Bluegrass or Classical Mandolin Lessons

[Michael Kinch]

I am new to the Mandolin and have never played an instrument before. I am trying to decide on Mike Marshall's Bluegrass lessons or Caterina Lichtenberg's Classical lessons. What are your thoughts for a very beginner beginner?

[Steve Repinec]

Provided you like both genres of music, I would ask which one will provide the most opportunity to play with other people in your location? When I was first starting on mandolin I worked on bluegrass, classical and jazz pieces with my teacher. Now, I focus entirely on bluegrass because I have found that my location has a number of bluegrass jams (2-3 per week) where I can go and play with other people. Playing with other people is a huge driver for getting better and really fun. Suggest you do some searching to see what opportunities there are in your area.

[Charlieshafer]

I think I'd go with Mike (hey, hey and Caterina are married, so they'll both make out) only because Mike can give you both the bluegrass element as well as the classical. They're both big on proper technique, so you won;t lose there. But Steve makes a very good point, you become much more of a social animal if you stay more on the bluegrass side of things. The good news is that by learning proper technique, you'll be able to play anything you want in time.

[Northwest Steve]

There is another thread discussing just about the same question. there is a new site Mandolins Heal the World. I have done a trial with Mike Marshall and Mandolins Heal the World. I will be subscribing to Mandolins Heal the World in the next week or so. There is a coupon for Mandolin Café members for $50 off a year subscription.

Also check out Mandolessons.com of you have not found them. They are very good.

[Bill McCall]

If its possible to find someone local who specializes in mandolin teaching, not a guitar teacher who 'dabbles' on the mandolin, to give you a few basic lessons, including posture, pick grip and left hand positioning, you will be well served. Lots of people end up spending time down the road fixing technique issues that could have been avoided, not to mention potential overuse/strain type injuries.

That said, I have both Mike's and Caterina's homespun lessons and while they are both excellent, they are different since classical music doesn't involve much chording while both bluegrass, swing and jazz all require the use of chords.

So what do you want to play and who can you play it with? Let that answer be your guidepost.

[demotlj]

I am taking classical lessons through Artist Works with Caterina but I play bluegrass with a group in my church. It's almost like playing two different instruments so it really does come down to your musical preferences. One thing to consider is whether you like to sing. For the most part, classical is instrumental while Bluegrass can be an accompaniment instrument to singing. (I think at a beginning level, Bluegrass is more satisfying because you can play along with a lot of songs knowing just a few chords whereas beginning classical music isn't too exciting. I've worked up to an intermediate level on classical and can now occasionally play with a small local ensemble whereas my Bluegrass is definitely pretty basic but I've been playing chop chords and singing lead vocals with a church group for years.)

You could also just do a month of each and see which you like more.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Michael - In a way,it depends on which style of music you want to play - however !. I started playing banjo back in 1963 & over here in the UK there was totally zero re.tutors etc. A friend of mine told me of a banjo teacher who live not too far away from me,so i started taking lessons - in 'Classic banjo'. I wanted to learn how to play Bluegrass music,but i'd do anything to get to learn anything to do with 'finger style' banjo. It worked. Six months into it,i was playing pretty well & could read music very well 'at sight'. I might have gone further on that style,but my tutor sadly passed away.

Right at that time,what should appear on UK TV,but ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' - i couldn't believe that here was the music i wanted to play actually on TV !!. That was the beginning of me really getting stuck into learning Bluegrass banjo,playing LP's over & over & over & ....................!". 3 years later,i had a band together,but if it hadn't been for doing the 'classical' bit to begin with,it might have taken me much longer.

So - the bottom line is do either or even both,it will all help you but don't expect too much too soon. My teacher told me that at some point,i'd get fed up with it & feel that i wasn't making any progress - 53 years later,i'm still waiting for that 'point' to arrive. It depends on just 'how much' you really want to play,& how much effort you put into 'doing it' - it takes 1,000's of hours.
I've put close to 12,000 hours into my mandolin playing & it's still building,
Ivan

[johngrasty]

Hey,

If you are interested in both genres, I'd go with Mike. He's willing to help you go in whichever direction. He also works to ensure good fundamentals, so if you end you changing directions and go with Caterina, you will still be in good shape.

If you do the ArtistWorks thing, which I do, MAKE SURE YOU DO THE VIDEO EXCHANGES! :-) You don't want to learn bad habits from the beginning (like I did).

Mike seems to always give good feedback and he is very willing to work with you on whatever pieces you want, even (maybe especially) if it's not in his curriculum after you have shown that you have the fundamentals.

Good luck.

[DavidKOS]

it really does come down to your musical preferences. .

Michael - In a way,it depends on which style of music you want to play]

This is the key.

If your goal is to play classical music (or Italian mandolin music too), classical lessons are the only way to go.

If you want to play BG, folk, etc. then you need to focus on that.

I think it's more about the repertoire, learning tunes by sheet music or by ear, rehearsals vs. jam sessions and pickin' parties, etc. than being just about technique.

With those players, you can't go wrong either way.

[Michael Kinch]

Thanks everyone, a lot of really good advice. I am arranging lessons with a Mandolin teacher through the shop where I bought my mandolin. I will do that for a bit and then will probably supplement it with lessons with Mike or Caterina. I am really benefiting from this site and all the helpful advice and information here. The more time I spend here the more convinced I am that I have made a great decision by investing the the mandolin. It is a fantastic instrument that is not as well known as it should be. One person said to me "what is a mandolin?" I am so excited about it!

[Charlieshafer]

Excellent! It is a lot of fun. Just remember the golden rule of any instrument, and that's that with proper technique, you can play any style you want. AS Keith Richards said once, "You go into a guitar shop, you can't buy a lead guitar, you can only buy a guitar. It's your job to learn it all." That's the benefit of classical lessons (not that they're necessary, of course): you learn proper posture, left hand technique, right hand technique, sight reading of written music, the notes all over the fretboard, etc. Once you know that, chords, chopping, literally everything else is much easier.