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Thread: Good on-line lessons, books, and ideas on ornamentation

  1. #1
    Registered User Nick Gellie's Avatar
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    Default Good on-line lessons, books, and ideas on ornamentation

    I am interested in adding some more ornamentation to my celtic mandolin playing. I was inspired the other day listening to the ad for the big Mon on the Northfield mandolin website. The guy playing a Big Mon mandolin was doing some nice ornamental stuff while playing the Swedish Jig.

    Here is the url:
    http://www.northfieldinstruments.com...tured-mandolin

    Start up the embedded video and you will see what I mean.

    Thoughts anyone?

    Thanks

    Nic

  2. #2

    Default Re: Good on-line lessons, books, and ideas on ornamentation

    That is some beautiful playing. I'm not sure where you could find online teachers for Celtic, but Simon Mayer is a talented Celtic-style player - maybe he offers lessons through Skype. You liked the player on the video - have you thought of emailing Northfield to find out who it is and if he would do Skype lessons? Sometimes just learning a couple new tunes that challenge your technique will open a new door in your playing - how about using slow-down software to pick apart a tune you love but never thought you could play? That's helped me quite a lot in my skill development, and it's also great ear training.

  3. #3

    Default Re: Good on-line lessons, books, and ideas on ornamentation

    You might take a look at Enda Scahill's tutor for the tenor banjo. The ideas and techniques for ornamentation he shows for the banjo are pretty much all applicable to the mandolin.

  4. #4
    Registered User Jill McAuley's Avatar
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    Default Re: Good on-line lessons, books, and ideas on ornamentation

    Marla Fibish gives lessons via skype, highly recommend her (I've taken lessons from her though not skype ones as I'm local to her).

    Cheers,
    Jill
    2018 Girouard Concert oval A
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    Innocent Bystander JeffD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Good on-line lessons, books, and ideas on ornamentation

    Listen listen listen. Especially listen to how fiddlers ornament, how fluters and whistle players ornament, and how singers ornament. Just listen to a whole huge pile of Irish and Scottish music.
    A talent for trivializin' the momentous and complicatin' the obvious.

    The entire staff
    funny....

  6. #6
    Registered User Nick Gellie's Avatar
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    Default Re: Good on-line lessons, books, and ideas on ornamentation

    Thanks for all your suggestions.

    Yes I am using a program to slow tunes down. I use Transcribe for the mac. If there is a good youtube version,
    I convert the tune to mp3 and load it into the Transcribe program.

    I also found the social group of a song a week on mandolin cafe to be a great help too. So I have quite a few resources to draw on.

    I might take up Jill's suggestion to do Skype lessons - another online resource too.

  7. #7
    Registered User AnneFlies's Avatar
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    Default Re: Good on-line lessons, books, and ideas on ornamentation

    Try the Online Academy of Irish Music. Although it's not mandolin-specific, the tenor banjo or fiddle lessons would come close: http://www.oaim.ie/

    The Session: http://www.thesession.org/tunes/

    Listen to a tune in simple form: http://www.sessionite.com/page.php?in=10

    And my favorite: http://comhaltas.ie/shop/detail/foin...book_volume_1/
    There was a discussion awhile ago about the Foinn Seisiun books, 3 volumes now.

    Have fun!
    Last edited by AnneFlies; Apr-26-2012 at 12:18pm.
    A "Not Ready for Prime Time" player

  8. #8
    Registered User mikeyes's Avatar
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    Default Re: Good on-line lessons, books, and ideas on ornamentation

    I'd second the Enda Scahill tutor series. Enda was an all Ireland mandolin player and his style (especially the basic stuff) is applicable to mandolin. I really like Marla Fibish's style, it is sweet and complex and you could do worse than lessons from her.

    Where do you live? There are a number of workshops that feature Irish style mandolin coming up this year.

    Go to www.banjosessions.com and www.mandolinsessions.com (both of which are no longer active but the archives are available) for a number of lessons on both banjo and mandolin that might help.

    Mike Keyes

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