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It's been said that if Bill Monroe was the father of bluegrass, Charlie Poole was the grandfather. Poole's life was more tempestuous and hard fisted than Monroe's, and it lasted only half as long....

Herb Taylor has an outstanding reputation here on this board and builds at very reasonable rates, although I have yet to get my hands on one of his cellos. Oh yeah, Dave Cohen also deserves serious...

Thanks. I guess I'm behind the times.

Canadian singer-songwriter Kate McGarrigle leaves sister and legacy behind: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/20/arts/music/20mcgarrigle.html

Glad you discovered it was Herb Taylor. Though I haven't played his instruments, I recall that he has received rave reviews here on the cafe for his mandocellos. His prices are very reasonable.

"I would guess that the percentage of those that are mandolin players might be somewhere around 5-10%...about a million or so... "

That might be right, but my gut feeling is that estimate is...

The principal reason for yew's suitability for archery is its elasticity, commonly measured as Young's modulus (E). Interestingly, yew and spruce have similar E values , even though yew is much...

Check out these guys (Melonious Quartet): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5rMoO_kuY8

"I went ahead and bought the Vintage Old Wave..."

"However, the Weber was available right now and that made a difference. I looked around at OW pics and decided if I did get one, I'd like to order...

Go for it! Buttenut really is the beautiful, long-neglected cousin of black walnut. I'd love to see an instrument from it. Curiously, the end grain of some butternut logs shows a scalloped pattern....

Fliss,
Although I've been mandola smitten for years, I have to admit it has its limitations, especially for sessions. As I noted above, you can play lead an octave below or (with a little...

I know someone who bought a fine used mandola made by a well-known U.S. CBOM builder for substantially under $2,000. This builder is a Cafe regular. I've played that instrument extensively and...

Well said, journeybear.

Fliss,
Sorry for the confusion. No, we tune our dolas the normal way--CGDA. When you capo all way across the second fret, you can play tunes the same way as you would play them on mandolin EXCEPT...

For Irish/Scottish music, I recommend the longest scale length that you find manageable. Long scale length (~17 inches) and a flat or canted top should enhance the use of drones. To my ear, my...

I agree with the comments above about the challenges of fine-carving ring porous woods like hickory and oak. The coarse grain of these timbers might also appear a bit out of place on small...

I see you live part-time in the DC area, where Orrin often performs this piece at gigs. Aside from attending one (if you haven't already), you could also take a couple of lessons directly from the...

If the board in the foreground is spruce, it's obviously not quartersawn. That, plus a couple of beetle galleries on the edge, suggests maple for b&s in this setting. The narrow bright sapwood could...

Although the guys with neckties probably are managers, it's not so far fetched to imagine skilled tradesmen in ties during that period (and even much later). I've seen photos of violin shops where...

Yeah, back where I come from, that's what they said about pushing back against ethnic jokes...

I use my share of expletives, but I'm a little disappointed that the above 'nugget' has earned a place under the opening masthead, given the Cafe's stated policy of civil discussion. Sure, keep the...

post below

"hi-jack...to steal goods in transit..." (Webster's New World)

"The tops and bottoms were first cut to a biscuit shape, mounted into the lathe sideways and then worked into a nice contact lens/dish shape using various rasps and sure-forms followed by sanding...

Let me try to load the video one more time. Sorry folks.