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Here's a different way to think about it. Although, first, know that all of the advice above from our mando compatriots is valid. We all agree that the G-D-G chop swap is a great tool. I use it a...

The guy had a stroke? And cannot play his mandolin anymore? Swallow it. Pay it back. Whatever small compensation you eke out of this saddened family is nothing compared to the good karma the...

The law of sinistrality...

Look what I found! I've kept this article in the original hard-shell case ($79) for 43 years. In 1979 the Japan-built Washburn M4S listed for $749 which the Bureau of Labor Statistics inflation...

There are, of course, so many to choose from. But what came first to mind for me are:

1. David Grisman Quintet - I bought my first mandolin immediately after hearing this debut classic.
2. Back...

Try 230x. Two fingers. And with that form you can play the three most popular chords in the key of C this way:

C: 0230
F: 230x
G: 0023

As simple as it gets. More sophisticated voicings can...

Lots of good advice here from some of the most seasoned cats at the Café. Kudos.

Let me weigh in on the importance of listening, which some say you should do three times as much as you practice. ...

Manzanita was the album that proved that you don't need a banjo to play bluegrass.

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Man, when I heard Tiny Moore on 5-string solid body with Jethro Burns on acoustic-8 playing on the David Grisman-produced vinyl album Back To Back I was sold on that electric mando sound,...

J...i had the rotator cuff surgery, right shoulder at age 62, which did not involve any bone spur reduction (subacromial decompression) work, which could prolong your recovery. (Sometimes there are...

Quot homines tot sententiae

More.

I have a circa 1984 Washburn "Jethro Burns" M4S, F style. Year's ago, Maine mandolin maker Steve Ryder installed a Fishman bridge pick up. Then I was lucky enough to have Maine luthier...

I'm working on JR, too. I've been trying to add what jazz players call a "qoute" by playing the first four bars of "In The Hall of the Mountain King" by Edvard Grieg over the first four bars of JR's...

Just a related anecdote: we we're playing in tavern in Maine and were set up by the door when this guy walks in and right away gets right up at the microphone and starts singing along with our lead...

From my days with the Portland Italian Heritage Band and Chorus:

On The Shores of Italy
Marenariello
Duetto Dei Gatti
Mattinata Fiorentina
Non Ti Scordar Di Me (definitely learn this one!)...

Invest in a copy of The Real Book: Vol I. Maybe start with Satin Doll. Learn to play minor-seventh, minor-seventh-flat-5, and seventh-flat-9 chords (all three are dead simple on the mando) to start...

Suddenly, I feel so much better, in a misery-loves-company kind of way. (My Collings MF5 looks very similar to DataNick's Gibson. But wait! Nick, have you been sneaking into my house and playing my...

Pant, pant, pant. I'm back. The "book" is "Bebop Licks for Guitar: A Dictionary of Melodic Ideas for Improvisation" by Les Wise. It is written in both standard notation and guitar tab — which will...

There's this book. I'll have to go home and find out what the title is. But here's what the "book" says. In short, playing jazz solos requires a vocabulary of licks, arpeggios, sweet notes, etc. So...

The GoPro is a great little video camera. And the fish-eye-lens look can be readjusted in post as a more normal wide angle image. But be advised that — in the standard, right-out-of-the-box package —...

[QUOTE=golfunit;1316539]Boy howdy, do my fingers hurt tonight. All those calluses I used to have disappeared during the last few months while I was just playing mandolin.

A close look at my...

What a nice way to start the day, reading all the nice comments about the great Mr. Burns and his instructional legacy. I've owned the three original Mel Bay editions of these books for decades, and...

Forgive me if I missed it, but one word I have not seen in this thread is "fun." Playing music is supposed to be fun. The quicker you can get to the point where you are on stage with other musicians...

Old Chinese Proverb: The two best days to plant a tree are 30 years ago and today. Welcome to the Mandolin World.