New Stonewood mandolin case from Protec Music
We're always interested in reporting new and cost-effective ways to protect and mobilize mandolins, especially when a case is versatile to fit many different body Read more»
08.30.10
New Paul Glasse Videos
Video treats from one of the planet's most amazing jazz mandolinists, Austin Texas stalwart, Paul Glasse. The first is a rare opportunity to witness a Read more»
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"Good improvisation communicates harmonic progression melodically. Effective melodies manipulate harmonic content through the use of guide tones and preparatory gravity notes, masterfully woven in systematic tension, release, and transparent harmonic definition."
Changes in our JazzMando Merchandise Center you should know about, we've recently decided to put more focus on the expanding line of excluseive Labella Flatwound strings (now available in loop-end mandolin, ball-end electric, mandola, and researching 5-string). No disrespect intended to the Thomastik family of mandolin strings, they are superb, but because of the high cost of inventory, we've made the decision to discontinue selling them on the website. We still have a couple sets of the heavies for any that want a clearance deal, but purchase will have to be handled through our contact feature, as the shopping cart option is no longer available for TIs.
We'll leave the Thomastik page up for those using it as a reference for tension information, but we encourage you to try the more economical JazzMando brand if you haven't already. It can be accessed by typing "Thomastik" in our search feature.
June 27, 2009 | Flatwound string project: Mandola/Octave Mandolin
The mandolin world could inarguably use another brand of (loop end) flatwound options for the lower, long scale mandolin instruments like the Octave and Mandola. We actually started partnering a project with D'addario Strings about 18 months ago discussing this, having personally used their existing D'addario Chrome Electric Guitar Set singles (removing the balls) for the studio's OM, and now, a recently acquired 10-string. After some conference calls with the market research team, we suggested on two SKUs to work on. First the set for mandolin (similar to the Labella JM11) with the following gauges:
LE011
LE015
CG024 (loop)
CG036 (loop)
We also highly recommended a compromise collection of loop end flatwounds that would function as both Mandola and Octave mandolin sets. Gauging between these is not all that different among existing mass market offerings.
The company's R&D team is more prone to address high demand for other more broadly popular instruments, but D'addario is committed to the niche spectrums of the fretted, and agrees this is a project worth tackling. We are currently stalled in development, but since the string already exists in a ball-end version, we think the loop-end incarnation would not be far away. As a bonus, the price would be considerably less than current competitive options.
We could use your help lending feedback in support of this project. Please take some time to weigh in at the official D'addario Team Blog. With your voice, we might persuade them to move this up the priority list. Your comments are a direct voice into the ears of the D'addario product development team.
Click into D'addario blogs and let them know you support this notion: D'addario Blogs
June 25, 2009 | Dr. Mao: Four Exercises to Sharpen Your Brain
We've always maintained that learning higher level intellectual concepts such as music theory are initiated best through the drilling of physical motor skills. Playing scale patterns, developing a fingertip tactile awareness is a gateway to grasping (pun intended) the harmonic relationships of notes. We stand vindicated in this by the recent research of health expert Dr. Maoshing Ni (AKA "Dr. Mao") in a published article, "Four Exercises to Sharpen Your Brain." Of special note is #3 "Move your fingers to improve your brain."
From the article: "Why does this work? A map of the brain shows that the nerve endings on your fingertips correspond to more areas of the brain than any other body area, except perhaps the tongue and lips. Therefore, finger exercise and movements can be useful in stimulating the neurons in the brain. The National Institute of Mental Health conducted experiments that showed finger exercises enlarged the capacity of the participants' brains, increased connections between neurons, forged new neural pathways, and increased circulation to the brain areas. The researchers concluded that finger exercise contributed significantly to brain plasticity, the ability of the brain to renew itself. Increased circulation means more oxygen and nutrients for the brain cells and decreased waste products that clog up the brain."
Some professionals bemoan the use of scale drills and arpeggios, citing the development of an overly robotic improvisational sensibility, but we hold they give your thought processes tangibility--something to build higher function thinking concepts. Dr. Mao suggests just the very use of working the fingers stimulates brain neurons.
June 23, 2009 | More opportunities for FFcP support
We mentioned our Facebook support forum "Fretboard Yoga for the Mandolin" last spring, but there is another opportunity for sharing insights to the FFcP System with an engaged group of fans at the MandolinCafe.com Social Groups, "FFcP fans/support. What works for you?" It's a small but active bunch addressing such issues as the mental aspects of FFcP, where to go next, improvising, Pinky finger use, and Major 7th arpeggios. Members exchange their personal experiences and it's a perfect place to ask questions.
All it takes is a Cafe active membership and you can be a part.
Two special events today in the northern hemisphere, one: Father's Day, and two: Summer Soltice, the longest daylight and optimal opportunity to pick on the porch. These two really should go hand in hand. The capacity to enjoy life, to reflect on what is truly important, family, recreation, and the opportunity to aesthetically express ourselves is something not to be taken for granted.
