Please allow me to introduce myself...

[Stormin1155]

Hi! My name is Norm. I live in Iowa. I'm retired....sort of. What I do to stay busy is I've turned my lifelong hobby of repairing, modding, building, and tinkering on guitars into a nice little business that I do out of my home shop. I work on all sorts of stringed instruments, mandolins included. I've even restored a couple of antique mandolins.

I own a mandolin.... well, more of a mandolin-shaped-object I picked up at a yard sale. In retrospect, having it has probably been more of a deterrent to learning mandolin than not having one at all, because it was just so uninspiring to play.

So my New Year's resolution this year is to learn to play the mandolin! Of course I'll need a better mandolin! I thought of building one, and I might do that someday, but time is of the essence with New Year's resolutions you know, so I set out in search of one. I seriously overextended my musical instrument budget with the purchase of a couple guitars a few months ago, so I settled on a used Kentucky KM-140S. It came today... needed a bit of fret work, a bit of adjustment, and new strings, but I'm very pleased with it. For a budget instrument I think it sounds quite good.

So now the task of adjusting to the tiny neck and goofy tuning. I made an amazing discovery some time ago that a mandolin is tuned like an upside-down guitar. So I immediately went from zero to being able to strum a few chords as if I really knew how to play! So now I'm working on scales and so far I've learned Mandolin Wind and Copperhead Road. I probably won't be doing too much bluegrass. I like bluegrass music, but a little goes a long way for me.

It seems that there aren't nearly the on-line resources for mandolin as there for guitar... things like tablature, how to play youtubes, and such. If any of you can point me to any resources that could benefit an old guy guitar player who wants to learn mandolin, I'd be much obliged.

So there you have it... that's me. I'm glad to be here. Like what I see. Seems like a lot of great folks with a lot of knowledge and experience.

[trodgers]

Hi Norm, I'm Tom over in Ottumwa. Welcome to the club!
If you go to the top of the Mandolin Cafe page and pull down the Learn/Listen tab on the menu, you can access over 1900 songs in mandolin tab.
On YouTube, MandoLessons has a bunch of videos that might be of assistance. https://m.youtube.com/user/MandoLessons

Happy pickin'.

[Mark Gunter]

Welcome to the forum, Norm. Here's some advice, including links to free lessons: http://www.markgunter.net/cool_stuff...olin-beginners

The mandolin world is a wonderful place, and soon you'll find plenty of resources and enough enchantment to keep you as busy as you want to be with it.

[Simon DS]

For Tab you can try a search for ‘pdf’ here on the site,
Thesession.com too
Mandolessons.com

Learning the mandolin is a life’s work but well worth it.
Good luck!

[LadysSolo]

Hi Norm! Never too old to learn a new instrument - I took up mandolin at age 60, after starting guitar in my youth and putting it away for 40 years (work, family, and life got in the way.) Discovered mandolin, and guitar is now a secondary instrument. Enjoy your mandolin journey, and welcome to the café!

[MikeZito]

I was recently voted into the 'International Mandolin Hall Of Shame' - so I can't offer any advice on learning to play . . . but I can at least chime in to say: 'Welcome - you have come to a good and supportive place.'

Listen, learn, play, enjoy ad keep us posted.

[CarlM]

hi Norm. I am in Cedar Rapids. Looking at your title it concerned me you might be a "man of wealth and taste" as well. Pleased to meet you....At least we don't have to guess your name.

[Br1ck]

The biggest favor you can do for yourself is forget the upside down guitar thoughts. Mandolessions is a great site and free, and there are reasonable pay sites like Peghead nation. Start saving for a solid wood mandolin.

[Denny Gies]

Welcome to our wild, wacky world, Norm. I thought you were going to say "Please allow me to introduce myself I'm a man of wealth and fame."

[trodgers]

hi Norm. I am in Cedar Rapids. Looking at your title it concerned me you might be a "man of wealth and taste" as well. Pleased to meet you....At least we don't have to guess your name.

Aren't all of us Iowans full of "wealth and taste?"

[Stormin1155]

Hi Norm, I'm Tom over in Ottumwa. Welcome to the club!
If you go to the top of the Mandolin Cafe page and pull down the Learn/Listen tab on the menu, you can access over 1900 songs in mandolin tab.
On YouTube, MandoLessons has a bunch of videos that might be of assistance. https://m.youtube.com/user/MandoLessons

Happy pickin'.

Welcome to the forum, Norm. Here's some advice, including links to free lessons: http://www.markgunter.net/cool_stuff...olin-beginners

The mandolin world is a wonderful place, and soon you'll find plenty of resources and enough enchantment to keep you as busy as you want to be with it.

For Tab you can try a search for ‘pdf’ here on the site,
Thesession.com too
Mandolessons.com

Learning the mandolin is a life’s work but well worth it.
Good luck!

Wow! What a great welcome! And great resources too! Thank you all!

Tom, you and Brick quickly shot down my upside-down guitar model. And yes, to learn mandolin, that doesn't work at all, but to be able to quickly strum a few chords...

Mark, some excellent stuff on your "Advice for Mandolin Beginners" page. Thank you!

Denny and Carl, my introduction sort falls apart after the first line to that song... Wealth? Well, I feel blessed in so many ways, and I'll take that over wealth. Taste? Sure, I've got taste. Now whether it's good taste or bad taste....

Simon, thanks for the links!

I was checking out the tabs in the Learn/Listen. I downloaded the TefView program, but when I click on a tab link I just get a page with symbols that makes me think aliens are trying to contact me. What am I doing wrong?

[Steve Lavelle]

Welcome to the cafe, Norm. Just to be clear guitar tuning is wacky, mandolin tuning is logical.

[Stacey Morris]

Welcome Norm!

[Stompbox]

[Eric F.]

I was checking out the tabs in the Learn/Listen. I downloaded the TefView program, but when I click on a tab link I just get a page with symbols that makes me think aliens are trying to contact me. What am I doing wrong?

Are you clicking on regular tab files or TablEdit files?

[darylcrisp]

hello Norm

I'd highly suggest signing up at PegheadNations with Sharon Gilchrist and study from square one with her unique, fun, and easy method of quickly progressing, in mandolin. They have a 30 day free trial right now, that's what I did a year ago and I'm still there. Love it and its just a nice time to chill late at night and watch lessons and I'm amazed at the things I've picked up from just rewatching Sharons lessons.

https://pegheadnation.com/string-school/

https://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/c...-2019-Holidays

[RazorHead]

Hey Norm, I 'm new to this myself. I've played guitar for more years than I like to admit to and I thought that mandolin tuning was kinda weird, until I realized that it actually made more sense than guitar. It just takes some getting use to. Anyway, welcome aboard. Relax and have fun. I found BanjoBen.com has some great tips and tabs that have helped me. Take a look and see what you think (I have no affiliation with him whatsoever, but I like his style of teaching). Welcome again, and enjoy the ride.

[HonketyHank]

One of the links posted above was to thesession.com, which is incorrect. The correct link is thesession.org. A great site for Celtic tunes, old and new. If you don't do music notation or ABC notation, you can download ABC files for the tunes you like and TablEdit or TEFview can usually import them.

I don't know what is at thesession.com, but one of my malware filters did not want me to go there.

Welcome to the farm!