What would YOU do?

[Ben Cooper]

Question for everyone. If you were going away on a vacation for a week and you absolutely could not take a mandolin with you.... what would you do? :crying: Is there an app or a method to help avoid MWS (Mandolin Withdrawal Symptoms). Of course there is always the "Cafe" and reading articles here.... but what else would people suggest?
Thank you so much (in advance) for any and all advice for helping keep my sanity! :mandosmiley:

[Michael Bridges]

I went through this a few weeks ago when I had to go to Chicago for 5 days. I had my Ipod loaded with my favorite mando CD's, and quite a few downloaded Youtube videos on my Droid phone, both instructional and just favorite performances. Especially of tunes I've been working on, so at least I can keep the music ingrained in my head!

[derbex]

I migh try improving my theory, taking a couple of tunes and picking them apart for chords scales &c. or converting them to solfege? and trying to sing them as in the ear training thread?

You can't even take a backpackes mandolin?

[Dagger Gordon]

Learn the mouth organ!

Otherwise throw yourself wholeheartedly into whatever your vacation is about, bring some good books and take a break from it.

[Ben Cooper]

I migh try improving my theory, taking a couple of tunes and picking them apart for chords scales &c. or converting them to solfege? and trying to sing them as in the ear training thread?

You can't even take a backpackes mandolin?

Wish I had a backpack mandolin! Not to that point yet. :grin:

[Ben Cooper]

Michael, Derbex and Dagger, Thank you so much for the replies and ideas!

[Petrus]

Air mandolin FTW.

[derbex]

Air mandolin FTW.

I play so much better on my air mandolin! The family prefers it too :)

[UsuallyPickin]

With the carry on laws within the U.S. now being instrument friendly. "Why can't you take a Mandolin "? R/

[Bertram Henze]

There are extra-short electric mandolins (overall length just barely above scale length) on the market. With a headphone amp you're good to go. I have survived weeks and weeks in music-unfriendly environments (such as hotel rooms) with several contraptions of this kind. It can even be fun if the amp has a tube gain switch.

[mandocrucian]

I'd also take a vacation .....from the mando !

[JEStanek]

Enjoy your vacation. Be present in it.

Jamie

[belorsch]

Advance research in case of needed fix.
Are there any mando builders in the area that you could happen to find, or hear about while in polite conversation with the locals? Maybe a music store that doesn't mind you trying a few licks? Maybe a mando cafe member in a coffee shop that happens to have a mandolin in their car because they were on the way to a luthier to get an opinion on a technical issue?
The previous scenarios are of course meant to fool people that may be with you that didn't approve of you bringing along the mando in the first place. If there is no need for that then you can make these little side trips part of the vacation experience.

Had I gotten the mando interest I have now before we took our road trip over the holidays I could have probably found all kinds of interesting things to check into while in Tennesse, Kentucky, Texas, West Virginia, Oklahoma.

[JeffD]

I have found when I take an extended break from the mandolin that when I get back to it I fall in love all over again. Its a heady feeling.

[Bertram Henze]

I have found when I take an extended break from the mandolin that when I get back to it I fall in love all over again. Its a heady feeling.

The electric substitute is a variation of this - it feels like having an indecent affair (a mandolin in every port, as they say).

[Shanahan]

I'd take another instrument. I had to go a couple weeks without any when my first whistle cracked, and I've made sure not to repeat the experience. If all else fails, I've always got one of these (http://forums.chiffandfipple.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=92817) in my pocket.

[Ben Cooper]

With the carry on laws within the U.S. now being instrument friendly. "Why can't you take a Mandolin "? R/
At this point I have my Girouard which I am not comfortable taking on a long trip and my daughter has my Fender so I can't take that one either.

[Ben Cooper]

I will probably stuff at couple of harmonicas in my carry on. That way I can at least have a playing "fix", as it were.

[Bill Baldridge]

I vote with those who say, "Take a vacation from the mandolin and be present with the moment and the other people around you. Then, I would look for some music stores that carry mandolins.:)

[Ben Cooper]

There are extra-short electric mandolins (overall length just barely above scale length) on the market. With a headphone amp you're good to go. I have survived weeks and weeks in music-unfriendly environments (such as hotel rooms) with several contraptions of this kind. It can even be fun if the amp has a tube gain switch.

Haven't been able to find one of these in my google searches.

[Randy Smith]

If you really can't take your mandolin with you (you don't have a really cheap second mando or your flying, etc.), you no problem. Lots of great examples are here already. Besides, would you really be playing the mando that much anyway?

[Ken Olmstead]

I hate to tell you, but if you not taking your mandolin, it is not considered a "vacation."

