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Acoustic Adventures

Practicing, rehearsing, and gigging with my acoustic mandolin family instruments.

  1. Weekend Workshop with Simon Mayor

    The first thing all my fellow Americans need to know is that Simon Mayor is a monster player. Tone and technique for days. He's not a Bluegrass guy, and that may be why he gets fairly little attention from mandolin communities dominated by the good people of the Americas. If you need a genre or category to wrap your mind around, then think of him as cut from the same mold (or mould as they spell it here) as Mike Marshall. He's an excellent all-rounder, plays fluidly through pretty much anything ...

    Updated Jan-22-2015 at 10:46am by Daniel Nestlerode

    Categories
    Acoustic Adventures
  2. In Rochester. Um, no not New York. Rochester, England

    Seriously, I had no idea England had a Rochester too. But every time I come across an English city with the same name as an American one, like Boston, I think, "Well duh. They had to get the name somewhere,"

    In any case Rochester is a lovely little town that holds a medieval castle and cathedral. They have a folk festival there every year called Rochester Sweeps Festival. I appeared on Sunday the 5th of May at the Busker's Corner. The stage was set up between the castle ...
  3. Raisin' her up right

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    Napping during the break.
    Categories
    Acoustic Adventures
  4. First Time Busking

    Matt and I went to the Cambridge market square yesterday afternoon. Mandolin and guitar in tow, we walked through it twice scouting busking locations. One by one they were taken up by more experienced and decisive buskers. We finally settled upon the southwest corner, near a coffee shop and some likely looking kiosks.

    I set out the mandolin case (my breast-cancer-awareness pink gig bag) and tuned up my Vessel F5. Matt tugged out the Rainsong and waited.

    That space ...
    Tags: busking
    Categories
    Acoustic Adventures , Gigging
  5. Welcome to England

    A lot has happened since the last time I dropped a line here. I should update here more often! (I wonder if anyone is still reading this. Drop me a line or post a comment if you are!)

    The following is a warning to all you unattached people out there. This could happen to you...

    She is wonderful. She plays guitar and writes songs, she is intelligent, insightful, caring, patient, and fun to kiss. When we met she was on vacation from England, visiting the Bay Area ...

    Updated Jul-11-2012 at 8:47am by Daniel Nestlerode

    Categories
    Acoustic Adventures
  6. New Year's Eve and a Bodhran

    I had accepted an invitation to play mandolin and join in the fun at the monthly Contra Dance in Sonora at Aronos Hall, so I felt obligated to go. Still I could not find a way out of the doldrums. Nothing seemed worth doing except sitting in my apartment with my cat and a movie...

    Continue reading...
    Tags: celtic, old time
    Categories
    Acoustic Adventures
  7. Picking/Potatoes

    I cannot remember the last time I posted to my blog. Life got very complicated in mid-July only a few weeks after starting a new job. Then teaching at Columbia College (Sonora CA) started in late August. Suffice to say the second half of the year has skipped by without my being able to play much music or stop and reflect --in text-- on events in my personal life.

    But here we are near the end of the year, and I have resolved to play more music and write more. Here is the first installment ...
    Categories
    Acoustic Adventures
  8. New Video

    Hi Folks,
    I've just posted a new video to YouTube. The content is apropos of nothing on the Mandolin Café, unless you count the fact that I wrote and can play it on mandolin too.

    I left space for you to jam with me...
    Key of G. Four bars at the top over the G chord (I'm hammering onto the B note from the open A) and a full verse after the bridge. G, C, Am7, D, G, Am7, G.

    If you enjoy it please consider subscribing to my channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/Nestlerode), ...

    Updated Jan-08-2022 at 5:00pm by Mandolin Cafe

    Tags: guitar, original
    Categories
    Acoustic Adventures
  9. Stupid Mandola Tricks

    This quote from the recent Mike Marshall interview got my attention:
    I just borrowed a nylon string mandolin from Caterina Lichtenberg that with a little work, I think is going to be very very hip. I have always wanted one of these. I think I may tune it to a E, B, F#, C# (low to high) to make it a little looser. This will put it right in between a mandolin and a mandola. I know we all really don't like the Key of E, so imagine playing a G chord and sounding an E! You can do this if you put a mandolin
    ...

    Updated Jan-08-2022 at 11:45am by Mandolin Cafe

    Categories
    Acoustic Adventures
  10. Who Needs a Guitar When You Have a Mandola?

    I spent about 2 hours today with my Weber (Alder #2) 'dola. You put something away for a while and you forget how cool it is.

    With a banjo capo, this thing becomes incredibly versatile. I was banging through a ton of folk music (contemporary and traditional) and some rock n roll too. [John Prine, John Hiatt, Neil Young, Victoria Vox, Kate Wolf, Dylan, Grateful Dead, Graham Nash, Tom Waits, Stephen Foster, Danny Dill, etc.] I got nearly 2 sets worth of tunes just passing through ...
    Categories
    Acoustic Adventures
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