Do you take your mandolin out of the house?

[Denman John]

I regularly see in the classifieds people stating that the mandolin has never left there home (and smoke free climate controlled enclave). It got me wondering if most people keep their mandolins at home and never venture outside with them? I take my mandolin to work 5 days a week and play it in free periods. My kids take their mandolins out for lessons, ,busking, open mics, performances, etc..

So I guess my question is do you only play your mandolin at home, or do you take it out to jams, lessons, open mics, etc.?

[sgarrity]

Some people are afraid of the slightest scratch or ding. They forget these instruments are made to be played. And what is a more enjoyable activity tha gathering with friends and making music on world class instruments? Those folks that don't take them out of their bubbles are missing out!

[Bob Bledsoe]

I think some people treat their instruments like museum pieces.
My instruments are meant to be played. I take really good care of them, but I'm not crying over a ding or two from use. I'm even about to take some steel wool to the neck of my mandolin to speed it up.

[DataNick]

I take 2 of my 4 with me daily, everywhere I go, and of the 2, I always have
the "Derrington" 99 Flatiron Performer A in tow...

[Bob Clark]

I take mine wherever I want to, which is pretty much wherever I go. As I type this, I am in NYC on business and have a mandolin at my side. To my way of thinking, mandolins are meant to be played and enjoyed, so that's what I do. Other's opinions may differ, and that's OK, too.

That said, with a little bit of care, I manage to keep them in great shape anyway.

[Ken Olmstead]

Exactly Shaun!

If you don't feel like you can take an instrument out of the house, then it is either an investment that you are diversifying your portfolio with (most don't qualify) or you probably can't afford the one you have.

I will add that it is an over used sales line. "Never gigged" is another. Most take this to mean it must be in good shape, maybe it means it did not sound good enough to play for other people...I don't know.

Play these things!!

[F-2 Dave]

If i'm gonna play outside of the house, I take my mandolin outside of the house every time.

[Shanahan]

The park is my favorite place to practice, I'm too easily distracted at home. Too cold for it lately, but it's warming up...

[shortymack]

I wanna take mine somewhere, someone invite me over!

[Jay G Miller]

I understand both sides at least to a small degree. I take mine out. But I bought a second mando with a tougher finish for those very hot and humid days or other poor conditional outings. My good mando is 15 years old with plenty of finish worn off as well as bumps dings and scratches. But I'll be danged if I'll take it out in bad conditions when I got another mando I can take instead. That just don't seem smart. I take the better one out often, but not stupidly. My second one fills that spot. So there are good reasons to not take one out in some instances.

[Charles E.]

My mandolin's (and tenor guitars) would be most unhappy if they did not go out with me. I take them to friends houses, festivals, the beach, where ever. It is important to socialize them so they know how to behave around other instruments.

[bratsche]

I take my viola on gigs whenever I have one. As for my mandos, I'd have nothing against taking one anywhere if I had anywhere to go with it, but I don't gig on them and usually only take one along when I travel to visit family. Last time I did that was in the summer of 2012. I hope to make a trip this year, if I can find the $$$ for it. Things are tighter each year than the one before, so it's not easy, but I hope to... I wish I could find a playing partner and go busking, but that's frowned on in these parts.

bratsche

[Freddyfingers]

Why, yes I do! Its hard to get an audience to come to my house.

[JeffD]

So I guess my question is do you only play your mandolin at home, or do you take it out to jams, lessons, open mics, etc.?

I take it out all the time. And I play them at home.

[Matt DeBlass]

Part of what got me interested in mandolin was how portable it is, if I wanted an instrument that never leaves the house I'd have bought a piano!

[fatt-dad]

Yes. And often. Any one of them. My pancake is with me in Ohio right now. Been playing it all week (at a seminar). It's also been to Panama several times and headed to Costa Rica.

Almost a surprising question.

f-d

[yankees1]

And yes, you can also read in the classifieds that their for sale mandolin is the best sounding mandolin they have ever played !

[DataNick]

I wanna take mine somewhere, someone invite me over!

Temecula's Bluegrass Festival awaits Vic...

[Denman John]

Thanks everyone for your input!

I'm glad to hear that mostly everyone who posted takes and plays their mandolins outside their homes (as well as at home). I figured that the people who posted that they haven't taken their instruments out of their houses don't have the opportunity to play out with others, or they might be self conscious of their playing, or they may be scared of dinging it (although it can get dinged easily enough in the house as well). I guess there are a lot of reasons to not take it out, but as someone mentioned earlier, they are missing out on so much fun.

As Matt mentioned, one of the reasons I started playing mandolin was because it was so portable.

[edandjudy3946]

To church to play on the praise team, to jams, to two nursing homes, to the front porch, to other towns, on vacations, etc etc etc. If you never take your instruments out of the house for fear of whatever then THE INSTRUMENT OWNS YOU and not the other way around.

[Dagger Gordon]

Almost a surprising question.

f-d

I thought so too.

[maudlin mandolin]

I agree. This is the whole point of having hard cases or gig bags.

[Misty Stanley-Jones]

My experience with other instruments (especially brass like trumpets, but I suspect it to be true with mandolins too) is that if it is old and has very little sign of wear, it probably doesn't play that well or has something wrong with it that kept it from being very playable. I'm suspicious of instruments 10+ years old that look brand new.

[verbs4us]

" A ship is safe in port but that's not what ships are built for."

[Bertram Henze]

Do you take your car out of the garage?