Mandolin workshops

[Trey Young]

Hey folks,
I've been playing mando for about 3 years now, but just recently got serious about it (haven't played my Martin guitar for about 2 weeks now). Anywho, with this new level of serious interest I'm going to plan on going to a Mike Compton and David Long workshop in Augusta, GA in June (seeing as how I live just 2 hrs away and Mike is my favorite mandolin player how could I not). So what can I expect from a workshop? Do they sit up there and play and explain stuff? Do you bring a mando along and play as you learn? Thanks,

[DannyB]

I've only been to one myself and didn't know what to expect. I found it informative and interesting but really not much help in the learning process. Unless this one was different than most it was just alot of demonstration and not the play along type. Since it was only once I'm not sure if there are different types of workshops that are put on.

[Brady Smith]

You'll be playing at a Mike Compton and David Long Workshop.

[BlueMountain]

Yes, take your best mandolin, even though you might not get to play it much. You'll probably use it to practice some of the things they teach you, and "show and tell" is part of the fun, trying out other people's mandolins and letting them try yours.

They're both nice people and great players. Mike is a good teacher. When I went to a workshop where he was teaching, he had a big notebook with lots of tabs and such in it, but he didn't have anything prepared to give us. That was disappointing. As a college professor, I expect to see a lot more preparation before a class like that. I love David's playing, but he could use some training in teaching methods. They'll answer a lot of your questions and illustrate what they mean by playing. They'll tell you a lot of stories. And you will get to hang out with some amazing players and soak up, maybe, some of what they have.

I think I'd rather go to a small workshop with a player I admire than hear the player in concert, but it's even better to have both, and it's nice when the player knows what he wants to teach and is ready to do it, while remaining somewhat flexible if time doesn't allow him to get through it all.

[jim_n_virginia]

OK this is just MY impression of the workshops and I've gone to plenty of them.

I don't get much out of them. I mean yeah they are fun, it's like a picking party vacation and you get to meet some great people and jam with the stars and go to a concert with many of your picking heros.

But for actual learning ... unless I see another attendee playing something I'd like to learn and pull them off to the side I don't get much out of the workshops.

Now what you get from the teachers is a lot of great advice, good stories and a chance to get you picture taken with someone you would normally only see from the audience.

I'm not say workshops are not fun because they are. They are extremely fun. But as far as walking away with a LOT of new found mandolin knowledge it just doesn't happen ... to mean at least.

And it's not that I am some sort of advanced player and they can't teach anything because that is far from true, I would consider myself just an average player.

I think it is because in every class I have been in even if they seperate the classes by experience you always get a class that has a wide variance of experience and the teacher HAS to gear the class to the least knowledgable student there so what you end up with is everybody doing a slow jam to Soldiers Joy or something.

I used to go to workshops thinking I would walk away knowing what the famous teacher knows and that was not the case, at least for me.

AGAIN I am not putting down workshops. I like them. I go to them but it was when I finally saw them for what they were, that is more of a social setting than a strict learning environment. It is when I finally losened up, made new friends and occasionaly DID learn something cool.

Now I just look at the week long workshops as a mini vacation and the day long workshops as a day to meet new and old friends, pick and watch a top notch player and just generally to have fun.

And watching is important, I have learned probably more from just watching other pickers play (teachers AND students)and picking stuff up than from any of the classroom stuff.

This is just my opinion YMMV

[bgjunkie]

I have not been to a Mike Compton workshop, but I have been to workshops by Roland White and Matt Flinner (twice). Both these guys had handouts and we all played our mandolins. Matt covers some really good left and right hand excersises, as well as some stuff on creating variations on tunes.

[SternART]

Study up on Picasso's art before you go. Compton compares Pablo's art to Monroe's style on mandolin.
Both of those fellas are very personable & great players.....but I'll tell ya it is hard to see what
the heck Compton is doing with his left hand, his technique is so good, he hardly raises his fingers
off the board, you just see him sliding his hand up & down the neck. So much of the Monroe style is
the right hand, so I focus on that when watching him. You're in for a fine time! Enjoy!!!

[sgarrity]

I've been to several of Compton's workshops. You will play during the workshop. and will work on the right hand. Like Mr Stern mentioned, his left hand is very difficult to understand just from watching. The workshop is well worth a two hour drive.

[earthsave]

Take your mandolin, a recorder, or even a video camera if you have. Take a note pad and a pen. Have some questions ready.

