Mandolin chords

[diggerdave]

A 5 string :disbelief:banjo tuned to gDGBD plays a G chord on an open strum.

Does a mandolin play a chord when strummed to open GDAE tuning and what chord is it?

On the 5 string banjo it is great that you have a "free" chord when you strum it open. Kind of like cheating with a free-bee.

May sound like a stupid question but the ONLY stupid question is one that isn't asked.

[mjpetrie]

G 6/9, G chord minus the 3rd. The A is the 9th above the root, the E is the sixth. It sometimes works well with Swing/ Jazz settings.

[mjpetrie]

Actually, the open E would be the 13th. Chords are stacked intervals of a third. In this case, G (the root), then B (3rd), D (5th), F# (major 7th), A (9th), C (11th), E (13th). Playing open strings eliminates the 3rd and is reduced to root, 5th, 9th and 13th.

[EdHanrahan]

If I recall correctly, that G6/9 (also open violin tuning) is prominent in the original "Star Trek" TV theme.

AND, while mjpetrie is technically correct about E being the 13th of the G chord rather than the 6th, in my (long-term but non-technical) experience, most fretted players don't know and couldn't care less about the "inversions" of whichever chords. In other words, a guitar chord of G B D G B E (standard open G w/ added open E string) is commonly called G6. An argument otherwise might have the jam session offering you their capos... at high speed!

(Total aside: On guitar, the 6/9 is a super-sweet chord for ending lots of old standards. In G, I play it 10-10-9-9-10-10, with thumb on the two lowest strings. Root G is on the 5th string.)

[Nevin]

The short answer is no it isn't a chord. You can go through some contortions to find a chord name that would fit but they all involve missing one of the tones of the basic triad and frequently skipping tones in the extension.

[bobby bill]

(Total aside: On guitar, the 6/9 is a super-sweet chord for ending lots of old standards. In G, I play it 10-10-9-9-10-10, with thumb on the two lowest strings. Root G is on the 5th string.)

Yes. I think I end Autumn Leaves with an e6/9 played (on mandolin) 6 4 2 0. Cool sound.

[David L]

Actually, the open E would be the 13th. Chords are stacked intervals of a third. In this case, G (the root), then B (3rd), D (5th), F# (major 7th), A (9th), C (11th), E (13th). Playing open strings eliminates the 3rd and is reduced to root, 5th, 9th and 13th.

Without a 7th, the open E WOULD be a 6th (not a 13th), and it would be "add 9", not just "9". Chords aren't always just stacked thirds- 6 chords, add 9. and suspensions being some exceptions.

[Bruce Clausen]

You can go through some contortions to find a chord name that would fit but they all involve missing one of the tones of the basic triad and frequently skipping tones in the extension.

Right: you could probably find a chord name for almost any combination of notes. But most of those chords would be musically useless.

By the way, the 5-string banjo tuning (open G major chord) isn't really conducive to chord playing. That's why there's a tenor banjo, tuned in fifths like a mandolin.

[allenhopkins]

Any three or more different notes could be called a "chord," I guess. Whether the chord so constructed would be useful in the type of music one plays, is another story.

Most of us work with a fairly limited, structured palette of chords, following the conventions of Western musical traditions. Hats off to the more adventurous, as long as their chordal structures sound pleasing.

[bobby bill]

Any three or more different notes could be called a "chord," I guess. Whether the chord so constructed would be useful in the type of music one plays, is another story.

Most of us work with a fairly limited, structured palette of chords, following the conventions of Western musical traditions. Hats off to the more adventurous, as long as their chordal structures sound pleasing.

I don't disagree with any of this. But the e6/9 ending to Autumn Leaves came from a Reader's Digest Songbook that is at least fifty years old and I'm pretty sure follows the original sheet music (albeit transposed). I'm pretty sure Reader's Digest wouldn't stray outside of Western musical traditions. And the e6/9 chord I found that best mimicked the piano sheet music was 6 4 2 0 which is just stacked fourths, which are pretty much the same as stacked fifths (just inverted). And stacked fifths is what the OP was inquiring about. I agree you can start naming random notes just for the sake of naming things, but I have run into the chord occasionally and it is definitely within the Western music tradition.

[Martin Ohrt]

The short answer is no it isn't a chord. You can go through some contortions to find a chord name that would fit but they all involve missing one of the tones of the basic triad and frequently skipping tones in the extension.

Well, actually I use a barré on the 2nd fret to open Assanhado, as my choro fakbook tells me to play an A6/9 there, and it sounds quite nice. So, to me it seems legit to call strumming the four open strings playing a G6/9.
Of course, the 3rd is missing, which is a bit strange.....

[JeffD]

To answer the question a different way digger:

Any four strings tuned to different pitches make some kind of chord, I suppose. But there is no intent to make a chord with the mandolin's tuning. The intent is to tune in fifths. There are a whole ton of advantages tuning in fifths like that.

[dtb]

So folks, this may make no sense at all, but the stroke in 06 took my left side/hand, I hear a tune in G, and with only my right hand I seem to be able to find a space in the tune that every note/string in normal mandolin tuning, played, tremed, or whatever you do works, and a full "chop" of the open strings is right on.


Dan

[dhergert]

Hmmm, it's interesting to me that you feel that way.

I tune my mandos to 4G 3C 2E 1G (open C) and flatpick chord melodies on them all the time (in any key). Even in front of people. Need heavier custom gauge strings for courses 1 and 2 to sound really good.

Why? I like the sound of the mando tuned that way. Taropatch or slack-key tuning. Yup, I'm a 5-string banjo player too, but actually started on mando many decades ago.

Historically, thousands of mando and fiddle players didn't hesitate to tune banjos like a mando or violin, so I don't feel too guilty about tuning mandos like 5-string banjos.


...By the way, the 5-string banjo tuning (open G major chord) isn't really conducive to chord playing. That's why there's a tenor banjo, tuned in fifths like a mandolin.

[Teak]

Yes. I think I end Autumn Leaves with an e6/9 played (on mandolin) 6 4 2 0. Cool sound.

Interesting. I was just playing Autumn Leaves this evening and tried this chord. The version I play ends with an Em7 (0-2-2-0). That 6-4-2-0 looks more like the Gmaj7 chord used in the tune (0-4-2-0). The key has one sharp so it is either in the key of G or Em.

[DougC]

interesting. I was just playing autumn leaves this evening and tried this chord. The version i play ends with an em7 (0-2-2-0). That 6-4-2-0 looks more like the gmaj7 chord used in the tune (0-4-2-0). The key has one sharp so it is either in the key of g or em.


6-4-2-0 = c#-f#-b-e
0-4-2-0 = g - f#-b-e

[Explorer]

Referring strictly to simple barre chords on mandolin, a lot of the Police oeuvre uses chords which just barre three strings.

Arpeggiating from low to high, x000 333x 555x 000x -> 001x (that's a hammer on for that first fret on the A string) gets you Message in a Bottle.