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View Full Version : Daddy, can I play your mandolin?



recon
Nov-09-2008, 8:50pm
I'm 43 and have been playing mandolin about 2.5 years. Middle school band and church youth choir have been my only other ventures into music, and they are far removed. Well, tonight my 5 year old daughter asked me if she could play my mandolin. Of course I said yes and set her down with my mandolin and let her do her thing. I'd love it if she started playing mandolin, or another instrument. How should I proceed in order to nurture her interest, but not squelch it? Any parents or music teachers out there have any suggestions?

miked500
Nov-09-2008, 9:02pm
Hey Scott, that's awesome! I've got three kids 6, 3 and 2. My advice would be to make it a lot of fun for her, and try not to be way overly excited about it, otherwise your excitement may be misunderstood as pressure, YMMV w/ your kiddo.
Just this morning I played my mando and guitar while my 2 year old accompanied me on the harmonica. He had a blast, and I was in 7th heaven.

Jim
Nov-09-2008, 9:06pm
I have 3 children and I think the interest they had/have in playing music was best nurtured by my own obvious enjoyment. Out of 3 they all liked music and 2 of them learned to play. My son took up Bass and guitar as well as drums and is quite good at all though mostly a guitar player at this time. My older daughter took up flute and was also quite good but was talked out of being in band by a friend who convinced her it wasn't cool. She did stop being friends with that person but too late for band. My youngest has shown interest in guitar but not enough to really persue it. I always had instruments available to them when they were little. I kept recorders, open hole flutes, inexpensive guitars that I set up so they could be played ect. They also were there for the jams at the house and saw the fun we had. All in all I'd say make it available but don't push it. If they want it they'll find their way to it.

SGraham
Nov-09-2008, 9:23pm
Hey recon,
I've got four kids, all grown up and on their own now. They've heard me playing guitar and mandolin since they were born. Two of them play music now--one really well. I always made sure there was a ukelele sitting out in the living room--tuned up. They both started banging away on that. I never offered to teach them anything, but waited until they asked me how something went. As I recall, my daughter wanted to know how to play the opening lick in Cat Steven's "Where Do The Children Play?" She got shown how on the uke, and my son who wanted to play along got shown on the guitar since there was only one uke. We heard those same four bars for months.

The key, I think, was to have an instrument out, tuned, and ready for the kid to play. It's kind of like with books. No kid wants their parent telling them to read all the time, but if there's a lot of interesting reading material around they'll read on their own.

ApK
Nov-09-2008, 9:24pm
For a couple years, when I tried to play for my now 5 year old son, as soon as I'd start, he'd point at the case and say "Daddy, put guitar away."
My 2 year old daughter on the other hand will demand I play guitar for her at bed time.
(Maybe it's just I improved a bit since his day...)
I have surrounded them with musical instruments. They have a bin full of 'kid instruments' plus little guitars, ukes, and I even have a mini Strat on hand for my son when he asks for it.
There's an electronic keyboard that they are both free to play, and while my son doesn't quite have the attention span for lessons yet, I got a kids keyboard book with color coded key stickers, and he'll sometimes hop up and start playing from the book on his own.
I'm just hoping that between all the stuff they have available and my monthly jams and such, they'll develop an interest in learning, and as soon as they do...poof...family band! :-)

And that's a good point, Steve, I should probably keep those little guitars and ukes tuned more diligently. Maybe an open tuning on the guitars....

ApK

recon
Nov-09-2008, 10:12pm
Great ideas. Keep'em coming. Other than trying to find something inexpensive are there other mandolin specs that would make the instrument more suitable for a 5 year old child. That is, should I just buy a standard size mandolin or is there a "kid size?"

Tim2723
Nov-09-2008, 10:33pm
I've read a lot of comments about the ukulele being very kid friendly, maybe that would interest your daughter?

JEStanek
Nov-09-2008, 10:41pm
I have my original beater (Johnson plywood oval hole) in the hall on a stand for my kids to play with. I don't worry if they play anything or just strum it open. I tune it back up from time to time. They have cheap ukes (I would rather they have ones that actually hold tune) and a super cheap 1/8 size violin, and last year Nana gave them a Yamaha keyboard. My kids are 8 and 6. My daughter is starting to use the teaching functions on the keyboard on her own. Next year in 3rd grade she can start with her elementary school orchestra where she wants to play cello.