We came across an interesting story a year ago by Reader's Digest contributor, David Hochman, who chronicles his own journey into fretted self-awareness, learning to play an instrument (a mandolin) as an adult, 30 years after abandoning piano lessons. An excerpt:
"Even more remarkable was how grounding it was to play. Somehow the usual anxieties of life -- money, status, the possibility of a meteorite landing on my head -- didn't matter when every atom of my humanity was focused on mastering the four-fingered D chord. Experts in positive psychology call it flow, the rosy feeling of losing oneself in a challenging activity. One night, while working out the melody of "Over the Rainbow," I was startled to see I'd been picking and grinning nonstop for four hours"
This might resonate well with your own experience in fretboard mastery, and worth a reread even if you've already seen it.
Of course we're huge Mandolin Cafe fans here; we just mentioned the terrific free pedagogical resources in our most recent Tips and Tricks article, "They Say the Best Things in Life are Free." We also want to give out a shout to our buddy Scott Tichenor for a recent tweak in his Classified Ads section that allows a quick link from Cafe Ads to Facebook. If you're a Facebook member (if not you should be!), you can "share" your ad by clicking the FB Icon within the ad (single view mode) and it immediately shows up on your Wall for friends to enjoy.
June 17, 2009 | New JazzMando sponsor: The Music Tree
"Cutting edge tools for the mandolin." It's a great tag for our newest JazzMando sponsor "The Music Tree," a website and retail resource for some very interesting accessories for the mandolinist. Company founder, Teri LaMarco and the Florida based team personally test and endorse all their products, items and services hard to find elsewhere.
The latest buzz has been the new Tonerite, a unique de-damping device that enhances tone and response, shortening the "breaking in" period of a mandolin or guitar. They also offer Blue Microphones (for iPod recording!), Eminence Acoustic/Elec Upright Bass, Fostex, Gypsy Mandolins, G7 Capos, Kerly Strings, Olympus LS-10 Recorder, Sabine tuners, and Scott Sweet Instruments.
Visit the "Music Grows Here" website and take them up on their invitation to "come hang out with us in the Tree and enjoy your musical journey."
As promised, a full and in-depth JazzMando review of an Andrew Mowry Octave Mandolin. The young Pacific Northwest craftsman has once again wowed us, official inside nickname "Wowry Mowry." (We have no doubt he gets that all the time...) The deeply resonant guitar-shapied body is as much a treat to the eye as the ear, and for a longer scale, very easy to play. His "King of Clean" detail reminds us very much of the work of California veteran giant Michael Lewis. Don't ever pass up a chance to play a Mowry instrument!
We're still running our sample PT-10 through its paces, but we've had it the last couple days, initial impressions quite positive. We did not have the PT-1 to compare to, but we've enjoyed a Seiko STX-1 for years. The PT-10 not only tracks better and reads more effectively, we love the green/red color change when the pitch "dials" in. Big face for the bifocal crowd gets praise, too! Buttons are on the side, so it's ALL face, all the time, despite its low(er) profile.
It took a bit of fumbling to get to the optimum reading position; with two "3D" swivel adjustments, you have some latitude, but once that is established, you really don't fidget with it much. So far it's been tested on an Octave (low tracks quite well), Clark JM-10, and of course it did wonders for the recently acquired JP Charles 10-string. Other than a slight sympathetic vibration rattle (only heard in extreme silence), we've not found much in the way of negative to report. Certainly the street price is good ($32+/-). The recently announced company trade-in program (old PT-1, PT-2 plus $20, working or not) is a definite bonus (see below for details).
As far as spending more money on its predecessors, one can't help but wish Sony had a similar program for trading in an old CRT TV for a flat-screen (at a fraction of the cost). You have to accept the fact that technology gets cheaper over time, and the resulting obsolescence is a benefit, not a disadvantage. This is a very good thing Intellitouch is doing; re-establishing brand equity (something they never really lost in the first place, just drowned out in the "noise" of competition).
We expect the market will be very happy with the new PT-10.
Website: Tuners.com
Contact: email at hello@tuners.com phone: 800-340-8890.
Trade in details
June 11, 2009 | June Mandolin Session: Closed Fingering Review
The new June MandolinSessions bi-monthly webzine is out, and our Jazz Mandology submission is a review of the Closed Finger strategy we affectionately know as FFcP. Many have already put months, if not years into developing fretboard skills through this approach, but we didn't want to leave anyone behind. This article is a good introduction, if not retrospective.
MandolinSessions recently undertook an entire web facelift, and the new design is great. Unfortunately, the old links we provided to our JM archives were made obsolete, but we have now been able to remedy this. Let us know if you come across any dead links. We considerate one of our best resources on the JazzMando site.
Also, if you wouldn't mind, job security is a good thing; submit your comments (positive, hopefully) in the Feedback section on the bottom of the above article. (Love those 5-star ratings, too!)
A fresh shipment of JM11 strings in, and now all is well with the world. We mentioned last March in our Consumer's Alert a problem we were having with the loops on the D strings loops being too tiny. This has now been remedied at Labella; a new jig has been constructed to allow for creating the proper size. You don't want these loops to be too big either, or you risk the strings fitting improperly.
