Bowl-back mandolin VS (what i'm called) "ukulele mandolin"

[number0]

Hello!
In the past, i bought a bowl-back mandolin because i wanted to come closer to my grandfather who played mandolin. Specifically something like ukulele-mandolin. I mean the body is from ukulele but sounds natural.
So, everytime i was playing my bowl-back mandolin i was thinking that is hard to learn but when i try to learn on my grandfather's mandolin it was easier! Right now my grandfather's mandolin is in pretty bad shape and it's on a wall. I don't want to fix it, nor try to play it for emotional reasons...
Do you know if they make this type of mandolin in Europe? Or should i'll try to learn on A type mandolin? Is it similar?
(I apologize for my poor english)

[Beanzy]

do you mean a mandolinetto like on these pages?
http://minermusic.com/mandolinetto.htm

if so they do come up for sale occasionally on ebay so saving a search with the term is worthwhile

[number0]

Thank you! I can't find brand new mandolinettos. I 'll try to ask to organists. Why did the mandolinetto manufacture stops?

[allenhopkins]

The guitar-or-uke-shaped mandolinetto just went out of style. You can find them, used, in the US. The Howe-Orme ones tend to be expensive, but there are less expensive ones; Lark Street Music in NJ has a Howe-Orme for $700, e.g. You can find some from the Chicago builders labeled "Vernon," which was a trademark of the big C. Bruno & Sons US distributor.

In England, there are some century-old mandolinettos; John Maddock, who posts as Tavy on the Cafe, states in notes to a YouTube vid: These go under various names including "The Viennese College of Music", "The Neapolitan College of Music" or "The Neapolitan Patent Mandoline Co", but they all usually proclaim: "By His Majesties Royal Letters Patent No 2272" which is a 1902 patent for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS OF THE MANDOLINE TYPE".

Not sure where in Europe you are, but you might search out Tavy on the Cafe and PM him to see if he knows where there might be one.

I wouldn't necessarily say that a mandolinetto would be easier to play than your bowl-back (though it might be easier to hold). In my experience -- I have a Howe-Orme -- the mandolinetto sounds quite similar to a bowl-back mandolin: bright, trebly, clear though relatively thin tonal quality.

[gweetarpicker]

At Players Vintage: http://www.vintageinstruments.com/mandolins.html

At Bernunzio's: https://bernunzio.com/category/instr...ndolin/?page=2

I quite like the sound of many of the old Howe Orme instruments. They have a "poppy" bright tone that reminds me a bit of a good ukulele.

[Tavy]

Not sure where in Europe you are, but you might search out Tavy on the Cafe and PM him to see if he knows where there might be one.

Sorry, none on the horizon at present.

I have built a couple of mandolinettos and rather liked the sound actually, and have another screwed together on an outside frame as an experiment, but unfortunately personal circumstances mean there are very few instruments (new or restored) coming out of my shop at present

[Jim Garber]

So, everytime i was playing my bowl-back mandolin i was thinking that is hard to learn but when i try to learn on my grandfather's mandolin it was easier! Right now my grandfather's mandolin is in pretty bad shape and it's on a wall. I don't want to fix it, nor try to play it for emotional reasons...

If your grandfather's mandolin is decent it might be worth fixing. Also, what could be better than learning on an instrument that belonged to someone you loved. Do you know who made your grandfather's instrument or do you have someone in your area who could fix it. That might be better than spending lots ore money for a new instrument.

Let us know where you live and we might be able to help you further.

Also, if the above does not work for you there are some decent starter mandolins that might be easier to play or hold than a bowlback.