# Technique, Theory, Playing Tips and Tricks > Theory, Technique, Tips and Tricks >  Best first book for learning mandolin

## TommyB

Hi everyone.

My first mandolin is on its way to me (whoo-hoo!), and I was wondering what you all would recommend as a first learning resource. Obviously, a good teacher would be ideal, but assuming that it's not an option right now (and it's not), is there any one particular book or video you would recommend for an absolute beginner to the mandolin? (I have experience with stringed instruments, however, and I do enjoy learning on my own.)

Thanks! --- Tom

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## Chris Biorkman

Bert Casey's Mandolin Primer is a good place to start.

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## MrFantasy

A video called "Essential Techniques for Mandolin" by Chris Thile has been very helpful to my mandolin playing. It's very simple, but if you follow the advice he gives in it you will establish a solid foundation for successful future mandolin skills.

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## Chris Biorkman

IMO, Chris Thile's instructional video is way too advanced for a beginner.

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## MrFantasy

yeah you're probably right I was just suggesting it cause it was very helpful and he said he had experience with stringed instruments.

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## Ernie Campbell

Mike Marshall's Fundamentals for All Players,will get you going in the right direction.

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## Carleton Page

The mandolin primer is a very good book. Particularly if tou want to be learning fiddle tunes right away.  It was the first book I had.  My favorite one though is the one by Greg Horne. I can't remember the title. I think it iis one of the National Guitar Workshop books. iI t is very well put together and complete. One important question.  Do you want to read music?  I think that would greatly effect book choice.

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## Mandophyte

Tom,

Take a look at Ted Escliman's FFcP.  Don't be put off be the jazz stuff, it's a great way to get 12 keys using only four fingerings.  Ted provides exercises to get fingers, ears and brain going, and if you fancy you can even buy the book Getting into Jazz Mandolin. 

You don't say whether you have any previous musical experience, if not are you going to read tab or notation.  For tab try tabledit (there's a free reader) or for notations try ABC (see my signature).

You may also find ear training useful, see  functional ear trainer.

Good Luck and above all, Enjoy!

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## John McGann

Shameless self promotion for Sound Fundamentals DVD

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## Alex Orr

Greg Horne's Beginning Mandolin.  And then his Intermediate Mandolin.  Best beginners instructional materials I've seen for any instrument.

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## TommyB

Thanks for all the wonderful suggestions. I'll research all the titles mentioned and see which one(s) speak to me. BTW, I don't read music very well, but I can sort of slog through it  :Redface:  Mandophyte, the idea of learning all 12 keys on the mando really appeals to me, but I know from previous experience with other instruments and teachers that I tend to get oversized ambitions and end up frustrating myself. So I'm going to try to start at the absolute basics and build a strong foundation this time. Ernie, I'm a big fan of Mike Marshall, especially his Choro Famoso stuff, so thanks for that recommendation.

You guys are great! Thanks so much.

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## Jim Nollman

I'd buy a good chord book. There are 4 or 5 to choose from.

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## Jim MacDaniel

> Shameless self promotion for Sound Fundamentals DVD


That's a sound recommendation.

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## bgjunkie

"Beginning Mandolin" by Greg Horne.  I like that it is an instruction book with tunes and not just a tune book.  He also has a nice section to introduce the beginning player to reading standard notation.

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## AlanN

Jack Tottle's Bluegrass Mandolin was one of the first (and still among the best for beginners)...with the thrust being, you guessed it, bluegrass.

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## SincereCorgi

Go old-school and try vol. 1 of Bickford. Finger exercises, tremolo, and the kind of polkas your great grandmother tapped her foot to. It seriously is one of the better primers for technique in my opinion:

http://ia341013.us.archive.org/1/ite...olin01bick.pdf

And it's free!

-Trevor

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## Talbot Dale

Not a book, but I really like Brad Laird's series of instructional videos online at http://www.freeguitarvideos.com/mandolin/catalog.html He has several videos that are free and then he has several videos for $4.99 each. Most of all I think his progression is very useful. I have been working through the videos on soloing with pentatonic scales, and some light bulbs are beginning to come on.

Enjoy the journey,

Tal

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## re simmers

Mel Bay's Deluxe Bluegrass Mandolin book by Ray Valla was a really good one for me.   However, you should have a recording of the tunes if you don't already know the melody.

Jack Tottle was my first book.  It is great, but it went from very beginner to intermediate quickly.

The best written material for me as a beginner was Harold Streeter's tablature and tapes.

But, I took lessons from Ron Pennington, which was the very best way to learn.    A good teacher moved me along much faster than any written material.

Bob

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## Martin Jonas

Everybody has their own favourite, so you'll get lots of recommendations.  My own favourite is Simon Mayor's "Mandolin Tutor", as it's easy to understand, well structured and doesn't have sudden jumps in complexity (a constant problem with much instructional material where the first few pages are impossible basic and then suddenly it gets impossibly complex).  It also covers a good range of different genres so your horizon doesn't get narrowed from the outset.

As far as DVDs are concerned, the only useful one I've ever seen is the Chris Thile one, although it is a prime offender of the complexity jump problem: the first few minutes are very useful indeed for an actual beginner with good basic guidance on technique and pick grip.  Then there are two tunes that are within the reach of someone who has finished Mayor's book (Red-Haired Boy and Swallowtail Jig).  After that he suddenly assumes that you know how to play and just shows off.

Martin

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## re simmers

I forgot to mention Dan Huckabee.   I have 2 of his books/tapes that were extremely helpful to me.  Very good melody, and very good tab.

Bob

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## Alex Orr

> Jack Tottle's Bluegrass Mandolin was one of the first (and still among the best for beginners)...with the thrust being, you guessed it, bluegrass.


It's decent.  I'm running through it right now after playing for three years.  The real problem is that there is no CD, DVD, or multimedia component.  If someone can't read sheet music all that well then handing them a book of tab-based lessons for an instrument they have never played seems like a really inefficient way of teaching.  That book would be better if they'd update it with some multimedia component.  AS it is, it's a decent book that is nonetheless quite outdated by today's standards.

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## AlanN

Ah, but there is a multimedia component. Search the web on 'Robcoleman tottle audio', or something like that. Rob took the little vinyl record and digitized the contents. Many of the book's tunes, exercises are in there. And, as I recall, all of the musical examples are TAB and notation.

I'm sure I'm guilty of some sentimental adherence to this book, as it was my first, bought new in (gasp!) 1976.

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## TommyB

Thanks again, everyone, for all the thoughtful suggestions. I ended up ordering the Greg Horne book for a starter. I know I probably could have done very well with many of the suggestions, but my mando is on its way, my wife is out of town (so it's a good time to make some noise), and I just thought I needed to get something quickly.  :Laughing:  I have no doubt that I'll be adding to the learning library as I progress, and I'll be coming back to this thread as I do.

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## Fretbear

Jack Tottle's "Bluegrass Mandolin" is an excellent source of mandolin instruction and tunes and song breaks, even after all these years. The tabs are not only exact, but also complex and interesting. 
It remains relevant and well worth the money; you can find the old "soundsheet" on-line if you look for it.

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## AlanN

And one good aspect of that book is his concentration on cross-picking. Jack is a heckuva cross-picker, and he included several tunes by Jesse and himself, demoing the technique.

Around the time that book was published, he released his Backroads (or something) record. A fine album, it had an eclectic mix of tunes and players - Ken Kosek, Van Manakas, others. And inside the sleeve was a sheet of TABs to some of the tunes.

Jack has always been a champion of teaching, as evidenced by these works and his ETSU academic bluegrass program leadership. Not bad for a Northeast city boy!

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## Alex Orr

I do like the section on cross-picking.  I can't recall if that came up in the Horne books, although I'm pretty sure it was in the intermediate boook.  In any event, it's not a bad skill to start learning off the bat.  Aside from it's obvious use by itself, crosspicking is simply a great way to help someone improve their right-hand dexterity.  

Anyone know specifically where some of those recording are for the Tottle book?  I spent five minutes or so trying to google it out but couldn't come up with anything.  I honestly don't care enough to spend a ton of time looking for them, but I'd be interested in checking them out if anyone has a site where they are readily available.  

Perhaps a bit of a tangent, but I tried to find a site for Oak Publications, which published the Tottle book, among other classic bluegrass materials.  I couldn't find one.  From what I can tell the Oak imprint is owned by Music Sales, Inc.  Music Sales has a truly lousy website.  Talk about making no effort to use the capacity of the web to draw attention, drive sales, or enhance the product.  It would be pretty sweet (and quite frankly a no-brainer) to make the files available online and allow free downloads of the tunes.

To the OP...  If you're really looking to get into bluegrass, it's never too early to start learning fiddle tunes.  There are a lot of great fiddle tune boooks out there.  I'd recomend Steve Kaufman's Parking Lot Picker books.  Yeah, they are probably over-priced, but he really does do a fantastic job of teaching multiple versions of some foundational fiddle tunes.  His tabs/music almost flawlessly follow the music and the accompanying instructions on the CDs is both detailed and clear.

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