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I don't know of any for Android. If you're a beginner, just learn the 3 primary chord forms, seventh and minor forms. Between that, rolls and learning songs, that should keep you plenty busy for a while.
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Sep 2, 2016 11:45
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Do you have any references for those items that you find helpful when learning?
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Sep 9, 2016 17:44
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Planet X posted:I don't know of any for Android. Can you explain what the 3 primary chord forms, seventh and minor forms are?
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Sep 23, 2016 12:25
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http://www.elfshot.com/banjo/info_chords.htm There are 3 basic chord forms. You use these 3 shapes to make major chords all over the neck. Does this make sense? The "inversions" part of the page above illustrates this. For example, for a G chord, you use the F shape at the third fret, then use the D shape at the seventh fret and so on. Get these down before you learn seventh and minor chords. Do you know what sevenths and minors do, musically? Planet X fucked around with this message at 13:18 on Sep 23, 2016 |
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Sep 23, 2016 13:14
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Planet X posted:http://www.elfshot.com/banjo/info_chords.htm No, I have no music background, but I suppose I shall learn. Thanks a lot!
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Sep 23, 2016 15:43
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Planet X posted:http://www.elfshot.com/banjo/info_chords.htm Very helpful resource thanks for posting it!
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Sep 23, 2016 20:28
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I'm sure it's been covered in this thread but the search engine is way too broad so I'll ask (presumably) again: what sites do you guys recommend for bluegrass guitar lessons? Specifically beginner lessons (as far as bluegrass goes anyway; familiar with guitar, but not this style).
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Dec 5, 2016 17:36
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Banjo Ben's site is good. He's a bit goofy, but his lessons, which are across several different instruments, are good. With bluegrass guitar, I'd say focus on learning your major scales down close to the headstock. As well, get that alternate picking down really, really well. Go really slow and keep going for precision until you can bring the tempo up a bit.
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Dec 7, 2016 02:16
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I've been playing mandolin for about 4 months now. It's going really well, and I'm mostly playing Irish trad stuff and some basic improv with the band, but I'd like to get to grips with some bluegrass style stuff- turnaround licks, playing styles, stuff like that. There don't seem to be that many resources for that kinda stuff online, like tabs and poo poo. Anyone have any good sites? I'd rather just tabs, it's less hassle than sitting through a video.
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Jan 23, 2017 12:57
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Coohoolin posted:I've been playing mandolin for about 4 months now. It's going really well, and I'm mostly playing Irish trad stuff and some basic improv with the band, but I'd like to get to grips with some bluegrass style stuff- turnaround licks, playing styles, stuff like that. There don't seem to be that many resources for that kinda stuff online, like tabs and poo poo. Anyone have any good sites? I'd rather just tabs, it's less hassle than sitting through a video. I believe the Mandolin Hangout and the Mandolin Cafe may have what you are looking for.
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Jan 23, 2017 19:36
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Kilometers Davis posted:I've got the Mandolin bug for some reason. Mostly how they're so well made for folk and bluegrass and somehow perfect for playing Bach. I also love the tuning since you can play so much violin music on them. How does that kind of instrument balance and evolution even happen. It's awesome. Anyway. What should I know about the Mandolin? I'll be crossing over from stringed instruments so I'm not worried about being comfortable on one I'm just curious about hearing the quirks, tips, and "here's why I like mandolins" stories. Hi! I have been playing the mandolin badly since 2001, and a member of the Mandolin Cafe since then. What you need to know about the mandolin will eventually come up there. Basically, do this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmagoBQunZI Also, regarding Bach: http://www.nonesuch.com/journal/yo-yo-ma-chris-thile-edgar-meyer-bach-trios-april-7-nonesuch-tour-2017-02-10
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Feb 19, 2017 17:05
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Chris Thile is amazing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=770rJqDwRXo I've been playing mandolin coming from 13 years of electric and folk guitar so sometimes I slip into incorrect positioning habits and all that, but a slow and constant approach to scales, arpeggios, and jamming every Sunday is helping me make mad progress.
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Feb 28, 2017 10:54
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Coohoolin posted:Chris Thile is amazing. Do you play traditional Scottish music (I guess, based upon your avatar)? Familiar with Kevin MacLeod or Dagger Gordon's playing?
