# Music by Genre > Jazz/Blues Variants, Bossa, Choro, Klezmer >  Czech It Out

## glauber

The first i heard Radim Zenkl was his jaw-dropping track in _Tone Poets_, probably my favourite track from that album. I found that he has a CD with Dawg's Acoustic Disk, called Czech It Out. I ordered it and it arrived a couple of days ago.

Very nice, mandolin solo with all strings going: Czech and Slovak folk songs plus original material, very well played. I enjoy Radim's style; it has a lot in common with what i like to do when futzing around with my mandolin.

One of the things i like is that the folk material sounds right. However, the modern stuff sounds very good too; some rock playing that sounds very much like an electric guitar. The guy's range is vast.

So, this is an enjoyable CD, and the title is not the only atrocious joke in it; translating "Anicka Dusitka" as "Annie's Little Soul" takes the pickle.

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## dunbarhamlin

OK, this anglophone monoglot gives up - isn't Anicka Dusicka just a name?

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## glauber

Anicka = My dear Ana (but literally, "little Ana")
Dusicka = my love (but litterally, "little soul")

(The Slovak language has a penchant for using diminutives to show affection.)

(i may have mispelled - it's early, but the "C"s and "S"s have "hacek" accents, making it Anitchka, Dushitchka - the Tch sound is the same as in the start of the word Czeck)

Let's see if this works:
Anička, Duička ( the s does, but the c doesn't  )

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## dunbarhamlin

Aha! Googled, but couldn't find translations. Thanks. I really need to work at losing the British 'little islander' mentallity - smatterings of Greek, French and Spanish are my limit I'm afraid.

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## Jonathan Reinhardt

At the March Mandolin Festival in NH, Radim stopped by and joined us for a morning. He is a wonderfully open person, sharing his skills and knowledge in a very encouraging way. He says he started playing bluegrass as a youngster (he's still pretty young!) and kept going, incorporating the music of his cultural background later. He plays a variety of styles, all with his unique signature. One he demonstrated was melody and rythym (thumb) and tremelo, simultaneously done with thumb and first finger picks. Perhaps someone else can explain it more accurately. 
 Peter O. says we are blessed to have him. Also says that because there is Radim, the rest of us do not have to play fast.
His current main mandolin is a beautiful custom F, with quite a wide neck to accomodate split string playing, etc. He also had a lovely electric that he made sound so sweet.
He brought a bunch #of CDs with him, 4 or 5 different ones as I recall. Certainly a most enjoyable guest appearance. Don't miss an opportunity to hear/see him play.

rasa
Jonathan Reinhardt

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## glauber

What i want to know is how he does the strum in the last song in his CD (the one inspired by Michelangelo) while at the same time keeping the tremolo melody going. Initially i assumed it was an overdub, but the liner notes say there are none. That should be physically impossible. Maybe it's the thumb trick.

The Acoustic Disk site has a good biography. I linked to it above, if you click on his name, in my first post.

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## celtic_knut

Radim has several CD's out, but Czech it Out is my favorite -- there is a lot inspiring work on that disc.

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## Ken Sager

He'll slip on fingerpicks for some of his cool tricks. I don't know if that's what he did on that track, though. Aside from being an astounding musician, he is a very nice guy if you ever get the chance to pick with him, or take a workshop or something.
Best,
Ken

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## Daniel Nestlerode

The fingerpicks are Radim's "improvement" on the duo style as practiced by Even Marshall Carlo Aonzo, among others. Radim told a recital audience at last year's Mandolin Symposium that Evan turned him on to duo style, but he wanted to be able to keep both the tremolo and the bass note runs going without the dropped notes necessary when you play duo style with a single flatpick. He found a thumbpick and fingerpick combo to be the perfect solution.

The custom F with the wide finger board was built by Rosta Capek of Prague (or Praha?). The wide fretboard allows Radim to play adjacent pairs on the same fret with two different fingers. It gives him a little more freedom with regard to note choice. He's using that mandolin in combination with a custom ToneGard. The ToneGard has a little added leg that reaches down and sticks Radim in the thigh. This holds the mandolin (with a very heavy neck) in a comfortable playing position while seated.

Geez, the stuff you retain from a weeks worth of mandolin immersion is a little scary.  

Daniel

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## glauber

Does he use metal fingerpicks or plastic?

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## Jonathan Reinhardt

plastic, white!

As I recall they were on the thumb and first finger, but it may have been the second finger. I have the strong image of it on the first. I'm going with that until corrected.
Yes, it cetrtainly is a duo style, but with Radim's unique sensibility and style. 

rasa
Jonathan Reinhardt

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## Daniel Nestlerode

I've only ever seen him use a thumb pick and an index finger pick, but I could be wrong and he could have expanded his picking too.  

Daniel

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## SternART

As I recall.....On one of his CD's every tune is in a different tuning......am I remembering this correctly?

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## Arto

Yes. On Galactic mandolin CD he covers all intervals for double strings, from unisono to octaves, and everytyhing in between.

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## AlanN

He's also known to use a pencil

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## Ira Chavis

Radmin uses a Wegen bluegrass triangular pick...the one with the holes.

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## glauber

> I've only ever seen him use a thumb pick and an index finger pick, but I could be wrong and he could have expanded his picking too.


So he does all that tremollo with just the index finger? This guy must have a deadly handshake!

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## Jonathan Reinhardt

Actually, his handshake was quite normal, even gentle.
He does do that tremelo with some vigor. What I've noticed about tremelo is that it's not all about force, as that creates a certain tension, but more about one's own ease of movement. Some folks get good volume with seemingly the lightest of touch.
I myself like to do both the above mentioned sustainable and recommended method AND a more agressive approach, suitable for short bursts. Skip Gorman's "Cow Camp" has lots of examples of his lovely (flatpicked) tremelo which is sort of an in between, Monroelike, yet still Skip. A lesson on this subject with Peter O. gave me a lot to think about. His tremelo is sweet, substantial, and he makes it seem effortless. What Radim is doing is something even different. 
Meanwhile, I'm researching re: that white fingerpick for you. Have a friend who uses a white one so will find out at least that. Meanwhile it seems you have some research from your new post to pursue!

rasa
Jonathan Reinhardt

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## glauber

Oh yes... i don't dream of doing what Radim does, but i want to investigate if some of my fingerpicking experience can translate to mandolin.

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i just recently heard radims music for the first time, inspirational to say the least of the experience, and it was damn good tunes.

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## jmcgann

What a great guy and musician- a real visonary and innovator.

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## ironlionzion

I saw him at the world mandolin summit with Paulo Sa and marilynn mair and i couldnt believe my eyes or ears.

Steve

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