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Here's a link to a Finnish polka that I've been practicing for a few days. Was just looking for a polka and came across it. Seems lively, and worth the effort to get it under my fingers: ...

Simple suggestion here. Learn some new music well on the fiddle, then play it on the mandolin for the first time. I play octave mandolin as my primary, and Irish tenor banjo almost as much. I made...

My guitar body octave mandolin became my favorite right away because of the deeper tone, and that it's more comfortable to hold. I started with an A-style Trinity bouzouki as an experiment, and...

When I am tired, my playing tends to slow down. I played octave mandolin 3 hrs straight last night with an accordion playing friend, and towards the end it was hard to keep going. The coordination...

How to remember? It's always a work in progress. What has worked for me: Always have a group of new tunes to work on. I usually run through them first, and then go on to play the more familiar...

Here's a set of reels with Angelina Carberry on tenor banjo, and Martin Quinn on accordion. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dy8RZf_kFGY

I realized octave mandolin had become my primary instrument after getting one, and getting used to the fingering on a longer neck. Then I took up the Irish tenor banjo to play in Irish sessions. ...

I've been getting together with a friend at home every 2 weeks throughout the pandemic. As the time drags on, with no end in sight, we do the precautions, and keep to a small circle of friends,...

I had one of their mandolas in the past and the tuners were of very low quality. They clearly would not have lasted long. I made a new bridge for it, and it was playable for a while, until the neck...

So-called "nature" and "nurture" are both involved to some extent, but motivation is the key ingredient. Some people have OCD, a disorder where focus and and persistence are misplaced, unhealthy. ...

The mandolin is another pet that is not cozy for the cat to snuggle up to, and it monopolizes your lap. It is the cat that is insulted. Don't worry though, she will adapt to reality, and clamor for...

Choose a few tunes to practice that use that 5th finger, and pull them out to work on every day or every few days. Take it slow, and it will feel like you are beating up the poor pinky. It has...

Hi Alan, I started at 58, and now about to retire 8 yrs later at the end of this month, happy with my progress, but still striving to improve. This is what I have done: Keep my instrument out of...

Learning new tunes, and practicing those I already know go together for me. The more tunes you learn, the more patterns common to many tunes get built into muscle memory, so it gets easier. Picking...

Standing now and then helps make playing feel more natural and at ease. Not that a little practice isn't required. It's worth the effort though, even if just for a few minutes at a time. Sometimes...

I like: QuietEar Reusable Musician and Motorcycle Ear Plugs from Ear Plug Superstore online. Mine have inadvertently gone through the washer and dryer, again and again, and they are still fine. I...

The point about relaxing is important. Trying hard to reach does make it harder. Staying focused while also being relaxed doesn't happen automatically or necessarily quickly. I have to keep...

Musicians strive for perfection. And music touches the heart, and emotions. Just like you can't have too many friends, you can't have too many beautiful instruments. I limit my collection to the...

I have a Trinity College, and like the octaves. The topic has come up before, and people have a lot to say about it. The worry about tuning is probably valid on some instruments. All of them need...

Simple question, simple answer: Irish. Is what I say. Could also say, live music, or, my own style, or, this and that, or, depends where I am. No point in going on and on about styles if they are...

With a chuckle, and talking about it openly. "I never met a man named ____ until now." A smile, a handshake. Helps being named Robin, I suppose. Anyone with an ambiguous name knows that it is. ...

Subtle for the listener, not as subtle to the musician. In my opinion it's something to enjoy and take advantage of. Lower notes don't seem to carry like the higher notes do, so the octaves help. ...

Octaves or not, it's a matter of taste. I love the way they give a sparkle to notes played on the G and D strings. The strings I use come as a set. Octaves on the A and E strings would be too...

To tell the truth, I clicked on the link to see what the complaint was about. Despite that topic, the articles give a good overview of those music styles. Thanks for sharing.

I'm a fan too. This video is a delight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLEAikGNUwU