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Thread: Picking practice - Paganini's Perpetuum Mobile?

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    Default Picking practice - Paganini's Perpetuum Mobile?

    (Sorry, it's actually called Moto Perpetuo, but I can't edit the Subject line here)

    How about this piece for familiarising myself (as a fiddler) with the mandolin keyboard and picking? It's maybe 200 bars, including repeat, of relentless semiquavers, starting with 1st position C scale, then introducing more accidentals and string crossings and later getting into higher positions. It mostly stays below 15th fret until 4th last bar, which eventually runs up to fret 20 to shake some dust off

    Can you suggest anything more effective for mandolin? I'm looking for a piece I can quickly learn by ear then play to death till picking feels second nature.

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    Default Re: Picking practice - Paganini's Perpetuum Mobile?

    Have a look at this...

    Pava S/N 21
    Calace Bowlback

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    Default Re: Picking practice - Paganini's Perpetuum Mobile?

    Yep, that's the piece, just not as i know it, being at least twice as fast Thanks for that!

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    Mando-Accumulator Jim Garber's Avatar
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    Default Re: Picking practice - Paganini's Perpetuum Mobile?

    Quote Originally Posted by maxr View Post
    Can you suggest anything more effective for mandolin? I'm looking for a piece I can quickly learn by ear then play to death till picking feels second nature.
    Many Bach pieces are better IMHO (cello suites transcribed for violin and the S&Ps for violin) and, to my ears, much more satisfying music. If you want to play this kind of stuff even scale books covering two- and three-octave scales in all keys are better.

    Personally, I think there are even better Pagannini pieces like the Caprices. This one gives me a big headache, even on violin.

    Jim

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    Default Re: Picking practice - Paganini's Perpetuum Mobile?

    Yes - I'd be playing it about 1/4 that speed, However, at my stage I'm looking at it as a mechanical tool to get familiar with picking and fretting cleanly. I love Bach, must dig out my S & Ps - but it's surprising to what extent he uses repeating finger patterns. I used to play cello - a 5 string one with a high E string for playing fiddle tunes. I discovered that I could play bits of the infamous 6th Cello Suite. because some of the really high bits (on a 4 string cello) repeated finger patterns from the same musical phrase lower down. Playing fiddle so long, I eventually found I wasn't cello-shaped enough and gave up on that

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    Mando-Accumulator Jim Garber's Avatar
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    Default Re: Picking practice - Paganini's Perpetuum Mobile?

    I understand that and it makes sense. What about Kreutzer etudes? My pro violinist friend walked me through those as excellent pedagogy tool even for mandolin.
    Jim

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    Default Re: Picking practice - Paganini's Perpetuum Mobile?

    If your goal is "a mechanical tool to get familiar with picking and fretting cleanly", then consider Mike Marshall's Fingerbusters. This book was designed to zero in on exactly that. It's very well thought out.

    Another good book on this subject is The Mandolin Companion by Alison Stephens and Chris Acquavella.

    Tom

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