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Thread: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

  1. #101
    Registered User David Rambo's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    No.
    "Put your hands to the wood
    Touch the music put there by the summer sun and wind
    The rhythms of the rain, locked within the rings
    And let your fingers find The Music in the Wood."
    Joe Grant and Al Parrish (chorus from The Music in the Wood)

  2. #102
    Circle of Fifths NewKid's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    No. I have a Phoenix Bluegrass mandolin but mainly play Bach sonatas and partitas on it.
    2009 Phoenix Bluegrass

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  4. #103
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Quote Originally Posted by Willi Bahrenberg View Post
    ... for those who were wondering: Nitzhonot is a subgenre of Goa coming from Israel. Bronycore is a type of dubstep created by and for adult men obsessed with the show My little Pony. ...
    HA! Started off delighted to have an explaination, and then ... uhmm, maybe not so sure?
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  5. #104
    Professional Dreamer journeybear's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Quote Originally Posted by journeybear View Post
    But yes, I imagine bluegrassers are the most major minority hereabouts, but not the majority. Isn't there a statistical term for that?

    Ah: majority minority. There's a mouthful.
    Quote Originally Posted by Southern Man View Post
    Plurality.
    Actually, no. "Plurality" refers to a group with the largest number of members if there is no majority. If given only two choices, there will be a majority and a minority. But if this survey were expanded to include definition by genre, yes, bluegrassers might very well prove to be the plurality. But since the choice is either/or, that's irrelevant.

    FWIW, as an example, a few times a presidential election has been won with a plurality of the vote, due to the effect of a third (or fourth, fifth, etc.) party candidate drawing enough votes that the winning candidate had less than 50% of the votes cast. He still was the winner, even without a majority. This occurs fairly often in Europe, where many countries have numerous parties. Famously, in the 1992 election, Ross Perot received nearly 19% of the votes, and Bill Clinton won with only 43% - a plurality.

    Quote Originally Posted by NewKid View Post
    No. I have a Phoenix Bluegrass mandolin but mainly play Bach sonatas and partitas on it.
    Now, this response reminds me of what I keep forgetting to mention: classical players must represent a considerable minority here, even though not many have piped up.

    We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming, already in progress.
    But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. - Dennis Miller

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  6. #105
    Registered User Timbofood's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Mostly.
    It’s what I’ve been paid to play.
    I have done some more “folky” stuff too but, not a lot.
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  7. #106
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    No Bluegrass for me...in fact, I think the reason it took me so long to come around to realizing I actually liked the mando was that the only place I heard mandolin played was in all the BG music my father listened to as I was growing up, and I was NOT a fan. When I took up guitar just a few years ago, I started meeting folks who played mandolin in all the other genres, and I really liked it. So here I am...

  8. #107
    Registered User E.R. Villalobos's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    I don’t think so, so that’s probably a no. As a recent arrival to the mandolin, I’ve been learning mostly fiddle tunes and old time music as many new players do.
    As I improve I would like to explore other types of music such as classical and jazz but probably not bluegrass.

  9. #108
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    No. I tend to be more jazz oriented. Depends on my mood though.

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  11. #109
    Registered User Christine Robins's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    No. I'd describe what I play as "Americana", which includes bluegrass, classic country, and singer-songwriter, as well as blues. The relative distribution of these various genres depends on the folks I'm jamming with. Currently, maybe 20% of the songs I play with others would be considered traditional bluegrass songs. But how I play doesn't change much depending on how the song is classified.

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  13. #110

    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Yes, it's been a while (10 yrs?) but when I played mndln it was typically BG. I only played for a couple or few years though.

    I think the mndln does best in a BG setting. I play many other styles, but play other instruments for those..

  14. #111

    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    To be or not to be, that is the question. Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous chopping or by taking up arms against a sea of banjos and by opposing them end them.

    When bluegrassers get together I play it. There is less of it all the time where I live. The band I play with does polkas, waltzes and old standards for people to dance to. I never imagined playing that kind of music but it has been great fun. At home I play whatever gets my attention.

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  16. #112
    Registered User lowtone2's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Yes! I try to play bluegrass along with all the other stuff I try to play. I love the instrument in many settings but it works far better in bg than anything else per me.

  17. #113
    Registered User Charlie Bernstein's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Hicks View Post
    No - can't my fingers that fast. (Or, more likely, my brain.)

    D.H.
    Ditto dat!
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  19. #114
    Registered User Murphy Slaw's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    No.