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Feb 28, 2017 20:57
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Bilirubin posted:Do you play traditional Scottish music (I guess, based upon your avatar)? Familiar with Kevin MacLeod or Dagger Gordon's playing? I do a bunch of stuff, but I got started on reels and jigs, yeah. I've given them a listen and it's pretty iconic trad mandolin playing. Hadn't really bothered doing much exploring, I just sat down with a bunch of tunes I liked from sessions and started playing. This is me, btw. https://soundcloud.com/user-365559034/the-tar-road-to-sligothe-nightingalethe-lark-in-the-morning?in=user-365559034/sets/oneills18-01-2017
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Mar 9, 2017 09:37
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Coohoolin posted:I do a bunch of stuff, but I got started on reels and jigs, yeah. I've given them a listen and it's pretty iconic trad mandolin playing. Hadn't really bothered doing much exploring, I just sat down with a bunch of tunes I liked from sessions and started playing. This is me, btw. Very nice playing!
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Mar 11, 2017 23:11
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Looking to get a mandolin; never really played an instrument but have been watching a lot of YouTube videos and really love the sound. Is it practical to start out playing music on a mandolin? Is this still the right thread?
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Apr 19, 2017 03:10
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Candlelight Virgil posted:Looking to get a mandolin; never really played an instrument but have been watching a lot of YouTube videos and really love the sound. Is it practical to start out playing music on a mandolin? Is this still the right thread? I started the mandolin on a whim after 13 years of guitar playing. I found it really easy once you get used to playing in 5s instead of 4s and adapt your picking if you need to. I started with Irish reels and jigs that there's tablature for readily available and after about 6 months I'm playing regularly at trad sessions and with my band doing improv as well. When you say "start out", you could probably do far worse for a first instrument tbh. It's a fairly easy instrument to self-teach given the availability of tabs. Chris Thile has a couple of instructional videos online as well and I've found the instrument very accessible. Just as with anything, make sure you spend enough time using a metronome and practicing scales and arpeggios, not just the fun stuff. I just bought myself a beautiful handmade Irish bouzouki yesterday and I'm kicking myself over the amount but I'm sitting at work just so excited to get home and play the drat thing.  It's so loving pretty. Still smells of a woodwork shop.
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Apr 20, 2017 12:56
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Candlelight Virgil posted:Looking to get a mandolin; never really played an instrument but have been watching a lot of YouTube videos and really love the sound. Is it practical to start out playing music on a mandolin? Is this still the right thread? Yes, get a mandolin. They're a lot of fun, very lightweight and portable. They fit in well at Old Time and Bluegrass jams, if you're into that sort of thing. The only thing I'd say is don't go super cheap. You can get a mandolin for $100-300, but I've found them tinny, the tuning keys tight, and the fretboard small. I have an F style, but you should just get a teardrop A-style, they're cheaper for what you get. Eastmans aren't bad starter mandolins. Also ^^^^ yes that Bozouki is beautiful and I'm sure it is worth every penny.
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Apr 26, 2017 01:44
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Planet X posted:Yes, get a mandolin. They're a lot of fun, very lightweight and portable. They fit in well at Old Time and Bluegrass jams, if you're into that sort of thing. I bought an ibanez f shape for about $300 in Arizona and it plays really nicely after I got a local craft dude to lower the action and reset the intonation (and install a pickup, all for about £80). You can hear it on the soundcloud I linked above and here: https://soundcloud.com/user-365559034/sets/23012017a I'll upgrade at some point but it's working out just fine for me. Thanks, I'm quite happy with it. Been getting to grips with GDAD tuning for rhythm stuff and just obsessively watching Andy Irvine videos to get a hold of his rhythm and counterpoint playing. I'm still not sure how he manages to keep his singing in tune while he's playing such melodic stuff but hey. It sounds great. MacArthur Road: https://www.facebook.com/elijah.fynmore/videos/vb.907630383/10158525431525384/?type=2&theater McKechnie's Farewell: https://www.facebook.com/elijah.fynmore/videos/vb.907630383/10158526548570384/?type=2&theater
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Apr 26, 2017 10:39
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Actually do you guys think there'd be much call for a traditional/Celtic/folk thread? I could write up a massive OP, it's my bread and butter.
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Apr 26, 2017 11:25
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You could. What I did with this thread is I started a light OP, see if there would be momentum, then once there was I expanded the OP. This way you aren't out a lot of time if it turns out there aren't a lot of people who are into it. On the other hand, I'm happy to have trad here in this thread. I can change the subject to include Trad, and include anything you'd like in the OP. I've played a little bit of it and wouldn't mind learning more.
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Apr 26, 2017 14:05
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Including it in this thread would probably be better, since there's a lot of shared instrumentation. I'll write up an effortpost later today then.