I guess my point is, keep some instruments laying around that are theirs, harmonicas, shakers, whatever. Let them make noise on it. Teach them to be careful with them. Let them see how much you enjoy playing yours. Let them play with you no matter how awful and distracting. It's actually fun once you recognize its about being with them and not your practice. It'll rub off on 'em. If you're lucky it'll take. Well, that's the tack I'm taking.

Jamie

mandolinplucker
Nov-09-2008, 11:10pm
Can't remember if I posted this before but it fits this thread. Last Christmas I gave my son a tenor uke and my grandaughter a soprano uke . I built the ukes and thought that they would like them because they were my handiwork. My son , who plays guitar,e-mailed me last spring and said that he had bought my 15 year old grandaughter an acoustic guitar and lessons and she didn't care enough to practice. She wanted to play rock so he got her an electric and lessons- still lost interest. He said that now she plays her uke daily and takes it everywhere she goes. I was thrilled that she was enjoying music and that my work brought her joy.

Jim Kirkland
Nov-09-2008, 11:57pm
My 5 yr old grandaughter lives with us, mom is leaving for Iraq soon. I gave her a 1/4 size violin at 2, she saws on it all the time. I had a nice small body, solid wood guitar in the motorhome and it was taken over by the grandaughter. The guitar now sits by her bird cage and she sings the bird a song each day while playing the guitar. I usually ask her to play a song with me each day. She grabs that guitar and away we go. I do something fast, keeps the activity level up. None of my 3 daughters showed much interest. Grandchilden are a different story. I have kept them supplied with instruments of their interest. Oldest grandson, good guitar, oldest grandaughter, good on violin, performed at Carnegie Hall at 15 yrs old, not bad on the mando. Youngest grandaughter, singer, and plays with the guitar and violin. My thoughts are to keep it fun. I help youth get an appreciation for their music interest. If it becomes too hard or boring early on, they usually lose interest. I teach one song, early achievement, and then we will get to theory after the interest is gained. My dad made music part of the familiy life, and it rubbed off on all of the offspring.

Barbara Shultz
Nov-10-2008, 12:03am
Scott, funny you should ask about a kid-sized mandolin. Last month, I found the cutest little Mid-Missouri mandolin at a music store, and got it. It is smaller than a regular sized one, so I wrote Big Muddy Mandolin, to find out more about it. He wrote me back saying it was what they called the "Kiddie-Mo", had made a few a few years back; they never took off, and so they didn't continue making them. The scale is around 12 inches (I don't have it right in front of me), it's built like their no-frills "mini-mo", with the bolt on neck (I have one of those, too, and it's GREAT!). I'm hoping that someday one of my grandchildren will say "gramma, can *I* have a mandolin", but, if you are really interested in a small mandolin, message me, and we can talk about it!

Barbara

Mace
Nov-10-2008, 4:53am
Kids are funny creatures. As parents and grandparents who love to play music, many of us can find no greater joy that to have our young people join us in our love of playing music. Be careful, its best when it is encouraged by availability of quality instruments and not a forced activity. Mimicing us or even better having their peers to share playing with helps to encourage their pursuit.

Poor quality instruments that are difficult to fret and are annoying to keep in tune rapidly become a turn off. Play what they play.....if you can't stand it, get rid of it and get something better for them. A laid back attitude and decent instrments will encorage a lifelong passion.

grassrootphilosopher
Nov-10-2008, 6:44am
Kids will figure out what they like on their own. They take their own time and pace.

My boy likes my guitar playing, accepts my mandolin playing, tollerates my banjo playing and is interested in my bass playing. When he was a little over two years old he started to ask about the guitar and when my F 5 style mandolin arrived my son thought it was for him. With the passing time he got a so called guitarlele (a uke sized guitar), since he didn´t want a uke. He was allmost 3 at that time and he deliberately ruled out a uke (my wife has one, so my son knew what he was talking about). Every once in a while my son asks if he can play bass-fiddle with me, so I have to get a chair, I do the "fretting" and my boy does the plucking. When his fingers start to get sore, he stops by himself. When I play guitar I sometimes invite my boy to join me. Sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn´t. Sometimes he asks me to play music with him. When we play music, he´s got the say on what we play. Mostly it´s his favorite tunes. His guitarlele is tuned open, so it produces a harmonious sound. Sometimes he sits in my lap and while I do the fretting, he does the strumming. He has a pick since he got his guitar at the age of 3. He is 4 1/2 years old now. Sometimes he asks if he can play my mandolin. I then give him my Strad-O-Lin of which my son takes care. He has so far not learned how to fret the instrument, though by looking at musicians (not only me) he has figgured out that there are different techniques top play (thumbpick, flatpick, fingerpicking and such), and that you have to fret the strings. But hey, strings hurt when you press down on them. So I think that time will show. On the other hand, my wife and my son were in a music school the other day (on it´s presentation day), and my son tried out all the instruments there and was able to produce sound with all instruments. His favorite was the violin (as no one would probably give fiddle lessons here in old Europe) and I am really thinking about letting him learn to play the fiddle, just to enable him to get a start into music from a different angle.

