new to mandolin group

[stevenmando]

Hi I just started to play with a group in my area they are all in my age group and they have been playing togeather for six years but the problem is that when I got in to group I could not play along with them , Im not a bad player and I can play but I could not keep up with them, has anyone else hade the same experience before ,this is the first time that Im playing with a group, I don,t want to give up or should I find others that have never play with others and start from scratch and build a good base from there or is this my baptism into playing with a group and my new learning curve. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[Stillpicking]

Steven, Welcome to the Cafe I am sure you will get a ton of info from all the pickers on this great site!

I have a couple of questions for you :

How long have you been playing mandolin?
What kind of music is the group playing ?

I will give you a few second guess answers on the above but if I missed something then add to your post with a reply.

If you just started playing mando and you are trying to play with a group you are asking a lot of yourself right off the bat, I am not saying you can't do it but it adds to the learning curve. I can play some tunes fine by myself but with other pickers some tunes are really hard to play. Give yourself a chance to warm up a little. Having said that, playing with players that are better than you is one of the quickest ways to improve providing that the other players are supportive. If they are not then look for others that are.

The type of music you are trying to play is also a factor, very fast Bluegrass tunes and a lot of them are played fast is going to tuff if you are new to the mandolin, where as slow waltz fiddle tune are a lot easier.

Keep on picking it will come together sooner than you think.

[stevenmando]

Hi I have been playing for a mumber of years, and yes the music that they have been playing I have not played before, I know they have been playing the same music for a long time and I think we are on the same level when it comes to experience but I think several of the playe have played since they were teens. I think I should find others that want to start with new music and build from there, they are a nice group of people and play for just the fun of it.