New guy in Clarksville, TN

[The Student]

Hey all, my name's Mike and I'm new to both the area (military) and the instrument. I've been playing guitar and bass for a handful of years, but mostly rock and metal, so new genre as well I suppose haha. I'm really interested in folk music and want to play an acoustic instrument, and when I checked out folk music videos online the play style of the mandolin caught my interest. I also got to play my uncle's during a family get together back in Louisiana a few years ago and had a blast playing it, such a fun little instrument! So I did a little research and with my very limited budget got on folkmusician and ordered the Rover RM-50 along with the necessary accessories. Everyone seems to speak highly of their setups, so I'm hoping what I've read holds true. Anyway, if anyone's interested in getting together to make some noise let me know!

[DataNick]

Congrats Mike! I'm sure you'll find some pickers in that neck of the woods to jam with. Check out the local bluegrass association(s) online for jamming activities, etc.

[albeham]

Mike
Welcome and lived there for 15 years with the 5th. Get out to any jam, head to Nashville. .....enjoy the journey

Al

[choctaw61]

Hey mike,welcome to the Cafe,and thank U for Ur service! Get U a mandolin and get after it. There should be a hot bed of pickers up in that area ready to help U get started. Also a big ol wave to ya from down here in Louisiana!!!!

[Gypsy]

Hi Mike :) I'm not far from you. I'd love to jam with you but I'm incapacitated for awhile. Just had surgery and another coming up Wednesday but I wish you good luck. I was also in a metal band :)
Rock on !

[Stacey Morris]

Hi Mike. Welcome to the Café. And thank you for your service.

[allenhopkins]

If someone took the last train to Clarksville, would you meet 'em at the station?

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[The Student]

Hey all, thanks for the friendly replies. I'm definitely looking forward to branching out as best I can, married with two kids so my free time is virtually non-existent haha.

Unfortunately for some reason my Mandolin hasn't shipped yet, today being day six since I placed my order. Hopefully it gets on it's way soon :-/

[Jackgaryk]

Mike...You are at the right place to learn everything about the mandolin. I do hope your mandolin shows up soon, sounds like you are ready for some mandolin picking. Folkmusician has a great reputation around here for setup and service. Maybe you should give them a call and ask about the delay. Good Luck to you and your family. Happy picking:mandosmiley:

[The Student]

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing so I went ahead and called them a few minutes ago. It's arriving today from the supplier and should be en route tomorrow, so hopefully in about a week I'll be picking! I've read a lot of great reviews for their set ups and service in these boards so I figured they'd be the best place to buy from. I can't wait to get it haha

[Isaac Revard]

congrats! I was in the army for 5 years and know what youre going through, in considering time management with family, hobbies and the army! Enjoy the adventure. I even took a mando to Afghanistan:
140428
All I could pick was a little section of red haired boy when I got there and returned more proficient. Another advantage for you in the army is the mandos portability!

[The Student]

Fantastic! That's actually a part of why I'm picking up the instrument, just got back from my fourth deployment and I'm tired of hoping that the Chaplain will let me use his instruments haha, definitely bringing the mando with me on future adventures ;)

[Isaac Revard]

Right, that rm-50 will definitely be worth the investment...if its subject to extremes and gets a bit messed up here or there you wont me out much! I took that alverez that you see in the photo, knowing nothing about keeping instruments humidified etc...and it did fine though haha! Not sure what the music scene is in clarksville, I'm sure there's a lot of guys on post that jam or would be willing to. I used to live off post and go into the B's to jam with privates or whoever wanted to. I was also lucky enough to be stationed at Ft. Lewis and the music scene there is awesome...short drive to portland or seattle, plenty of folky-bluesgrass loving folk around! Hopefully, you don't have any future adventures outside of the country! 4 is plenty.

[The Student]

Well, this turned into an adventure haha, the RM-50 ended up being unavailable for the foreseeable future, so I ordered a Kentucky KM-150. Unfortunately, there were some delays and during those delays some unexpected expenses came up, so I had to cancel my order :(

So yesterday I went to Guitar Center to pick up some strings for my daughter's uke, and I spotted a Washburn M1SDL on clearance for $169, set up well enough to play and sounded as good as anything else they had, so I snatched it up. Now I've got a decent enough mando to learn on and I have the cash to handle my expenses, and while I was looking forward to that KM-150, I mark this as a win.

[choctaw61]

Hey student,glad u got u one to play and learn with.I'm an ol Motor cycle rider.Harley ultra classic! I tell folks all the time that ride different kinds of bikes. It don't matter what U ride long as U got it in the wind!!! Long as Ur enjoying that lil Washburn,get it in the wind and enjoy the ride.It won't be long till Mas hits U and u will be shopping again.Enjoy.

[MDMachiavelli]

Welcome and good luck.

[Mickey King]

Be sure to come on out to 42nd Annual SPBGMA
Bluegrass Music Awards & 33rd National Convention
& Band Championship
Sheraton Music City Hotel, Nashville, TN
February 4-7, 2016

[acousticphd]

Mark your calendar for the Clarksville (TN state championship) instrument contests, the 2nd weekend of March. This event is as much an indoor festival as a contest; a good chance to hang out and listen to jams as well as join in.
http://www.tnfiddlers.com/

Also, there is a community bluegrass jam held every other Friday night in Millersville, TN - I haven't been to it in years, but info can be found here:
http://www.millersvillebluegrass.com/

Welcome to TN and the mandolin!

[The Student]

Awesome, thanks for the info guys!