His favorite songs are Hänschen klein (ging allein), Fuchs, Du hast die Gans gestohlen, Alle Vögel sind schon da, Frère Jaques (mind you, I sung him Bruder Jakob and Are You Sleeping [Brother John] but he liked the Frère Jaques thing the best), The Intoxicated Rat, Freighttrain Boogie, Hot Corn Cold Corn, There Ain´t No Bugs On Me... You get the drift.

And let me tell you, it is really special to play Jimmy Brown The Newsboy or Froggy Went A Courtin´ at a little boy´s bedside, especially when he requested this from me.

JeffD
Nov-10-2008, 7:52am
I was a teenager before my father would let me take his ukulele out of its case.

His obvious enjoyment, and his keeping the instrument off limits for so many years until we were "ready", well it entirely addicted me.

Bob Wiegers
Nov-10-2008, 8:11am
we've got a super-cheap Uke (and lots of other kid-friendly stuff) for the kids (4, almost 3, almost born) and they love to bang on and we have a good time together. they ask to play my low-end instruments and I let them if they're sitting on the couch.

and I'm about to get a pink uke for the girl (she's WAY into all things pink). she'll be thrilled, I'm sure.

although sometimes we dont get much opportunity to play together, we're always singing. the kids love some of the old (and new) hymns, and the girl is always singing through her day.

Moldrush
Nov-10-2008, 9:33am
This is a topic that I'm really interested in I'm 28 with 6 month old twins and I play for them all the time they love it. My dad played guitar ssince he was a kid and mandolin since I was 10 or 12 I started playing guitar when i was 13 and mando about 5 years ago. I always messed around with his mando but never took it serious till I got one of my own. I asked him once why he never started me earlier and he said he wanted me to want to do it if he had pushed me at a younger age it might have driven me away. I agree. my boys are to young but I want them to have the availability to instruments and encouragment as soon as they can. my goal is to be able to inspire them but not push them to hard where it doesn't become fun.
I work in a music store and recently a father and son came in the store and the father kept telling the son to play right play this song play that song it was almost disheartening the tone that the father was using. the kid was 6 or 7 and played pretty good. I can't wait for the day when I can sit and jam with my boys.

Elliot Luber
Nov-10-2008, 9:52am
Buy her a used a mandolin and let her play carefully (supervised at first) with it. Show her stuff as she expresses an interest. Keep it at the game level. When my son became interested in piano at age 5, I bought him one ($5000 was a lot for me then and still is now) but it was probably the best investment we've ever made because he and my younger sons blossomed into you music makers. Their lives have been enriched as has mine.

woodwizard
Nov-10-2008, 9:59am
My kids have their own instruments thank God. Both of my boys are into their guitars. Ones a south paw. I got them started and they play what they like. That just happens to be Rock which was what I was into when I was their age. Maybe in time they will see the light like I did.

jim_n_virginia
Nov-10-2008, 10:35am
Someone needs to ask my buddy cwilson here on the board how he did it! He raised two great gals who are now teens and both play guitar, mando, fiddle and sing.

He grew his own jamming partners! And the cool thing is they seem to like hanging out with Dad and playing music. Their life is filled with going to BG jams, open mics, gigs and picking parties.

I am thinking he started them out so young they didn't know any better and now they love playing!

Maybe he'll chime in here and give his secret! :mandosmiley:

woodwizard
Nov-10-2008, 10:51am
That's the tradititional Bluegrass way. Growing your own to play Bluegrass. You see more family bands in Bluegrass than any other music. People love to see youngsters fiddlin' and pickin away.

