darticus - Posted - 12/27/2016:  04:27:32

I did get a Washburn Mandolin for Christmas and could use some starter suggestions. I do play other instruments including guitar but could use suggestions. I'm old so be gentle! Thanks all Ron

Texasbanjo - Posted - 12/27/2016:  04:50:27

I'd get a good beginner instruction book/CD and get the basics down.  Since you play other instruments, you could probably take it from there.  I used Eddie Collins beginner mandolin book as a starter and after I got chords figured out and a few basic melodies and licks/riffs, I  just sort of messed around with it until I could figure out how to play whatever song I was working on.  

It might be a little rough on finger tips if you don't have a pretty good set of calluses anyway because the strings are so much smaller than guitar.  Other than that, I found it very easy to figure out and to play.  I'm not very good at it but I just play for fun anyway.  

darticus - Posted - 12/27/2016:  08:48:27

It came with a basic book which shows a nice chord chart. I guess I'll take my time and just get use to play and changing some songs. I would like to know what type of music is best for it. Thanks Ron

DHopkins - Posted - 12/28/2016:  06:50:59

If you're playing acoustic instruments, it can help you somewhat. If you playing practically anything else, except for music theory, etc., it's not much help.

I'm self-taught so I never used any books that might help you. It's my understanding that there are some good ones out there. You Tube might also help. What I will tell you is practice. Do it everyday, even if only for 10 or 15 minutes. If you just want to play chords, that's one thing. The basic chords are not much problem but if you end up playing a Ddim, for instance, you'll need to practice.....a lot. There are smartphone apps that will help you with chords.

If you want to play anything else, it'll take a lot of work but it will be worth it. Get the books, check out the lessons on You Tube and practice.

darticus - Posted - 12/28/2016:  07:18:15

Thanks for the suggestions. I will practice. Ron

UsuallyPickin - Posted - 12/28/2016:  15:14:00

Well ... Don Julin wrote a pretty great all around book on playing mandolin. It is a "For Dummies" book and IMO deserves a better title. It is an all around getting started compendium worth your consideration as a beginner. R/

darticus - Posted - 12/28/2016:  15:40:23

Thanks I will check it out. Ron

Texasbanjo - Posted - 12/29/2016:  04:41:00

What kind of music do you like to listen to?  Bluegrass, clawhammer, country, gospel, pop?  Whatever music you like is probably what you should learn to play as you'll stay more interested in learning if you like the music.  A mandolin can play just about any type of music you want it to.  If you know the chords and the melody, that's the main thing.  Doesn't matter much what instrument it is.

I play banjo, guitar and mandolin and have different genres of music that I love to pick, everything from bluegrass, country, gospel, pop to some classic and classical.  It works on all instruments.

darticus - Posted - 12/29/2016:  07:21:00

I'm older and don't really know the type of music I like best I like everything Beatles to Irish concertina. Wanted to do Well respected man by the kinks but just doesn't sound good on the mandolin. I think its the position of the chords in G. Thanks Ron

DHopkins - Posted - 12/29/2016:  07:44:07

I'm like in many respects. I'm old (70+) and I like all kinds of music. My mp3 player has some classical (Rossini, Bach, Vivaldi, etc.), Do Wop, bluegrass, older country, both black and Southern gospel and more. A lot of that doesn't lend itself to a mandolin. I play in a small band. We do Haggard, Strait, Don Williams, Eagles, Jimmy Buffet, etc., plus a lot of original stuff. Some of our music just doesn't work with a mandolin. In those, I will only do chop chords for percussion or switch to my solid body electric mandolin.

We do very little new country because, as someone once said, "Country music now is like poor rock and roll." We're relatively successful because we average about 8+ gigs a month and we can put out about 10,000 watts if we have to. It's tough to be a chick magnet at my age but I'm working on it.

darticus - Posted - 12/29/2016:  09:11:52

I'll just keep working on it. Maybe designing chord positions to work with the song might do better. Hey you know your a chick magnet! Thanks Ron

The Mando Shop - Posted - 12/30/2016:  04:04:05

Often times mandolins like the Washburn are sold without a setup.  You might consider taking it to your local repairman to have it checked out.  Sometimes a few minor adjustments can make it much easier to play and while you are learning you want it to be as easy to play as possible.

Timothy Kyle Dunn

​themandoshop.com

darticus - Posted - 12/30/2016:  04:30:32

I have set up many guitars so I think I have the knowledge. Just have to find bar chords and other info and use it. Where is the best place to find good info? Thanks Ron

The Mando Shop - Posted - 12/30/2016:  05:57:20

Mandolin Compass has some good learning material for beginners.  Here's a link to Chop Chords for Small Hands which I found kind of interesting.

mandolincompass.com/product/ea...-38033105

Timothy Kyle Dunn

​themandoshop.com

darticus - Posted - 12/30/2016:  07:15:07

Thanks very much. I will check it out. Ron

bradlaird - Posted - 01/01/2017:  17:44:47

Ron:

Welcome to the world of mandolin! Timothy (above) already linked to the company's site who markets a lot of my instructional material but here are a few other things which can be useful to a beginner.

1. I put together a page with the absolute first things I think every new mandolin owner/player needs to know about. It's in the "blog" section of my own site here:

bradleylaird.com/blog-articles...sson.html

2. You may notice that Mandolin Compass primarily sells the video lessons in groups of 6. One nice thing about that is that several of the groups are also produced on DVD with a printed booklet. However, if a person wants to "roll their own" and pick and choose the individual lessons it's better to hop over to my own site where I offer them individually. Here's a link to the complete list:

bradleylaird.com/playthemandol...deos.html

Incidentally, a lot of the videos are free to watch and I also have a rather extensive collection of other mandolin lessons and  instructional material which you can easily find if you just stroll around my site bradleylaird.com

And, finally, if you ever have a question or comment about any of my material you can email me by hitting the "contact" link at the top of that page.

Have fun and happy pickin'

Brad

Edited by - bradlaird on 01/01/2017 17:45:36