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Apr 26, 2017 17:20
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So, traditional and folk music. Where to begin. Traditional music is generally the name used for the instrumental playing of Celtic music, mostly Irish and Scottish (although there are well liked historical contributions from Brittany and Canada and whatnot). This mostly takes place in pubs, at a "trad session" where a bunch of people playing violin, various pipes, banjo, mandolin, accordion, tin whistles and flutes, will play their favourite pieces. They'll often be accompanied by one or two guitar players and a bodhrán or spoon player for the percussion. Traditional music involves different types of pieces named after the type of dance that gives them their rhythm: Jigs (6/8), reels (4/4), slipjigs (9/8), hornpipes (4/4, like reels, but with accents on the first and third beats), strathspeys (4/4 similar to a hornpipe but slower), polkas (2/4), and slides (12/8) being the most common. Melody players will mostly learn the tune in the same key, or should be talented enough to transpose it well enough. Accompanying players sometimes have a harder time. Trad players can be really snobby about accompany playing sometimes, and some of them insisting guitar players only accompany pieces they know so they can work out the PERFECT arrangement or whatever. IMO this is bollocks, as a melody and accompaniment player, because really, it's not that hard to listen for the changes when you're playing a bloody onetwothree onetwothree from G to C to D or whatever. Some pieces are more complicated, and you should definitely familiarise yourself with how hornpipes and slipjigs feel rhythmically before trying to play along because you WILL miss a beat and hit the wrong chord if you go in blind. For guitar playing, I like using DADGAD for sessions and just capoing up depending on the key. You'll generally have three types of accompanying chords, although being a good enough player and knowing the tunes will let you embellish and make some really nice counterpoint or harmonies. That's up to you though, and is a question of experience. In any case: 1) a song in a major key following a I-IV-V where you can toss in a relative minor (ex D-G-A-Bm/G-C-D-Em/etc). Like not necessarily directly going from I to IV to V, like check out the Kesh Jig which you can accompany easily enough in G. 2) a song in a minor key where you'd go I-VII-VI-V or something along those lines. Check out Morrison's Jig for a fun piece in Em. 3) A major piece that only really needs the I and the VII. These are rarer and you can pretty much tell from the melody. If you can read standard notation, you're in luck. https://www.thesession.org has a massive collection of pretty much any trad piece you're ever going to want to find or learn. If you play mandolin or tenor banjo (both tuned in GDAE, like a fiddle), you can find tabs here http://www.traditionalmusic.co.uk/mandolin-tab/mandolin-tab-A.html and here http://www.mandolintab.net/index.html Note: One of my favourite features on thesession.org is the Recordings section. You can look up any record you want and find out what trad pieces are being played on it, which is useful for when bands annoyingly include a trad piece in their songs and don't include it in the song title (looking at you, Pogues). Took me ages to find out that the great instrumental at the end of South Australia is called Salmon Tails Up The Water. Some common and popular session tunes that you could get started with: The Kesh Jig Cooley's Reel Banish Misfortune The Mason's Apron Drowsy Maggie The Rights Of Man The Lark In The Morning The Sailor's Hornpipe The Jig Runrig The Ramnee Ceilidh The Butterfly The Swallowtail Right, folk music. This is singers, usually, collectors of old songs and sometimes writers of new ones. There's a wealth of songs from the shared cultural histories of Scotland and Ireland, too many to even begin listing. I can give you some big names in the scene and you can start from there but holy poo poo it's huge, there's so much to discover and it's never ever going to stop. Scotland: Dick Gaughan. Political minded folk singer in the tradition of Ewan MacColl. Excellent DADGAD guitar player. Very unique instrumental arrangements. Check out No Gods And Precious Few Heroes and Now Westlin' Winds as a taster. The Corries. Scotland's biggest folk band, largely credited with spawning the folk revival in Scotland in the 60s. They wrote our very corny national anthem Flower Of Scotland. They also wrote a bunch of pretty funny comedy tunes (my favourites are Scottish Holiday and The Bricklayer's Song). Occasional racisms. Invented the combolin, an instrument combining guitar, mandolin and sitar so they wouldn't have to keep lugging three instruments each around on tour. Malinky and Karine Polwart. Excellent more modern folk band. Karine Polwart is incredibly soulful. I love her song Follow The Heron. Malinky are just great with arrangements, like the old child's song Bonnie Banks O' Fordie. Old Blind Dogs. One of my favourite bands, a northeastern folk band featuring Johnny Hardie, one of our greatest fiddlers of all time. If I had to pick a band that personified what I thought the perfect folk band was, it would be them. I heard their version of Burns' Is There For Honest Poverty/A Man's A Man For A' That and was immediately hooked. The pipe solos at the end are stunning. Ireland: Planxty. Holy poo poo Planxty. Pretty much