I had a great time attending the 2018 Marshall Mandolin Summit last week!
Months ago when I registered I had no real idea of what to expect, and now in retrospect I am super glad I did it. I have been playing mandolin a long time but have never taken a lesson in my life. There was definitely something for all levels of players.
I have a number of things I want to share and some pictures that I want to post but don't have time right now to get it all in, so I will be updating this thread with some pics and different stories as I get the time here...
The first night, after dinner I found myself in a jam session back at the shop, and at one point I looked up and the circle included Mike Marshall, Don Stiernberg, Don Julin and Ethan Setiawan (IIRC) and several attendees of the Summit. It was a little intimidating seeing your mandolin heroes up close, but everyone was really accepting and my second rate picking was accepted right along their jaw dropping talents! Great first night I forgot to even take my phone out for pictures.
The people I met were really the coolest part of the summit, in addition to the artists that were performing they had some really talented musicians (including the aforementioned Ethan Setiawan); Jacob Warner on bass, Grant Flick on violin, Louise (?) on violin, and some others who I am sorry I can't recall all the names... They really added a lot to the music all weekend long.
The Northfield crew was really awesome - Adrian, Peter, Derek, Kjell, Dino, Kosuke (and others I am forgetting to mention). I was able to ask questions all weekend, had a shop tour, basically they opened up a collection of Northfield mandolins to try out (including Ocatves, more on that later...) and even a new flat top model. I was blown away by the sound they are able to get, and that impression remained with me even after playing the northfield line against a Pava, Ellis, several Collings and whatever else they had in inventory when I visited Elderly the day after the summit.
My fellow attendees were super cool too, all levels of talent represented in all genres of music! I won't throw out any names but please feel free to chime in if you want! The mandolins I got to play and the people I met are a part of the weekend I will always remember. Where else can you go and the entire room full of people to discuss mandolin choice, pick selection, setups and anything else you can think of!
I don't want this introduction to get too long, and as I said I will post some pictures and more stories soon (as I get time)...
Long story short:
Marshall Michigan is a cool little town
Food is as important as music for this kind of event (and they went over the top)
Seeing your musical heroes in a casual setting and impromptu jams is unbelievable
Northfield mandolins have some serious tone and a team capable of making it work
Meeting fellow mandolin players and sharing these cool experiences with the people who get it is priceless
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