Despite a few manufacturer issues long since addressed, these flatwound strings have garnered immense popularity, and they've been shipped all over the globe, let alone across the US. The true test of acceptance is reorders, and we're happy to report some customers have been using these as their mainstay string since they first came out in 2005. A well-established substitute for the popular European Thomastik strings, their smooth feel and warm tone are afforded at less than half the price of the TIs.
We appreciate everyone's patience while we worked out issues in our last batch and are optimistic this is now in the rearview mirror.
June 7, 2009 | Andrew Mowry Octave Mandolin Sneak Peek
We've been enjoying the brilliant craft of Oregon builder, Andrew Mowry. Again...
We did a review on one of his magnificent assymetrical two-points a couple years ago, and have the privilege of auditioning his prototype octave mandolin before it makes its way to the next leg of the tour to Boston, into the capable hands of Professor John McGann at the prestigious Berklee School of Music. We've taken some good pictures and hope to document our official and extremely favorable impressions soon in the JazzMando Builders' Spotlight.
June 5, 2009 | The Amazing Jonathan. Jon Mann EM5B Octave/Baritone
Our highest trafficking sponsorship banner ad is none other than Manndolins, the curious craft of Tennessee builder Jonathan Mann. We came across his work around five years ago, and have been pleased to see his popularity increase. (We've owned one of his EM5 electrics ever since then.) His work is truly signature, unique neck-through design, and a master of pick-up placement and variety. You see this incarnated in one of his latest creations, the EM5B electric octave/baritone, in which he takes conventional octave mandolin 4-string tuning GDAE but adds a higher B string.
How does this work? Quite well, and you can see for yourself on this terrific YouTube demo! Some opportune music creating potential:
We've taken the plunge and set up a Twitter account. Note, we aren't about what kind of ice cream topping we just had at the Dairy Queen, or what kind of toothpaste Paris Hilton prefers, this will be a very focused, relevant forum. The whole purpose isn't even as much about jazz as it is the FFcP approach to the mandolin. Thus the name of the Twitter account is FFcPmandolin.
The merits of Twitter are up for discussion (great one going on at the MandolinCafe right now), but we feel this addition will give the typical Twitter user one more way of accessing the latest and greatest discoveries within the FFcP strategies. Bear in mind, in addition to this "What's New" column, we also have the weekly Tips and Tricks entries, bi-monthly entries in Mel Bay's Mandolin Sessions Webzine, a Facebook users group, a MySpace account, a Cafe Social Group, all in an attempt to reach you in the way most fitting your lifestyle.
If you haven't already, this is a good excuse to set up your own Twitter account right now. If you have one already, follow us!
Twitter: @FFcPmandolin
June 1, 2009 | Summer fun: Getting Into Jazz Mandolin
With Memorial Day in the rearview mirror, and Solstice barely three weeks away, it's time to start thinking the things of summer: extended daylight, picking on the porch, or how about investing a couple months getting truly good at something. If you've spent quality time on the free downloadable FFcP exercises, this is the next logical progression for you! The "Getting Into Jazz Mandolin" book and CD from Mel Bay Publishing.
The last half-century has produced an explosion of interest in guitar, mandolin, banjo, ukulele, and other string instruments. Once relegated to simple folk music, these instruments are now in their heyday of popularity, enjoying an exponentially expanding immersion into a variety of more complex styles, from blues to jazz, to a wide array of world ethnicities.
Though rooted in nearly three centuries of European tradition, only in the last two decades the mandolin is just recently following closely on the heels of its more popular bigger brother, the guitar. From Cowboy chords, to Elvis, to Guitar Hero, the guitar of today is prominently main-stream, arguably surpassing the piano in status. The mandolin is poised to capture and captivate a similarly expanding market and popularity; all that has been missing is the published pedagogies necessary to equip the player to enjoy a broader array of musical styles. Until now...
Jazz is the natural evolving starting point, with its complex rhythmic and harmonic structure; this Mel Bay book is a strategic method to take the advanced-beginner folk mandolinist into the richly verdant vocabulary of jazz. With this language at his/her fingertips, the player can dig deep not only into jazz, but other equally complex genres, including classical, Broadway, Brazilian Choro, and many other challenging musical styles.
What this book offers: A clear, consistent course progression. The player starts with something already known (the Major Scale) and develops patterns (FFcP) that can be intuitively expanded. Jazz variations are introduced incrementally, and by the end of the book, the player should be relatively comfortable improvising.
Clear language. Advanced music theory is explained with unpretentious prose, uncomplicated terminology and good humor. A mandolinist could simply play through all the exercises, and at very least, get more proficient with the fretboard, at best build some higher level jazz vocabulary.
Supportive Audio. The 70-minute CD included gives audio examples, as well as limitless opportunity to practice and jam with the exercises. An additional web-based audio page on the JazzMando.com website, Webtracks" offers expanded opportunity to hear and interact with even more sound tracks and professional artists' interpretations of the music and concepts.
Tab and notation. Exercises are written in both standard notation and mandolin tablature to communicate proper fretboard positions. Fingering markings are included to suggest effective finger placement.
Purchase from the author the JazzMando Merchandise Center, $25.00, including domestic US Priority Shipping. Getting Into Jazz Mandolin
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June 29, 2009 | Important Thomastik string update
