PDA

View Full Version : 5 string  mandolin playing



Tim Saxton
Dec-20-2005, 5:24pm
I am just about to buy an electric 5 string to play in the country band I am in. I am just a little curious about how to play with the 5th string.

It seems to me that I will have to change the chording and learn a few new scales etc...

What does every one else do with it?

Dfyngravity
Dec-20-2005, 7:16pm
A 5 stringer is great. Think of all the chords you know and now move them upwards to the C string. You now have a whole new set of chords. Ex..take a 4 finger G chord and move up so your pinky is on the C string, you know are playing a four finger C chord. Take the three finger C chord ona four string and move it up and you now have a F chord. However, there are many more combos now. And you don't really have to learn new scales, you just can start on a lower note now.

What kind of 5 stringer are you getting or have?

Tim Saxton
Dec-20-2005, 7:49pm
There is a Fender 5 string I found that is new for $250. I think it is a FM60?? I liked the idea of 2 pickups.

I wonder what type of effects would be good to use in a Country/Rock/Bluegrass band??

Tim

Dfyngravity
Dec-20-2005, 9:40pm
Awesome!

Well just use your imagination. You can uses anything that you would use with an electric guitar, all sorts of effect pedels, distortion..ect. But if you are playing in a country rock band I would suggest just a touch of overdrive, just enough to make a difference...but on rhythm you will probably want to play it clean. The Fender Blues amps are great amps for what you are playing. They have pretty good tone, and have that country/rock blues sound to them.

I am getting ready to get a Fuchs Overdrive Supreme amp. Although they are quite expensive, but the tone is just flat out amazing. You can check them out at Michael Lewis Music (http://michaellewismusic.com/fuchs/home.htm). Make sure you post some pics so we can check your new emando out.

bjc
Dec-25-2005, 9:31pm
Tim,

There was a member who PM'd me who was developing 5-string chord charts. I have forgotten his name and I'm not at home (so I can't refer back to the charts I printed)...that would probably help. Post in the emand section, I'm sure he'll respond.
As for effects...Chorus, Delay and Overdrive would be a good place to start...good luck

bjc
Dec-25-2005, 9:37pm
Tim,

Another thing I forgot to add is that I think of the 5-string as a mandolin with a mandola on the bottom (I also play at mandola)...and that has helped as well...

Pete Martin
Dec-26-2005, 5:21pm
One tip for 5 string mando playing: #Put on the other 3 strings!! #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif




Tim I hope you realize it's a joke. #How the 5th string comes into play very much depends on the style you are playing and the sound of your instrument. #I played a lot of Western Swing on various makers 5 strings, but eventually settled back on a 4 string. I found I didn't like the sound of the short scale C string and didn't want to go to a longer scale length. #Also I was conflicting too much with the guitar and steel player when playing solos or chords down that low.

Now when I played 5 string FIDDLE, I would use that low string a lot as it had a way better sound, more useable than the mando C string.

In the Western Swing world, if you want to listen to how someone uses the C string, check out some Johnny Gimble recordings. #He uses a 4 string in mandola tuning. #Even so, he doesn't play a lot on the low notes, just some.

Experiment around and see what works for you, best of luck!

glauber
Dec-26-2005, 6:01pm
You can always stay mostly on the 4 high strings, and use the 5th only when you need it. Or even remove it if you find out it's getting on the way. Paul Glasse uses a 5-string electric.

mandocrucian
Dec-28-2005, 10:33am
I am just about to buy an electric 5 string to play in the country band I am in. I am just a little curious about how to play with the 5th string.


The question is.... what else (fiddle? guitar?) are you playing in the band and how often do you expect to be playing the electric 5-string? #And how many pieces are in the band?

And, what type of "country" is it that you are playing? #Honky-tonk? Southern rock? Western Swing? Rockabilly? Shania Twain/psuedo CW?

If you're in a 5 or 6 piece group, it's going to be a lot different than playing in a power trio with a bass and drums, or a power trio + keys, or a lead instrument such as sax.

5-string chords aren't going to be that useful. They are rather awkward to play (as opposed to 3-string voicings), fill up too much sonic space (unless you're in a real stripped down outfit) and just muddy up the sound and get in the way of other musicians parts.

The first thing you really need to analyze is "What is my function within the ensemble on this instrument." #Once you've figured out what it is that the instrument is supposed to do, outboard effects, vocabulary, playing techniques etc. become much more self-evident.

Niles H

Tim Saxton
Dec-31-2005, 11:25am
Niles,

I play the mandolin about 99% of the time. Once in a while I will play the acoustic guitar. The style of country is a little hard to define. We play some honky-tonk, alt country, originals, bluegrass, and a little punk....ala country style.

Our typical line up will shift from set to set. We try to have an acoustic set. This consists of an a/e guitar, mandolin, bass, and fiddle or dobro. The electric set will be electric guitar, drums, bass, electric mandolin, and fiddle or dobro/steel.

You said:

"What is my function within the ensemble on this instrument."

This is a real good question. It has changed since we added the drummer. It has felt as though there is not a need to be chopping or playing too much rhythm.

Does this help?

Tim

ps. Check out the web site for an example.

Kid Charlemagne
Jan-10-2006, 6:06am
I would say that the major benefit of the 5-string electric is an added range in more styles of music, and the ability to play an instrument that you're more familiar with and have it sound more like an electric guitar.

My Schwab is excellent for allowing me to basically do things that I can't do on the guitar, i.e., Steely Dan guitar solos and the like.

The best thing about the 5th string is that it gives you that lower range, which is crucial. My experience is that the E string is just far too shrill to be used much in most electrified settings (much like the highest register on the guitar). The C string allows you to play lower notes, lower chords, and to melt back into the rest of the ensemble when you're not leading.

I mostly like my 5 string for jam-type settings, often playing without a guitar in the mix. The last time I got together with a drummer and bassist (my brothers), we had a 45 minute jam where the bass and I traded back and forth on lead and rhythm, and it worked quite well. But I don't think I could have done it with a 4-string electric mandolin. Too high and shrill.

If I was to have an electric single-string instrument made specifically for rock, I'd probably have a mandola-type configuration done instead of a mandolin. But the 5 string config is good and slightly more versatile.

Ken Sager
Jan-20-2006, 2:50pm
I like the 5-string CGDAE tuning because I can cover low chords while the guitar does something on its higher registers, and I can play high over everybody else. Sonically it's quite versatile. Plus, with the synth I can do cool octave and harmonized things with different voices beyond just the electric guitar-ish sound.