    Folky bluesy rootsy Americana.
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  21. #115
    Rush Burkhardt Rush Burkhardt's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Yes
    Rush Burkhardt
    Towson, MD


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  23. #116
    The Amateur Mandolinist Mark Gunter's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Quote Originally Posted by journeybear View Post
    Actually, no. "Plurality" refers to a group with the largest number of members if there is no majority. If given only two choices, there will be a majority and a minority. But if this survey were expanded to include definition by genre, yes, bluegrassers might very well prove to be the plurality. But since the choice is either/or, that's irrelevant.

    FWIW, as an example, a few times a presidential election has been won with a plurality of the vote, due to the effect of a third (or fourth, fifth, etc.) party candidate drawing enough votes that the winning candidate had less than 50% of the votes cast. He still was the winner, even without a majority. This occurs fairly often in Europe, where many countries have numerous parties. Famously, in the 1992 election, Ross Perot received nearly 19% of the votes, and Bill Clinton won with only 43% - a plurality.


    Now, this response reminds me of what I keep forgetting to mention: classical players must represent a considerable minority here, even though not many have piped up.

    We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming, already in progress.
    Yes and no … that is, you are correctly making a fine point about the binary nature of the informal poll posited by this thread, but considering the cafe as a whole, the bluegrassers appear to win the plurality … and yes, all this has been discussed before in these parts.
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  24. #117

    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Quote Originally Posted by Murphy Slaw View Post
    No.

    Folky bluesy rootsy Americana.
    With a dash of 60s, 70s, 80s rock; think Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Byrds, Mark Knopfler, British Invasion, Clapton, Pink Floyd, etc. I do love some electric mixed in with the acoustic.

    Len B.
    Clearwater, FL

  25. #118
    Professional Dreamer journeybear's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    As we inch our way up to 100 responses, my latest accounting reveals something remarkable. With 91 "votes cast," at 70 nos to 21 yeses, we have the exact same ratio of 10:3 or 3.3:1. I find that remarkable, and so I remark.

    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Gunter View Post
    ... you are correctly making a fine point about the binary nature of the informal poll posited by this thread, but considering the cafe as a whole, the bluegrassers appear to win the plurality … and yes, all this has been discussed before in these parts.
    I'm not sure my point was all that fine. Painting with rather broad strokes here - not exactly brain surgery with a monkey wrench, but something like. I never thought there was any doubt that bluegrassers would represent a considerable minority, since the history and future of the mandolin and bluegrass are intricately intertwined. I am pleased to discover how many players have embraced the variety of capabilities of the instrument.
    But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. - Dennis Miller

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  26. #119

    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    I suppose if the question was do you play some Bluegrass on your mandolin most would say yes.
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  28. #120

    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    No.

  29. #121
    Registered User Randi Gormley's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    no
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  30. #122
    Registered User Dave Hicks's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Quote Originally Posted by Willi Bahrenberg View Post

    ...

    Oh, and for those who were wondering: Nitzhonot is a subgenre of Goa coming from Israel. Bronycore is a type of dubstep created by and for adult men obsessed with the show My little Pony. It is a thing. I don't judge - I still kinda like Pokemon.
    Both genres aren't usually associated with the mandolin, though.
    Quote Originally Posted by EdHanrahan View Post
    HA! Started off delighted to have an explaination, and then ... uhmm, maybe not so sure?
    At least I've found my new stage name, though I may have to tamper with the spelling a bit... maybe Bronacor Nitzonotte?

    D.H.

  31. #123
    Professional Dreamer journeybear's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Don't worry about the spelling, everyone will misspell it anyway - club owners, writers, advertisers, even your fans. And mispronounce it, too. People might call you "Bro" for short, but it should be pronounced "bra" (the hipster way to say "bro") to go with "Bron," akin to "brontosaurus" (that's how I hear it, anyway). But if you can live with that level of misunderstanding and misapplication, go for it. You'll make your mark on history as the musician with the most unpronounceable name. Well, maybe not. There are cultures with languages that really look daunting. Still, this isn't "Tom Jones."
    But that's just my opinion. I could be wrong. - Dennis Miller

    Furthering Mandolin Consciousness

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  33. #124
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Quote Originally Posted by CarlM View Post
    ... never imagined playing that kind of music but it has been great fun.
    Nicely said, and probably true for a plurality of us. Having come from '60s rock and 'round-the-6pack folk, I never expected to be heavily into traditional Italian music but, yes, it IS great fun!
    - Ed

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    Our mistakes weren't quite so easy to undo
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    I'm a better man for just the knowin' of you."
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  34. #125
    Registered User mbruno's Avatar
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    Default Re: To be or not to be (a bluegrass player)

    Quote Originally Posted by OldSausage View Post
    This is so post-pandemic.
    I'm not even sure what that means hahaa. Streaming music and the availability of pretty much every genre has been at our fingertips for many years already.

    Here's a gem from the man himself from 2013 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXDL6_3gFu0
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