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Thread: What are the chances?

  1. #1
    Innocent Bystander JeffD's Avatar
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    Default What are the chances?

    Something a little different. Inspired by a late night conversation with a friend.

    Considering that mandolin playing in the US was so very popular at the turn of the last century that there were more mandolinners than guitar players today, per capita...

    And considering that the tradition of mandolin playing is very strong in many other countries...

    We were trying to think of a way to estimate the probability that you, or any of us, are descendant from a mandolinner.

    I know in my case it is 100% because one of my grandfathers was a mandolin player in an orchestra in Northern NJ, back around the turn of the last century or so. In fact, recently his son, my uncle, sent me his mandolin. Woo hoo.

    But most of us aren't that lucky, or sure of things. So I was musing on how to come up with a reasonable estimate.

    Things to consider would be where your ancestors are from, and where they were in the world in 1900. Then I assume there is some kind of way to get the per capita mandolinners there, then. Or at least to estimate it.

    I am guessing that many more of us than one would think are descendant from a mandolinner, even if we have no direct knowledge of it.

    Hmmmm. So what do you think. Considering how popular mandolinning was, could it be as much as 10% of us. Higher? 20% would not surprise me.


    Something to chew on when driving to a festival anyway.
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    Moderator MikeEdgerton's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    I certainly wish that the late teens Koa Martin Uke I inherited was a twenties Gibson F style mandolin with F holes or even better an A style Gibson mandolin with F holes but I didn't. I had an uncle that played the mandolin. He played a Regal. I have that mandolin. Beyond that it doesn't appear like there was anyone else.
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    My dad played a bowl back mandolin. So there's that.

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    Registered User T.D.Nydn's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    I come from a long line of mandolin players .

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    “I come from a long line my mother once listened to.”
    Phyllis Diller.

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    I'm Canadian born and bred so I guess I'm out.

    If I were not excluded from this conversation, I would be on the NO side.
    My introduction to mandolin comes from having one passed on to me by one of "The Jones Boys"when I was 5 to 9 years old. They were not a band (so far as I know), but two or three sets of brothers who shared the same name. They lived across the street from us on a hobby farm in Surrey. My family moved there from Burnaby, a suburb of Vancvouver. It turned out that our neighbour in Burnaby had served with the Jones' in the British Forces in WW2. So my Mandolin background is English??

    I wish I had my dad's musical aptitude. We always knew he played harmonica, but were blown away when he borrowed a button accordion. How many decades since he'd played one of those? Seemed like none. Then he got his hands on a piano key accordion, again -Wow! All self taught. Never herd him play trumpet, but he did. Also self taught, all by ear.
    He said he tried guitar but had trouble with string spacing. The only mandolin connection on his side (and none on my mom's) is a story he told of a French POW in Austria that they'd hang out with and what a great mandolinist he was.

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    Many musicians on both sides, Mom's side "Big band" musicians, dad's side piano, but no mandolins AFAIK.

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    Registered User Roger Moss's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    My maternal Grandmother played banjo. Other than that, I think I'm the only one. Frankly, most of my family is a mystery to me.
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    Mando accumulator allenhopkins's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    I have several of my paternal grandfather's mandolin books. He lived near Lockport NY.

    I inherited two mandolins -- 'teens Gibson A-1 and B & J Victoria bowl-back (probably Lyon & Healy) -- from my maternal grandfather's second wife, who was a musician Wyoming County, NY.

    Guess I was genetically fated (well, I guess you don't get genes from a step-grandmother) to play mandolin.
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    My Uncle Charlie has a bowlback hanging on the front porch. Does that count?

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    Gummy Bears and Scotch BrianWilliam's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    My great grandfather was a mandolinier

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    The reason I play mandolin (or any instrument) is that there was a Weyman mandolin banjo in the closet when I was a kid and I got curious. No one knew anything about it, it belonged to my father's father. I learned / played it until someone swapped me a Gibson A4 (1926) and I preferred the wood sound. But then, along the way, some guy named JeffD sold me a Sobel Cittern............ a delightful fellow by the way.

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    Coming from a substantially large family, and being of Sicilian/Italian descent (on both my mother and father's sides of the family), you would think that my ancestors would have immigrated to the United States with steamer trunks full of mandolins . . . but in fact, the only musician that I was able to track down in my entire family tree was my maternal grandfather's brother (whom I never met) - and he played the trombone.

    Go figure.

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    Registered User Liadan's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    I hadn't really thought about it before this thread, but the only musical person in my family was my mother, who was a great piano player. Other than that - no musicians on either side. I took band in high school (bassoon) and I think I was even the first person to take band class!

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    Quote Originally Posted by Roger Moss View Post
    Frankly, most of my family is a mystery to me.
    You're not alone. Oy vey! Don't get e started.

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    Registered User Ivan Kelsall's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    My maternal grandfather played the Uke-banjo - that's what got me started back in 1962,
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    Registered User mee's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    As far back as I can tell I am the first in my line. My dad played some guitar/ dobro/ steel guitar but it was my husband, a guitar and banjo player that encouraged me on the mandolin and taught me guitar. We are hoping and encouraging some of our grandchildren to pick it up.

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    Quote Originally Posted by JeffD View Post
    Something a little different. Inspired by a late night conversation with a friend.

    We were trying to think of a way to estimate the probability that you, or any of us, are descendant from a mandolinner.



    Something to chew on when driving to a festival anyway.
    Interesting! but I must muse that this is a conversation done in New York rather than California or Colorado as I would have guessed.
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    Registered User Frankdolin's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    My Dad played mandolin a little. One of the benefits of playing the mandolin well is it's maybe the "one" thing I could better than him.

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    I inherited a Wheatstone concertina from my stepgrandfather. Unfortunately, we had to sell it to eat one month. Great little instrument. I guy in Virginia brought it up to standard tuning through a fascinating process.
    Daniel Kaufman

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    Mandol'Aisne Daniel Nestlerode's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    I have my paternal grandmother's banjo uke, and I keep threatening to revive it.


    Daniel

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    That would be very interesting to know. I wish I knew more about my great great grandparents and up but from what I have learned of my family, there were no musicians except my dad, who plays guitar and had to beg my grandfather for lessons until he caved. So I think it's just us two.

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    Quote Originally Posted by Roger Moss View Post
    Frankly, most of my family is a mystery to me.
    Legend has it that my father's family borrowed money from the mafia to get to America - and, shall we say, there were problems with payback that lead to of couple of short life expediencies in the new country. To say that my aunts and uncles NEVER spoke about their family is a gross understatement.

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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    Quote Originally Posted by Pittsburgh Bill View Post
    ... must muse that this is a conversation done in New York ...
    I'm the only known musician in the family. But then there's limited info to go on: Only one grandparent survived until I was born, my dad's father died before HE was born 99 years ago, and my mom's mother died several years later. So maybe...

    Yes, New York; more specifically Brooklyn.
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    Quietly Making Noise Dave Greenspoon's Avatar
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    Default Re: What are the chances?

    My paternal grandmother was born in Baltimore to Eastern European Jewish immigrants. Bent top, slight curve back, and silver plate over the tuners. Whatver label it had is long gone but it is a solid mahogany body. I have her mandolin. It was resuscitated by Lou Stiver after I received it from my aunt.
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