Beginner mandolin tips and advice

[osmosis jones]

So basically, im new to the mandolin. I know nothing about it. My dad aquired one at a yardsale and gave it to me; much to my pleasure. I play ukulele so i was able to mess around with the mandolin and learn how to play winter winds by mumford and sons on it. But other than that i don't know how to play anything else, the main problem being I don't know what there is to play! I know that you can just play chords for songs, but i found that i don't like the sound of mandolin chords in non-mandolin songs. I'm interested in learning jigs and bluegrass. Could anyone help me by giving me some simple songs(preferably tablature) to try out? Also, I feel like on my mandolin that its hard to press the strings down, is this normal with new strings or is my tension on the strings to high? Does bridge placement make a difference(where should the bridge be placed)? Any other handy tips and advice would be welcome!

Thanks so much in advance!!!
(sorry if this is posted in the wrong place...)

[Ed Goist]

Hi Osmosis Jones (great name BTW), and welcome to the Cafe.

String tension on a mandolin is much higher than on a ukulele, so set-up and action tend to be very important. Lighter gauge strings may help, but a good set-up is really key to good playability on a mandolin.

Correct positioning of the mandolin's floating bridge is very important. It should be positioned such that each string course plays the same note on the 12th fret as it does on the open strings (which should be, low to high, GDAE). One thing to get you in the ballpark is to place the saddle (the part of the bridge upon which the strings ride) so that the distance from the bottom of the nut to the middle of the saddle (measured right down the middle of the fretboard) is 13 7/8".

When it comes to tabs for simple songs, I highly recommend Elizabeth Knuth's great mandolin tab page.

Again, welcome, and best wishes on your mandolin journey!

[Rob Meldrum]

As Ed said, a good set up will make it easier and more enjoyable to play your mandolin. Email me at rob.meldrum@gmail.com for a free ebook on set up (free to all mandolincafe.com members).

Go to youtube and search "mandolin lessons." There's enough to keep anyone busy for a couple of years. I wish I had that resource 40 years ago!

For fun, join the song a week social group here. You'll learn lots of new songs.

Rob

[osmosis jones]

Thankyou both for the advice! much apreciated

[cammtb]

Agreed on the importance of the set up. My wife plays ukelele and the strings are lower than on a mandolin. There are a lot of online sites that give information regarding mandolin set up. If you don't feel comfortable making the adjustments on your own you can always take it to a music store and have them do the necessary adjustments. And yes there are more than enough online mandolin lessons for all types of music. Enjoy your new mandolin

[rgray]

Check out Nigel Gatherer's site at http://www.nigelgatherer.com/tunes/tab.html.

[Jo Ann]

As Ed said, a good set up will make it easier and more enjoyable to play your mandolin. Email me at rob.meldrum@gmail.com for a free ebook on set up (free to all mandolincafe.com members).

Go to youtube and search "mandolin lessons." There's enough to keep anyone busy for a couple of years. I wish I had that resource 40 years ago!

For fun, join the song a week social group here. You'll learn lots of new songs.

Rob

Thanx for all these great ideas! really appreciate it!

[jshane]

I just received this ebook, and I can say that it is a GEM! THANKS ROB!!!

-john