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Thread: Visual Chord Cues?

  1. #1
    Registered User Mandobart's Avatar
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    Default Visual Chord Cues?

    Like many of us I play guitar and a few other instruments besides mandolin. Like many others I read notation but mostly learn tunes and play by ear. I've been playing violin and guitar for almost 50 years, and mandolin for about 15 years.

    Sometimes in a chord-y song I'll watch the guitar player's fretting hand to see what the chords are. But I'm still not able to reliably read chords off a fellow mandolin player (even in first position). I don't see it as an issue - I'm just wondering if I'm the only one that isn't able to distinguish mandolin chords visually.

  2. #2
    Registered User Mando Esq's Avatar
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    Sep 2022
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    Default Re: Visual Chord Cues?

    “Reading” chords from another mandolin will likely always be harder than from a guitar given that the mandolin has a much smaller neck and the fingers are more squished together.

    What you may be able to rough out visually is the general shape and location of, say, chop chords. If it looks like a chop chord and it’s centered around the third fret, then there’s a good chance it’s a G or a C. If it’s centered around the fifth fret, then it is likely an A or a D.
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