Yeah, take a break, listen to lots of tunes critically. Take some music and arrange the pieces for your mandolin when you return. "Tab" them out so to speak!

[Bertram Henze]

Haven't been able to find one of these in my google searches.

Something like this one (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/acoustic-ukuleles/traveler-guitar-ultra-light-ukulele). You have to restring them like a mandolin, using classical guitar strings of the right gauge. I have one of their traveller guitars modified as an OM (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xu69KUHooXQ) (this one with steel strings) which I frequently use.

[Marc Katz]

I have found that a week away from practicing actually can be a good thing bringing fresh enthusiasm and integration of skills. You might have to be patient with yourself the first day or two when you're back, but it's not the worst thing.

Enjoy your vacation !!

[Freddyfingers]

I have not had a vacation in many years that I didn't drive to. So there is always something with me. My wife and I are the band for the most part , so we always have something to work on. If I could not take something along, a few things happen. I look for a music store to try their stuff. Or I play the wife. Wife is not as easy to tune but sounds great when she is.

[Ben Cooper]

I have not had a vacation in many years that I didn't drive to. So there is always something with me. My wife and I are the band for the most part , so we always have something to work on. If I could not take something along, a few things happen. I look for a music store to try their stuff. Or I play the wife. Wife is not as easy to tune but sounds great when she is.

LMAO!!!!:)):cool::))

[roysboy]

I'd suggest lining up a sponsor and getting to some meetings . There actually is a world out there beyond mandolins . I've seen it . It's wondrous and inspiring .

[Freddyfingers]

Shun the non believer. Shhhuuunnn!

[Gerard Dick]

Find a music store that has mandolins. Try a few of them out. Get your fix and walk out.

[foldedpath]

Tin whistles are cheap and highly portable. If you already know some fiddle tune melodies on mandolin, then it's not that hard to puzzle out the notes on a D whistle by ear. Or you can go the other way. Take along some recordings of fiddle tunes, learn 'em on the D whistle, and then transfer the tunes to mandolin when you get home. A harmonica might work, but I think a whistle is a more direct and easier path into the tunes.

[Ben Cooper]

Well I will have to look into the tin whistles. :whistling:

[Matt DeBlass]

A week off from the mando can be healthy, sometimes after taking a short break due to injury or travel I've come back feeling like a better player.
On the other hand, I've thought about getting a cheap uke and stringing it in 5ths so I could have a "disposable" man do substitute for practice (or better yet, one of those old plastic Maccaferri ukes, more expensive, but you can play it in the swimming pool)

[Rush Burkhardt]

I'd take another instrument. I had to go a couple weeks without any when my first whistle cracked, and I've made sure not to repeat the experience. If all else fails, I've always got one of these (http://forums.chiffandfipple.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=92817) in my pocket.

Damn! Now WAS!:whistling:
Thanks, Shanahan!

[Shanahan]

Damn! Now WAS!:whistling:
Thanks, Shanahan!

I'm usually not a victim of WAS, but that telescopic Hoover was $80 well-spent. Get a fountain pen case too like you see in his pictures, they fit perfectly!

[Capt. E]

For me, on my trip to Britain last year, I took along a penny whistle and two harmonicas so I wasn't entirely musically deprived. I also tried to get to a couple of music shops to get a mandolin fix, but didn't make it. I will testify you will survive being without.

[Capt. E]

Tin whistles are cheap and highly portable. If you already know some fiddle tune melodies on mandolin, then it's not that hard to puzzle out the notes on a D whistle by ear. Or you can go the other way. Take along some recordings of fiddle tunes, learn 'em on the D whistle, and then transfer the tunes to mandolin when you get home. A harmonica might work, but I think a whistle is a more direct and easier path into the tunes.

I have been playing whistles and recorders for many decades and keep one in the car. I've been known to break it out and play at red lights. Can't do that with a mandolin (at least not easily).

[pheffernan]

At this point I have my Girouard which I am not comfortable taking on a long trip and my daughter has my Fender so I can't take that one either.

What would I do? Take a look at my signature. I'd buy another mandolin!

[hypnic.jerk]

Wish I had a backpack mandolin! Not to that point yet. :grin:

After saying I agree totally with JEStanek about being present in your vacation, I do love my restrung uke (AKA my mandolele) for trips. It is inexpensive, fun, light and actually sounds pretty good.

[DataNick]

I'd connect in advance with the local Bluegrass/Old Time groups, the Cafe etc. and connect with someone who wouldn't mind loaning me a mando while there. Or I'd ship my beater to & fro, or I'd buy one there...