Most importantly... take your mandolin a tuner is also helpful!!!

It is very interactive. Both Mike and David are excellent teachers with good stories. Mike is a character.

Everyone I have been too, started with the basics. Pick grip, basic exercises, then some work from the handouts. Many great nuggets of advice are to be found.

Dont be intimidated by the players with Gibson, Nugget, Gilchrist, etc. on their headstock or the ones that are already tremendous pickers. More than likely there will be a wide range of experience. Dont be afraid to make mistakes.

Play along!!

[Jim Rowland]

I've attended two workshops,both at Augusta Heritage,and enjoyed both. One was with Rachael Bryan,who used a kind of Suzuki technique with no handouts to speak of. I had a difficult time with that because I'm old and a klutzy beginner and needed something concrete to practice with....but the young kids picked it up in a trice. The second was with Roland White who worked with handouts,demos,and some personal attention including short,one-on-one sessions outside of class. It kept him hopping most of the time,but was very fruitful for me. His stories and lectures kept me smiling,too. By all means,a good instrument and a recorder are in order. The people who benefitted the most musically from both classes were those of us who knew little or nothing about playing. I'm going to go this year,although,disappointingly, Roland will not be attending.
Jim

[Trey Young]

thanks for all of the responses, I'm really keyed up for this thing now. I think it's only an hour long (you guys have me wishing it was 3). Definitely will have the Elkhorn, a tuner, and hopefully a video camera in tow.

[Orrin Star]

Just as mandolins and mandolin players vary, so do workshops;
you really can't generalize about them: it really depends on the
instructor and the way it's organized.

I usually limit mine to 10 or 12 participants because I want
to have one semi-circle and be able to interact with everybody.
(I think smaller is better from the taker's
perspective.) And I try and keep the class in the
middle of the bell curve (both in formulating the material I want
to cover and in running the class itself).

But it's certainly not a bad idea to ask (as you've done) if anyone
has any thoughts on the workshops you're considering attending.
(How bout a post-workshop follow-up post?)

Orrin
www.orrinstar.com
May Mando Workshops in CA & NV
June Workshops in MD and VA

[Trey Young]

I can definitely do a post workshop post. I emailed the event organizer and asked if I needed to do an advance ticket buy, just to guage if there was a size limit to the class or not.

[crookedriverranchman]

I have out together 2 workshops in the last 2 years just finishing one with Mike Compton, roland white and his wife Diane Bouska it was a great success, Mike compton is a gret teacher along with Roland and Diane. there are many fine pickers out there but not many fine teachers, I can guarantee that a Mike Compton workshop will not only inspire you but also give you more than you can imagine as far as what to work on. You will not be dissapointed. tell him Dennis and Pam say Hello!!!!!!!!!!!

[boatman]

My 2cents worth is: do not expect any revelations. Like most brief learning sessions, if you pick up even one little sliver of helpful information, then consider yourself fortunate. Also, if you are given the opportunity, ask a question about a problem area in your own playing, having determined beforehand one topic about which you'd like some professional advice.

[terrierguy]

I attended a workshop put on by Zak Borden last weekend at Dusty Strings. As a total newbie, I found it pretty informative. We did a lot of drills on both right hand technique and stuff as basic as how to hold the instrument with your left hand. As a finger picker guitar player, I found that pretty much everything I was doing was less than optimal. I think even the more advaced guys in the group picked up some good hints as well. I would recommend these kind of things to everyone.

[Red Henry]

Having given workshops in quite a few places for several years, I'd say: Come knowing what you'd like to learn. The workshop teacher(s) can give you a lot of information, but if you ask specific questions, you can find out a lot that you're particularly interested in. And "stupid questions" do not exist!

While we're on the topic, anyone in the Florida/Georgia area (or anywhere else, for that matter) is invited to the mandolin workshop at the Florida Folk Festival, http://www.floridastateparks.org/folkfest/ . The festival's held at the Stephen Foster Memorial Park, about 45 minutes south of the Georgia line just off I-75, and the workshop's scheduled for 11:00 on Saturday, May 24th. We ought to have a good stable of mandolin pickers to lead the event, with my son Chris, expert mando-cellist John Hedgecoth, and some other folks including myself. Come by if you can-- and there's an awful lot of music there that weekend.


Red

[johnhgayjr]

Brush up on your Monroe instrumentals before you go.

John Gay
Memphis