View Full Version : Fingerstyle mandolin
I'm relatively new to mandolin, 2-3years. I gave up the pick on guitar almost 30 years ago and I had been mostly strumming chords on the mando. Lately I've been trying to expand my playing a little, goofing around with some fingerstyle stuff, and doing some picking using alternate thumb and forefinger technique to get a little speed. I love the tone of finger as opposed to pick. Anybody else see (or hear) things my way?
Phil Goodson
Oct-24-2019, 4:46pm
If you're playing by yourself, and amplified if on stage, you might find this workable, especially accompanying your singing.
I've seen a couple of folks use this technique, and felt like it worked, sorta.
If you're playing along with other instruments, I think you'll find it hard to be heard at all using fingers to pick the mandolin. (I do strum with my finger sometimes while a guitar is taking a soft break and not well amplified.)
Marty Jacobson
Oct-24-2019, 8:51pm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0x4eJhbX7gk
Ry Cooder is my new hero!
I ran into this today and thought of this thread. A real nice mix of fingerstyle and pick work from Kym Warner of the Greencards.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnywoS8u-FU
MikeZito
Oct-25-2019, 3:34pm
A couple of years ago I bought an inexpensive Rogue mandolin, took off 4 of the strings and took a crack at finger-picking. I didn't take it too far, but it was quite fun and interesting, nonetheless.
UsuallyPickin
Oct-26-2019, 10:18am
IMO you will be better off hybrid picking with a flatpick as in the K.W. example, and using your middle and ring fingers to "pick" . Longer fingernails will be an additional help. R/
Pittsburgh Bill
Oct-26-2019, 1:04pm
My youngest son (stepson and 29 years old) plays mandola this way and to my astonishment and I should say envy has no trouble being heard.
sunburst
Oct-26-2019, 2:15pm
I linked to this video in another thread, but here it is again. Ken Holbrook playing fingerstyle (with finger picks) on a mandocello.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gg8eSGaCHz4
I play with a fingerstyle guitar player, whenever we've played out I'm miked so I don't get lost. When we're just playing for the neighbors or wives they seem to hear me ok. Holding a pick feels so foreign to me now that I wonder if I can go back!
bratsche
Nov-07-2019, 12:00pm
My journey into fifths-tuned ukuleles has led me to explore fingerpicking on mandola. Adds another color to the palette, for sure!
bratsche