Mattg
Nov-10-2008, 11:05am
Congratulations! Music and family go hand in hand. Spoil your kids with music and instruments. I've said it many times, it's one of the few connections me and my teenage son have and I'm greatful for it. Generallys speaking math and other academic skills and musical ability go hand in hand. Nothing but good comes out of it for sure.

recon
Nov-10-2008, 11:25am
Awesome! This morning my daughter woke up and asked me if I remembered how well she played the mandolin last night. Now I'm trying to put my hands on a few instruments. We have a piano. I think I know where I can get a fiddle, autoharp and recorder. And of course I'll be looking for a mandolin.

SGraham
Nov-10-2008, 11:52am
Recon,
Good topic. As I was driving with my son last night (he's 19 now) we got to talking about how he got bit by the stringed instrument bug. He agreed--it was the easy access to the tuned-up uke and dad who was available to show him things when HE asked. He also remembered the first time he played cross-harp on the harmonica when I was playing a 12-bar blues on the guitar. He said that was the first time he ever felt that he was "saying something" musically. (Play a blues progression in "D" for instance, and give your kid a "G" harmonica. If the harmonica is a perfect fourth above the key you're playing in, then ANYTHING they play will sound bluesy and cool.) Pretty soon he was asking how to make sounds like that on the guitar. Then came the pentatonic scale in A...then came Clinch Mt...

By the time he hit high school, though, he wanted nothing to do with "Dad music"--his name for bluegrass. Oh well, the boy has gotten good roots, anyway!

ApK
Nov-10-2008, 12:02pm
That just happens to be Rock which was what I was into when I was their age. Maybe in time they will see the light like I did.

I bet the kids are thinking "We can avoid the mistake dad made of straying from the true path...."

Rock on,
ApK

Bryon Winger
Nov-10-2008, 12:23pm
I can't wait to hear those words! Right now my almost one and a half year old likes to play on her xylophone while I play the mando. Sometimes I'll sing something and strum the guitar. She seems to like music, and really likes to take my pick and run away! Our two month old just smiles.

We hope to encourage a healthy interest in music at a young age as well.

allenhopkins
Nov-10-2008, 12:49pm
Both my sons play music -- not as obsessively as their father. They play guitar and bass guitar; Dave, the older, plays saxophone and a bit of keyboards, Pete, the younger, plays trumpet. I never taught either of them anything, but they were always around the music in our house. When I had a radio show on a little local public station, I took them up to the station and let them read the weather and program one "kids" song per show. Both of them got into college radio, undoubtedly as a result, and Dave ended up program director at WHRB, Pete tech director at WBRU. I bought each of them a guitar as a high school graduation present.

A few years ago, they actually made a home CD on Pete's iMac, under the name "The Raging Men of Christians." (The name's a story in itself.) They burned four copies, one for each of them, one for each parent. That CD is one of my treasures.

B. T. Walker
Nov-10-2008, 9:54pm
I'm all for my kids learning to play music: the oldest daughter plays violin in school orchestra, and the youngest plinks out stuff on my ukulele. But doesn't it strike you that this thread here can be hand-in-glove with http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/showthread.php?t=45478?

You knew the job was dangerous when you took it. :)

Dale Ludewig
Nov-10-2008, 10:03pm
Brian, I think that's a great idea. Don't let them hurt one you got from me!
What's with all the Texas flag stuff? I've heard rumors that you guys might try to leave the Union. Say it ain't so! Or maybe that isn't no Texas flag? Whatever. Get your kids playing. Young minds learn much more quickly than us geezers.

B. T. Walker
Nov-10-2008, 11:05pm
My girls know better than to fool around with one of your creations, Dale, but the day is coming when I won't be looking/standing guard, and ... I shudder to think! A gouge might be the least of my worries.

My avatar at the time of this post is the canton of a 49-star US flag. I am one of the proud, few Americans born during the 230 days the US had only 49 states and not 48 or 50. Though I'm a native Texan, and Alaska is Texas's bitter rival (they pushed us out of the "largest" slot, they've got more oil [under the permafrost -- HA!], and Gov. Sarah Palin is way easier on the eyes than Gov. Rick Perry), I've always felt an affinity for Seward's Folly because of that lucky quirk of fate.

I do not harbor secessionist feelings. Though there are many in both Texas and Alaska that do subscribe to that sentiment, few do it seriously. For most, it's just a way to take a light-hearted jab at "the Man".