Chords on a Mandolin?

Subject: RE: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: RichM
Date: 03 Oct 01 - 08:59 AM

Double stops are partial chords, played on two adjacent strings.

Subject: RE: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: Stu
Date: 03 Oct 01 - 04:14 AM

Whoa! Wot's double stops then?

Subject: RE: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: GUEST
Date: 02 Oct 01 - 08:56 PM

I find that I play double stops on mandolin probably as much as regular chords, especially on celtic tunes. Same for bouzouki and the like. Stringing double stops together is one of the nicest techniques on mandolin and they can fill the background nicely.

Subject: RE: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: Cappuccino
Date: 02 Oct 01 - 02:46 PM

I wish it had been an original thought. Good luck.

And thank you Mooman for that link!

- Ian B

Subject: RE: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: Stu
Date: 02 Oct 01 - 04:31 AM

Thanks folks!

I realise that you have to show a bit of common sense in these situations but I'll give it a go. Interesting comment from Ian B abound the analogy of a snare drum. I've always liked the percussive feel of accompanyment some players of bouzouki get (Donal Lunny is the obvious example) and think a variation of this may prove appropriate.

Thanks again!

Subject: RE: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: Gypsy
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 10:55 PM

Well, i've wanted to play chords, but a guitar is just too big for my hands. So i play chords on my mando, and octave mandolin. Adds a nice sound to a session, and a nice alternate for me from the hammered dulcimer

Subject: RE: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: mooman
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 06:09 AM

Dear Stigweard,

I've been playing mandolin for at least 35 years in sessions and love to use chords occasionally, both when someone takes over the melody line within a tune, and sometimes when a tune is new to me. Wherever you read that playing chords is not acceptable is absolutely wrong.

Mandolin chords can make a very positive contribution to the overall sound of a session, provided that such backing is sympathetic to the melody and does not become monotonous.

Here is a site with mandolin chords to get you started but it is fairly easy to make up some nice "modal" sounding ones of your own!

Happy picking and strumming!

mooman

Subject: RE: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: Cappuccino
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 05:52 AM

Somebody in a recent thread recommended thinking of mandolin chords as similar to the snare drum - don't play too much, because one beat counts!

- IanB

Subject: RE: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: GUEST,Guest-MC Fat
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 04:52 AM

Mandolin chords sound great in sessions I think. The crap way of playing them is to think of guitar chords upside down and in the main that works.

Subject: Chords on a Mandolin?
From: Stu
Date: 01 Oct 01 - 04:45 AM

I play on a couple of Irish sessions locally, and have taken up the Mandolin after many years of Bodhran playing. The thing is, there are so many tunes to learn, which I feel I'm slow in learning, so I like to strum chords along on some tunes. Is this acceptable? I've read that you never play chords on a mandolin in sessions. I quite like the sound though.