[Paul Kotapish]

I have a cheap flattop that I use as a travel mandolin. It's sounds pretty nice and plays well, but it wouldn't break my heart if it was lost, stolen, or smashed.

There are plenty of super-cheap ukuleles (under $50) that actually play in tune and sound OK. You could easily restring one of those in single-string mandolin tuning and just treat it like a useful toy. Not much of an investment, and you could give it away as a gift later and save yourself the cost of a present.

. . .

Sorry . . . missed hypnic's similar post above. You get the idea. Works great.

[Eddie Sheehy]

Bring Don Julin's book - Mandolin for Dummies...

[John Flynn]

I always travel with my Risa, which I have tuned GDAE. I can cram it into even a tightly packed wheel-aboard suitcase and playing it doesn't make enough noise to disturb anyone. I also travel with a C harmonica (which makes plenty of noise!).

114637

Once I found a jam when I was in Huntsville, AL on business. I went to the local acoustic music store and rented a used Gibson F-9 for the week.

[Jeff Richards]

I also believe in the converted Uke theory. I have mine setup with Aquilla's GDAE strings and I really like the sound.

Peace!

[Petrus]

That Risa looks pretty cool ... and I like the converted uke method too. (Great, now there's two more instruments for me to buy. Oh well.) Martin used to (still does?) make a backpacker mandolin, too. It's about $300 or so. Amazon says it's out of stock, so maybe they don't make it anymore.

It has an interesting design. No scroll, sadly; maybe you could cut one off an old junker f-style and attach it via velcro so it could be removed easily for storage when you're not doing BG. :cool:

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[Petrus]

Several folks have suggested going mandoless for a while to refresh yourself; I think that's a good idea too. I like to take time away from my music now and then to stay fresh. It's a good thing to do whenever your playing starts feeling too much like "work." After all, it's supposed to be a relief from work and stress, not an additional thing to get stressed over. (Unless you're doing it professionally, where you have no choice. Segovia once said, "When I go one day without practice, I know it; when I go two days without practice, the instrument knows it; when I go three days without practice, the audience knows it.")

[John Flynn]

Just a minor counterpoint: I agree with Petrus that "going mandoless" can be a good thing, assuming the goal is to refresh your practice. In my case, however, I don't get enough practice as it is, so there is unfortunately not enough intensity from which I would be refreshing myself. :(

Also, as he rightly points out, playing is supposed to be a relief from stress. I always find travel stressful. I travel for a living, to the point that even vacation travel seems stressful. I need that stress relief traveling, at least as much as I do at home. Just a few minutes playing an easy tune on my Risa in the hotel room at night and I can feel my whole body relaxing. :sleepy:

[Alex Orr]

Question for everyone. If you were going away on a vacation for a week and you absolutely could not take a mandolin with you.... what would you do?
Enjoy the vacation and rest assured that the mandolin is waiting for me when I get back home. There is more to life than playing mandolin every day.

[Jacob]

I would pack my Eleuke Peanut tuned to GDAE with Aquila Soprano 5ths strings. (http://www.elderly.com/accessories/names/aquila-30u-soprano-uke-set--ANS5.htm)

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[Dagger Gordon]

One of the great things about playing the mandolin is that it is really easy to travel with.
You can take in on planes, and indeed I've even packed one in a case which I checked in.

If there's a will there's usually a way. Cut right back on everything else you're taking, such as clothes. People nearly always take too many.

The main exception is if you're travelling with very small children, and then you do need heaps of stuff.

[stevedenver]

take a break, youll be better for it
jeez its only week

redirect yourself,
for the time
and you will have greater joy when you return to mando.

done this many times and its always good to break
don't think because youre not playing physically, youre not developing musically mentally
sometimes enforced breaks , and plateaus, are great

[pheffernan]

I don't know where you're located in New Hampshire, but a possible solution just surfaced in Belfast, Maine: http://www.mandolincafe.com/ads/73605

[Jack Roberts]

.....If you were going away on a vacation for a week and you absolutely could not take a mandolin with you.... what would you do? ...

I'd take a fiddle.

[Petrus]

I have been playing whistles and recorders for many decades and keep one in the car. I've been known to break it out and play at red lights. Can't do that with a mandolin (at least not easily).

I never got into penny whistles (a.k.a. "ten dollar whistles," in this century), but I could get into wooden Irish flutes if given the opportunity. Some of them are quite beautiful.

[Petrus]

I would pack my Eleuke Peanut tuned to GDAE with Aquila Soprano 5ths strings. (http://www.elderly.com/accessories/names/aquila-30u-soprano-uke-set--ANS5.htm)

114662

Cool ... something else I want! (Note to brain: Stop wanting stuff! Consult with wallet for further instructions!)

