When you start thinking how hard it is to practice. think about all the good handicapped players who have learned. I know one mandolin player who only has part of a thumb didget on his left hand so he uses a finger pick and plays upside down to us. I also know a Dobro player who has a crushed hand had a special bar made to fit his hand so he could play . Now go practice !!!!
Kenneth Froman
Django Reinhardt!
The most impressive I've ever seen is Barry Abernathy, the banjo player with Mountain Heart. He's a great player, and he does it all without any fingers on his left (fretting) hand.
I know a fella on this board who is a great picker and has a handicap. You can't hear it in his playing at all...
Mandofiddle
One of the great old-time mando players is Kenny Hall, who is blind. He learned to play fiddle in a school for the blind. Someone had donated a mandolin to the school and the music teacher asked Kenny if he wanted to give it a try. He tells the story on himself that he first tried playing it under his chin, like a fiddle! He supposedly knows over 2,000 tunes and has inspired some great players.
The banjo player in Mountain Heart, Barry Abernathy only has a thumb and I think part of a finger on his left (fret) hand and he is established as one of the great players in Bluegrass.
Dave, I know who your talking about & he is a heck of a player!
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