Old bass player, green mandolin player here.

**Daofktr** · Sep-14-2011, 2:01pm

Hey, y'all...nice place you have here!

My sweetheart, Pickles, bought me a Kentucky A model for my b-day, which tickled me to the core. I've been playing bass since the late '70s (Lākland 55-94, Conklin GT-7), and make what money I get by it. This is a new thinking pattern, entirely!

I'm just tickling Hot Brown (the name of the 'baby'), under the chin, mostly. Having a wonderful time hacking and jamming with my stepson Red, all the while daring myself to get shot down at his open mic tonight...

I fully understand that I need to get learning, in a structured fashion, on this powerful nugget of an instrument, and I will...tonight, however--I JAM!

So glad to come across MC, and to meet you fine folks. I'll try to lurk more than I post, and 'search' more than blather, this post excepted.

Yours,
Dixon Creasey, Jr
'Daofktr'

**JeffD** · Sep-14-2011, 3:09pm

Welcome. Looking forward to your post and blather.

I suspect that you will find more paying opportunities with the bass, so don't give that up.

**Malcolm G.** · Sep-14-2011, 3:54pm

Welcome Dixon.

Bass to mando, eh?

I play both as well, and switching back and forth at a gig drives the muscle memory completely crazy!

Now throw banjo, guitar and ukulele into the mix.

Wahooooo........

Have fun tonight!

**tgroleau** · Sep-14-2011, 5:25pm

Welcome to the world of mandolins. I've played bass and guitar for many years and got my first mandolin last Christmas.

For playing basic rhythm chords, the transition hasn't been as hard as I expected. My "chop" isn't great but it's there. Lead work is coming along but more slowly. So far, the different fingering (tuning in fifths instead of fourths) hasn't messed up my bass playing but sometimes it throws off my guitar playing.

My theory is that the longer scale of the bass helps my brain keep the different tunings straight where the guitar scale is closer to the mandolin and my fingers automatically jump to mandolin patterns. The other theory is that my bass is fretless and maybe that puts my brain in a totally different place.

**G7MOF** · Sep-15-2011, 2:34am

I play both bass and mando too, Different scale length, different instrument size, and to top it off the tuning is upside down as well.
Not easy at a gig after a few beers!!!

**JEStanek** · Sep-15-2011, 9:14am

Welcome to the Cafe. I hope we can be useful and entertaining.

Jamie

**Daofktr** · Sep-15-2011, 10:35am

Thank you all for your kind welcomes!

@JeffD--
If you only knew what kinda blather oozes out!
Where I am, there are too many folks that play mando poorly, better than me...don't think I'll make dollar one, which is fine.

@Malcolm G., tgroleau, G7MOF--
While lurking, I saw that there are more than a couple bass players here that play mandolin. Very interesting, and very cool, and yes, last night, I did play a line on the bass, thinking mando tuning....lol.

@JEStanek--
Thank you, and I hope to be entertaining, at least, considering that I'm so seldom useful.

**rico mando** · Sep-15-2011, 11:47am

well i am old mandolin player , green bass player myself . it is definitely a different mind set between the 2 instruments .

**catmandu2** · Sep-15-2011, 11:49am

Yes, some nice things...some special things...the guy who plays the bass

**mandolirius** · Sep-16-2011, 4:34am

Long time player of both instruments here. You get more work on bass.

**violmando** · Sep-16-2011, 4:42pm

Same here; I have played bass for nearly 40 years and that's ALWAYS in demand, especially since I read music; I'll never be that good of mandolinist to be hired out, but I have fun in ensembles. I just like being able to play tunes for a change! I mess around on fiddle (what I originally started on in 5th grade), too.
Yvonne