kicking off the entire folk revival, the band composed of Andy Irvine, Paul Brady, Donal Lunny, and Christy Moore pretty much defined how to play their respective instruments- bouzouki, mandolin, pipes, and song. Check out anything by them. Anything at all. It's all amazing. Each of the members went on to have solo careers of varying success, Christy Moore's being the best known one. Andy Irvine has some great bouzouki playing albums and writes some great ballads, one of my favourites is Never Tire Of The Road, a lovely tribute to Woody Guthrie. The Pogues. Yes they count. Shut up. The Chieftains. You should know about the Chieftains already. If you don't, well, you've got 38 albums to pick from so maybe just give a listen to a Best Of or some of their collaboration records. Some absolutely excellent examples are The Foggy Dew with Sinéad O'Connor and The Frost Is All Over with The Punch Brothers. Listen to Magdalene Laundries with Joni Mitchell if you want to feel really, really, undefinably sad. The Dubliners. Duh. Like the Chieftains, huge repertoire, so good luck. Luke Kelly is still considered possibly the best male Irish singer anywhere. That's to get you started. I've got a way longer list if people are interested. I'll add some youtube links. Playing folk music as a singer/guitarist is mostly, in my view, finding old tunes that deserve a modern approach and maybe a wee makeover. Lost gems. I once heard a tune called The Wild Geese/Norlan' Wind sung by Jim Reid, an old Dundonian fellow, on a random compilation album I'd been given by a tourist promotion thing. The song was amazing, and it's become one of my live staples and everyone I've taught it to loves it and it's been played by other people as a result. That's folk music to me, that sharing of hidden beauties that pop up every now and again. The songs are there, they just need to be interpreted, so knock yourself out. Tune your guitar to DADGAD and you can play most anything with three chords to start. I've got more to come but this is a good intro. Coohoolin fucked around with this message at 13:58 on May 5, 2017 |
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Apr 26, 2017 18:27
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Nice one, I stuck that in the OP. I was going to change the thread title to something that includes Bluegrass, Old Time and Irish Trad. Any suggestions before I get the attention of a mod?
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May 4, 2017 02:04
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I've added youtube links!
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May 5, 2017 13:57
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I just want to say that the trad post is great. I don't really know where to start with trad, and that's very helpful, and I'll be spending time going through it. I spent two weeks in Galway for work a few years ago, and fortunately got invited to some house and pub jams. They were as fascinated with my Scruggs style playing as I was with their plectrum playing.
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May 6, 2017 13:32
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Planet X posted:I just want to say that the trad post is great. I don't really know where to start with trad, and that's very helpful, and I'll be spending time going through it. I spent two weeks in Galway for work a few years ago, and fortunately got invited to some house and pub jams. They were as fascinated with my Scruggs style playing as I was with their plectrum playing. You play the banjo I take it? 5 strings confuse the heck out of me because of that extra fifth string that doesn't go the whole way and fucks with my fretboard thinking. Tenor banjos are a lot of fun though.
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Jun 1, 2017 20:09
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I do, yep. You get used to the fifth string and just end up working around the tuning key pretty naturally after a while. One of these days I'll get a tenor, but until then, I do light trad on the mandolin.
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Jun 2, 2017 03:15
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I'll try and do a bit more of an effort post with some videos/recordings of my amateur self, but I play tenor banjo and just recently picked up an mandolin, and enjoy traditional music (also play whistle - the gateway drug of Irish tunes). I tried a 5 string banjo a while back but found that scruggs-style fingerpicking just wasn't my thing. I may get one again and see about learning clawhammer, but that's a lot later down the line.
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Jun 2, 2017 05:51
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I tried to set up my H4 Zoom as a usb mic but my mac's not picking it up so might have to hold off on recordings until I can get it working or buy a decent USB mic. In the meantime I had a wee jam/audition with a bluegrass band called the Lost Highway Ensemble and it looks like I'll be joining them on mandolin for the upcoming gigs. https://www.facebook.com/LostHighwayEnsemble/videos/937580222994382/ A bunch of Scottish people playing ridiculous cabaret Americana and Louven Brothers tunes should be fun. Coohoolin fucked around with this message at 20:47 on Jul 16, 2017 |
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Jul 16, 2017 19:40
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That looks like a lot of fun.