[foldedpath]

I never got into penny whistles (a.k.a. "ten dollar whistles," in this century), but I could get into wooden Irish flutes if given the opportunity. Some of them are quite beautiful.

I decided to explore that world a couple of years ago, as a different window into Irish trad.

Two years down the road... I'm still working on trying to get my Irish flute to the point where I could actually play it in a session, or on a gig. It probably gets easier after the beginner hump, but that first hump is a big one compared to whistle. Worth the effort though, if the sound grabs your ear. Flute + mandolin is a nice range of sounds to have under your fingers. And an "Irish" 3 or 4 part wooden flute packs down very small for traveling.

[jaycat]

Question for everyone. If you were going away on a vacation for a week and you absolutely could not take a mandolin with you.... what would you do? . . .

Well, I'm just finishing up my annual pilgrimage to New Orleans, and believe me, it has not been a problem. There's music everywhere, any time of day or night. So that's my advice -- take your vacation in the Crescent City and surround yourself with the sounds of everyone else making a joyful noise.

[JeffD]

When I have to be away from the mandolin I listen to music a lot. Especially when I drive. I listen to early country or bluegrass on XM or any of more than a few classical mandolin CDs, or I have an MP3 player filled with over 4600 old time, early bluegrass, or modern recreations of same that I can set on random and cycle through. Always can be listening.

[catmandu2]

And an "Irish" 3 or 4 part wooden flute packs down very small for traveling.

And quite rugged and weather-resistant--with the synthetic flutes

I'm biased--as woodwinds were my first instrument--but for various reasons I recommend that everyone learn to play...and when the time comes when you need something discreet--you'll be prepared :)

[Adam Sweet]

I have gone away for more than a week without my mandolin. But I always travel with an instrument! For example, on a recent camping trip I brought a pennywhistle and learned several tunes on it!

[Petrus]

You might also consider getting a Varigrip finger exerciser. Good to keep the fretting fingers in shape for longer periods away from your instrument. You can get 'em at GuitarCenter or Amazon for about $10-15.

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[Adam Sweet]

A few years ago, I found this guy at a music trade show that had invented this foam guitar fretboard for practicing scales. He called it the "Little Fretty". I think there's a market for something similar for mandolin!

[Bertram Henze]

http://www.zymetrical.com/images/inflatable-banjo-guitar.jpg

[Fretless]

Simple solution:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euQ7BEPjBj4

Fretless

[GuitarDogs62]

Honestly I am faced with this situation come October 2014 this year. I am going away on vacation to Walt Disney World in Orlando Fla. I have decided to do just that, go on vacation and enjoy my vacation with my wife and have a truly great time. This means the Mandolin and guitar are not going with me. There is to much fun to be had on vacation and a vacation means to get away from everyday life and do something completely different. Now what you could do would be like me. When we are driving back home from Fla I will stop at a music store here and there along the way to home and maybe make a vacation ending purchase.

[Petrus]

A few years ago, I found this guy at a music trade show that had invented this foam guitar fretboard for practicing scales. He called it the "Little Fretty". I think there's a market for something similar for mandolin!

Yeah, I've seen those "practice necks" costing anywhere from $30 to $70. You'd think it'd be easy enough just to get an old neck from the junkpile and use it if one wanted to do that.

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[foldedpath]

Honestly I am faced with this situation come October 2014 this year. I am going away on vacation to Walt Disney World in Orlando Fla. I have decided to do just that, go on vacation and enjoy my vacation with my wife and have a truly great time. This means the Mandolin and guitar are not going with me.

Sounds like a nice trip. One word of advice, if you've never been there before. Avoid the "Small World" ride if you value your ears and your sanity. Otherwise, have fun!

[OU1]

Take the week off....it will be good for you! Watch you tube videos if you have too, enjoy the others around you...have fun!

[Ben Cooper]

Thanks to everyone! I took along three harmonicas and never touched them. Looked for a music store kind of half heartedly, but didn't find one. I did however, have a fantastic time and now that we are getting settled back into the home, I am going to break out the Girouard and play her for a while. I know my callouses have softened so I will take it slow. i think I may see if I can get a travel mando for the next trip though.
:mandosmiley:

[Ben Cooper]

simple solution:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euq7bepjbj4

fretless

lmao!!

[mandocrucian]

I took along three harmonicas and never touched them.

https://skitch-img.s3.amazonaws.com/20080925-1qugb97bqfb6wehg75qqxgtm97.jpg

[Ben Cooper]

https://skitch-img.s3.amazonaws.com/20080925-1qugb97bqfb6wehg75qqxgtm97.jpg

lmao!! :))