In my effort to learn what I should have at the start of my mando learning journey - does anyone know of any good books to help me learn the scales- with excercises to help with this? I looked on the main site search - but some online stuff came up but not a book. I am much better with a book. anyone got a good suggestion of one please?
hi onawhim, I also would benefit greatly from such a book. There is a book which I have called 'Mandolin Method Book 1 (Hal Leonard) by Rich Delgrosso' which does have exercises and scales. The trouble with it for me is it mainly uses notation (ie no TAB) and I found I was taking so long to try and learn notation and play an instrument that I have given up on it at the moment. Also the tunes didn't really strike with me. If you don't need to rely on TAB and you like Bluegrass then it could be useful for you. Good luck in your search for a book and perhaps let us know if you find something helpful.
@velo: Wait a moment - are you saying that you have given up on mandolin? :O As for scales, I don't think a book is needed. It should be a good exercise to work out the notes for the most common scales, such as C, G, D. And on the mandolin fretboard, it's easy - the bottom strings are G and D, after all. From the thread on "Building speed, properly" I have the good advice (which I don't follow often enough) to practise time-keeping by playing scales to the metronome. Another good idea that I have from my teacher is to build techniques such as triplets, hammer-ons etc. into scale practice. Makes it less boring and is a safe setting to get your fingers around those techniques!
@Gelsenbury - No.... definetly not !!!, just given up on that particular book for the time being.
@gelsenbury - but how do you know what the name of the notes are without a book -and don't some notes of different names sound the same? I don't know enough to figure whats got flats and sharps etc - and what happens when you go up the neck - does it just keep on counting up? Am I making a meal of this - or is it really easy?
The open strings, starting with the bass side, are G D A E. In music, some notes have two names and you should use the name that reflects the key you are in. In other words, in keys with sharps, call the note it's sharp name, in keys with flats, call the note it's flat name. Notes are: A - A#/Bb - B - C - C#/Db - D - D#/Eb - E - F - F#/Gb - G - G#/Ab That's it, twelve notes repeated, in order, over and over on each string, beginning with the open string note. At the seventh fret each string reaches the same tone as the next string up so a given note can be played in more than one place on the fret board. I hope this helps. Here is a page where there is a sheet of blank fretboard diagrams you can use to map it out. It's also good for mapping out different chords and their inversions. http://freeblanksheetmusic.org/ About a hundred years ago, I took guitar lessons. The way I learned was by looking at a line of notes, playing each one four times while I said the name of the note out loud. At the same time you need to think about were your hands and fingers are. The whole Idea is to commit it to memory so you can play without consciously thinking about what your hands are doing. You see the note and you play it. You'll be surprised how fast it starts to come after the first week or so. Good luck and tight strings
If you need to see how the notes lay out you might want to consider printing out this daigram I posted some time ago. it's quite helpful. http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/sh...olin-fretboard
That's really useful advice. The other important consideration is that not all keys, and certainly not all notes, are equally common. A look at the key signatures of your favourite pieces will probably reveal that many share the same few keys. Accordingly, in terms of notes, it will always be useful to know where the F#s are on your fretboard. C#s will still be used relatively often, G# and Bb somewhat, and so on. You are guaranteed to come across more exotic keys that require less common notes - but they ARE less common.
Sometimes it helps to know that a fretted instrument is an instrument that can easily move between all the different keys. Not all instruments can do that so easily (like harmonicas). When you are going to play with others it is helpful to be able to transpose to a different key on the fly so you can match up with other instruments, or match up with a singer, or maybe change the feel for a song. The easy way to do this (and the reason they are sometimes called "cheaters") is to use a capo. A capo is a little clamp that you can easily move on the neck. It clamps down all the strings and acts like a movable nut. When you do this but keep the same fingering, the key changes. It goes the same as the notes go up the frets. If the song is written in G and you use that same fingering (for notes or chords), but you capo on the second fret you are now playing in A (G - open; 1st fret is Ab; 2nd fret is A). http://elderly.com//accessories/items/TMC-BLACK.htm The intermediate way would be to play the same but not use a capo. In other words when the song calls for a note or a note in a chord at the second fret you use your fingers for it rather than a capo. The advanced way is to know your scales and chord scales so well that you can transpose keys in that same position. In the example we've been using it would mean staying in open position but changing your fingering so you're playing in your chosen key. Hang in there!
I have read and reread your fulsome and v v helpful responses - and I think its making sense. Thank-you for explaining it all so well - and the diagram too. The whole 'notes and how they fit together' feels clearer as a concept now. I am going for the using the metronome, saying notes out loud and looking at the diagram when I have spare moments
I just looked back and found my link to the blank of a fret board was blocked. Sorry. If you click here.. http://freeblanksheetmusic.org/ Then select "mandolin"; and then select "chord and neck diagrams" you should find it as the second one down in the catagory.
