string, 4 flats in the E scale

Now thin info is completely useless if you are playing in the key od F, B and Bb