Good songs for a beginner

[Chase]

I'm a beginner (like I started 6 weeks ago) and I'm looking for some songs to start learning that won't be too challenging. What did you use to help you get better?

So far, I'm learning Old Joe Clark and Ode to Joy.

[JeffD]

What kind of music do you want to play?

[JHo]

Speaking from my own limited experience, I think it's important pick some pieces that you really like to start out with. For one, you've probably heard them a lot and so you know to some degree how the tunes go, where the changes occur, etc. Also it's a lot more fun the 20th, 30th, 50th time around playing a song you really like rather than one you're learning just to learn it.

Good luck. What a fun instrument the mandolin is.

[kiprainey]

I think that the simpler fiddle tunes are a great place to start. They'll help you learn the fretboard and give you a solid foundation on the instrument that you can apply to a number of different styles of music.

One practice tool I find useful in learning new fiddle tunes is a free MIDI player: The Vanbasco Midi Player

You can then download hundreds of MIDI files of fiddle tunes and slow the tempo down to your speed (and speed it up when you get better).

There are a lot of free midi files of fiddle tunes here: The Virtual Bluegrass Band

[AlanN]

The first 2 tunes I learned were Old Joe Clark and Arkansas Traveller, so you're halfway there!

[otterly2k]

I think my first was Over the Waterfall...

[Chase]

Eventually I want to play any kind of music. Bluegrass is cool, but I definitely want to branch out of that. I have the sheet music/tabs for Arkansas Traveler actually.

One area that I know that would be fun, but not very easy is to learn theme music to Mario Bros. and stuff like that (blame youtube). However, finding tabs for that has been impossible and I already gave up.

[hendrix2]

As for the mario-team thing, I could make a tab of that one. But the next three weeks are filled with examinations (i'm a student) and so I have no time to tab it out. But if you remind me in 3 weeks (10 sep) then I can do it for you. Just send me a message or email or something. But it's not that simpel to play I guess if you are a beginner.

The first tune I learned was Losing my religion by REM. The second one was the way to cool mandolin part in Boogie with Stu by Led Zeppelin.

A few months later I started to learn some fiddle tunes like 'sailors hornpipe', 'stool of repetence', 'fishers hornpipe', 'cold frosty morning', 'ragtime annie'...
These are all pretty simple, and you should find tabs easily for those.

[Jonathan Peck]

Soldier's Joy, Whiskey Before Breakfast, Blackberry Blossom, Old Joe Clark, Billy in the Lowground, Salt Creek and the Major scale in open position in the keys of F,C,G,D,A and E should keep you busy for months and would be a good foundation of jam standards to build upon.

Handy things to have would also be a metronome and electronic tuner. A local teacher to get you started in the fundamentals of music and technique could also be useful if you haven't played a musical instrument before.

-jonathan

[Chase]

Thanks. That should be enough to keep me busy for sure. I have private lessons and an electronic tuner. I've used a metronome, but it sorta makes me fumble up a lot and I don't I would use much until I get more comfortable.

[meghory]

I really enjoyed Burt Casey's mandolin primer with CD when I was a brand new beginner. I really felt like I was playing something and it has beginning arrangements of lots of standards. There's also a jam CD you can buy separately that has a band in the background for you to jam with it, plus all the songs are at 5 different speeds

[Stephanie Reiser]

I've recently begun teaching my mom how to play mandolin, and the first song she memorized was Red Haired Boy. You can't beat those old fiddle tunes, as most are in first position and super easy to learn.

[mythicfish]

Once you get a handle on a tune, always play it through without stopping ... no matter how many mistakes you make along the way. Keep time and plow through it. If there are passages that give you trouble try to figure out exactly what it is that makes it difficult. In other words don't make the same mistakes and expect different results.

Curt

[steve617]

If you want to learn something different beside bluegrass. I learened Bouree In E Minor. Its a good song to learn. Another non bluegrass was Sweet Georgia Brown and Tennessee Waltz. Bluegrass songs that I learned also as a biginner was Turkey in the straw and one of the easiest for me was "Little Gray Eagle Hornpipe".

[JeffS]

Fiddle tunes and classical music are a good start. Another thing you can do is look up your favorite songs on guitar tab sites and see what chords they have, learn those chords on the mandolin and then play along with your mandolin. I was getting really bored with the fiddle tunes and not being able to play anything that my friends or family knew.

[Chase]

Are there tabs for Sweet Georgia Brown that are easily available?

[jtauxe]

How are you at picking out tunes by ear?
If you can manage that, then you can eventually learn anything you hear, and will have no need for written music. It's hard at first, but with enough practice it will become second nature.

[DryBones]

my first from my instructor was Will the Circle Be Unbroken. We take tunes picking lead and chopping chords. Nice G-C-D thing

[Buxton Bumpkin]

Cripple Creek is pretty basic and can be dressed up as you progress another is Sally goodin, works you up and down one string instead of a bunch of cross picking, my .02

[Jim Broyles]

Thanks. That should be enough to keep me busy for sure. I have private lessons and an electronic tuner. I've used a metronome, but it sorta makes me fumble up a lot and I don't I would use much until I get more comfortable.

This is exactly why you should stick to the metronome until you don't fumble up any longer. Practicing in time develops speed and accuracy. Slow the metronome down until it is set where you can play comfortably with a minimum of mistakes then practice a tune or a scale until you can play it through cleanly, then speed it up a few notches. Keep adjusting upward as you play mistake-free until you are playing at a performance tempo.

[Steve G]

The Jack Tottle book (How to Play Bluegrass Mandolin) is fun and easy to get started. Fiddle Tunes and Irish Music by Mel Bay is also an excellent resource. You cannot go wrong with those two books #

[JEStanek]

Get the TablEdit software from Mandozine and there are tons of tunes of different styles and skill levels available. #The beauty is you can download a Zip file of many or all songs and print notation and or tab as you like, listen and slow down tempos with the application. #That's a wonderful and free library to keep you busy for ages.

Jamie

[JeffD]

I think my first was Over the Waterfall...

Me too. And you know, I still enjoy that tune.

[JeffD]

You might try some easy classical. Bach's minuet in G is a fine place to start.

[mando bandage]

Red Haired Boy, Swallow Tail Jig, Forked Deer.

R