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Jul 20, 2017 01:39
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Slowly getting better at this mandolin malarkey. I'm probably gonna apply for a performance degree at the Royal Conservatoire in Glasgow. https://www.facebook.com/globe.inn/...G-M&pnref=story
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Sep 7, 2017 06:16
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That's my bluegrass band doing Gotta Travel On and Rocky Road Blues at a festival today. Need to work on my solos some more. Our fiddler has a degree in folk violin and spent a year in Tennessee on exchange studying bluegrass, he's ace. https://www.facebook.com/DoricanaFest/videos/1623010494408508/
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Sep 23, 2017 21:40
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Just to follow up on a couple of things here. For a fantastic resource for music check out The Session, loaded with scads of dots and tab for tunes and variations for multiple styles. Mandolin is what I learned music on, and for my money is far easier to "get" than on a guitar. But yes, it definitely pays to not go cheap in terms of sound quality. If and when you are ready to upgrade from your starter, I really suggest going with a new builder that is starting to build their reputation--you can get really great value if you do your homework. I have a bluegrass cannon with tone that has turned the heads of even highly regarded builders and players by doing just this (A style of course). I had to have the action and intonation tweeked some as it was only her 4th build, and the fit and finish aren't Collings level good, but it sounds amazing and for a fraction of the price.
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Oct 29, 2017 17:18
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Bilirubin posted:Just to follow up on a couple of things here. For a fantastic resource for music check out The Session, loaded with scads of dots and tab for tunes and variations for multiple styles. That's a good shout, hadn't really considered it. I'm not aware of any local new luthiers around here but there must be something. In terms of music I've been working on some modern trad pieces, learning these two for my upcoming audition. The time shift into 7/8 is fantastic and gives me chills. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hur5jYWD9B4 https://thesession.org/tunes/14109 https://thesession.org/tunes/15398
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Oct 30, 2017 15:55
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Bilirubin posted:J I have a bluegrass cannon with tone that has turned the heads of even highly regarded builders and players by doing just this (A style of course). I had to have the action and intonation tweeked some as it was only her 4th build, and the fit and finish aren't Collings level good, but it sounds amazing and for a fraction of the price. What builder, out of curiosity?
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Oct 30, 2017 17:45
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We need more activity here. What if people posted clips of what they're currently playing? I'll kick it off. Been working on some tunes for my auditions. First one's a lovely wee strathspey from Aberdeen, The Bonnie Lass O' Bon Accord, with a fun variation. https://streamable.com/qcxss And one of the pieces I'm considering for the performance audition is the Allegro from Vivaldi's violin concerto in A minor. https://streamable.com/gcu64 Coohoolin fucked around with this message at 16:40 on Nov 3, 2017 |
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Nov 3, 2017 15:12
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Planet X posted:What builder, out of curiosity? Laura Ratcliff. She was formerly (or currently? IDK its murky and I'm not going to ask him) married to Ken Ratcliff, builder of Silverangel mandolins. I did a workship with Mike Marshall several years ago in San Diego and while doing the rounds in the meet and greet came over and had to see it. He wound up noodling on it while making the rest of the rounds, it sounds that good. Sadly he didn't exchange his Loar for it but vOv
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Nov 6, 2017 16:24
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Coohoolin posted:We need more activity here. What if people posted clips of what they're currently playing? I've been away from the instrument for a few months and have to get back up to speed. I've mostly been working on variations for standard North American fiddle tunes in order to build up improvisational vocabulary.
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Nov 6, 2017 16:27
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Oh shiiiit, I never thought to check for a Musician's Lounge thread when I picked up the mandolin over a year ago - Coohoolin, you are my fuckin' muse, man. I've been shying slightly away from bluegrass and into the traditional Celtic tunes, and your fantastic posts are exactly what I dreamed to find. You are also very good and make me feel...less good, ha. I actually had two mandolin questions that I wanted to bounce off y'all - I'm a cursed lefty, and it is shockingly hard to find left-handed mandolins worth their salt. I've been playing on a Morgan Monroe "Rocky Top" f-body (MMS-8WC), and I'm starting to wonder what else there is out there and since I am so into Irish etc., I was looking at A-styles with oval holes and wondering...could I have a luthier flip the nut and bridge and call it a day? They seem very symmetrical, so I'm hoping that's not just on the surface. In the short term, I'm wondering if I can take my current one in to a luthier and just have them kinda...I dunno, adjust it? This is actually my first stringed instrument, so I'm not really aware if it could use any adjustment to make it a bit easier to play. I guess it's silly to ask here and not actually take it somewhere, but...I guess I'm wondering what to expect out of a tune-up. The one thing I DO notice is that when the open strings are tuned correctly, notes down the fretboard are slightly out of pitch. G strings are a solid G, but the B is sharp. What do you think? Edit: I should say, I'm in the Front Range of Colorado, so I should definitely be able to find a good luthier. Squiggle fucked around with this message at 00:16 on Nov 15, 2017 |
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Nov 14, 2017 23:54
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