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Miscellaneous Mandolin Family Questions & Answers
Editor's Note: Over the years as the CMSA’s webmaster, I have received numerous questions about mandolins and mandolin-family instruments. Here is a selection of them here, along with my answers. (Note to any reader: If you know of a better answer to any of these questions or have something to add, please don't hesitate to send it along for everyone's edification, not least mine!) Contact me to contribute!
To view based on category, click your area of interest.
Technique
Hi there,
I have a classical technique question: for long notes in a classical mandolin setting, is the note played as tremolo or it is just strummed once at the beginning of the note and held open for the duration of the note?
Many thanks,
Eric
Hi Eric,
Generally, notes longer than a quarter note call for a tremolo, but this is by no means a hard and fast rule. In slow music, often the effect that is wanted is the beautiful bell-like chords of a mandolin ensemble all playing single pick strokes.
In mandolin family instruments, like violin family instruments, all the "color" in the music is imparted by the right hand (the pick for mandolins and the bow for violins). Examples: you may tremolo fast and loud to impart excitement (especially as you ascend in pitch), fast and soft to convey intensity, not at all for a grave or stately passage, "metallico" or "sul ponto", near the bridge for a bright metallic ("Japanese") sort of sound, "sul tasto" ("tasty"), back near the end of the fingerboard for more lushness, etc, plus all the variations of these.
In a mandolin orchestra setting, you usually have more mandolins than lower voices (mandola, mandocello). The lower voices should often tremolo versus single strokes for the mandolins to help balance the sound. In quartet or small ensemble, blending with the other players is very important... In either case, it's best if everyone in the ensemble agrees (mandatory for a section!) on how you'll play the music so it sounds as unified as possible.
Orchestras
I live in Sedona, Arizona and would like to know if there is a Mandolin Orchestra, or a Mandolin / Guitar Group close by. I lived in S.Paulo / Brazil and played in the Mandolin Orchestra there (I play the guitar and the mandola) and I really miss not being able to play here since I moved to Sedona.
Do you have any ideas?
Hedy
Hi Hedy,
I don't know of a mandolin or guitar ensemble in the Sedona area (that is, none have contacted me to be listed on the Classical Mandolin Society website!). However, a quick Google search for "mandolin Arizona" turned up some promising leads.
First thing I would do is contact The Mandolin Store in Wickenburg, AZ and see if they know of any such group. If not, I suggest you have them post a notice on their message board, and/or maybe you can find some players and start your own group! (There seems to be a fair amount of mandolin-related activity in the area, YOU may be just the catalyst they have been waiting for to get something going!) If that seems to be a possibility, contact me again and we'll talk about how and where to get some music to get started!
Also, don't forget to check our "Groups and Orchestra" page from time to time. Click here.
Bowlbacks
Dear Sir,
I have a rather unusual bowl-shaped mandolin. The peg box resembles a violin peg box. The pegs are ivory. There is inlaid mother of pearl around the sound hole, and tortoiseshell between the sound hole and the carved bridge. I was able to play it until it was damaged in a flood some years back. Right now it has cracks and is very fragile. The mandolin was given to me over 35 years ago by an old Italian lady, who said "Here, you're a music teacher."
The mandolin was sold by a John Brandt who was a salesman from "Salesroom 21" at the Central Music Mall in Chicago (at the corner of State and Randolph) before 1900. The building was replaced by the Marshall Field store after the Chicago fire of 1871. The actual date was written in ink on the label but has since faded- flooded(?) off. I remember it as being January of 1864/84.
Have you any info on the marketing of bowl-backed mandolins in America? I would appreciate any info on old bowl-backed mandolins.
Mary
Hi Mary,
There were a lot of American-made Neapolitan style (bowlback) instruments manufactured in the last 25 years of the 19th and the early years of the 20th century. There were also a number of instruments made in Italy during the same time period. There were many variations on the peghead and tuners, some due to the luthier's familiarity with violin construction (like yours), some to vary the construction of the instrument sufficiently to allow it to be eligible for a unique patent number.
I can't identify the instrument from your description. It might be easier to identify if you take some good pictures of it. Particularly, try to get good pictures of the pegs and pegbox, the front, the ribs and the bridge. A picture of the label inside the instrument is usually also helpful, except I understand the damage it has sustained.
I'll be happy to post the pictures on the CMSA webpage for the membership to comment on and perhaps get some further information for you. (If you need help with getting the pictures to me, let me know.)
Hello,
My name is David Stanley, I have a mandolin that I would like to have appraised. This instrument is quite old and in near-perfect condition, (for its age). I received this mandolin as a gift from my grandmother in 1979. At that time it was quite old and in the same shape it is in now. I have only opened the case 6 or 7 times since then. It was owned by her brother, who was down on his luck and was going to sell this, so she gave him some money and kept the instrument. That transaction was in the 1940s, so I know the mandolin is old.
I have no idea what maker this is, but it is very ornate and it is the original “taterbug” type. I can take pictures ,or send it out for appraisal, but I was wondering if there was anyone in Colorado I could take it to for this appraisal. I won’t sell it until after I find out what it is worth.
David
Hi David,
You don't say where you are in CO, but a quick Google search located the following:
Woodsongs (Boulder)
Olde Towne Pickin Parlor (Arvada)
Music Resources (Ft. Collins) (scroll down to the Music Stores/Products section)
Any of these folks should be able to give you an idea what you have.
Look inside the instrument or on the headstock (where the tuners are) and see if there's a maker's label or identification information. Most inexpensive Neapolitan or "tater-bug" style mandos don't have an identified maker, but if yours is identified, maybe it's a better one. The inexpensive ones had a regrettable tendency for the neck to "pull up" (due to poor internal bracing) making the action too high to play at the 12th fret. Carefully measure the distance from the strings to the 12th fret with a small steel ruler. If that distance is not more than about 1/8" and the neck is straight, you may have a good one! Otherwise, you have a nice memento of your uncle!
If you contact any of the folks in the list above, they'll want to see the instrument or they'll want good photographs. Particularly, take pictures of the headstock, the top and the label (if there is one), then the back of the headstock, and then the body. Carefully note any cracks or separations at the seams of the instrument, or missing or damaged inlay or purfling (the strip of pretty wood or pearl around the top). All that figures into the value.
Hello my name is Dean.
I was wondering if you could give me any information about a mandolin made by a company named Juliette from New York. Do you know anything about it?
Dean
Hi Dean,
In my experience (which is admittedly limited), your mandolin is one of very many that were sold under a number of names and brands in the early 1900s, on the crest of the wave of popularity that the mandolin enjoyed then. I do not know the name "Juliette" specifically.
The relocation of the bridge as shown in your attached photograph indicates that the "action" (height of the strings above the fingerboard) on your mandolin may have risen up unacceptably high. This is very common, as a large number of this style (Neapolitan) of mandolins were not adequately constructed internally, and the necks have "pulled out" of them under string tension.
If yours suffers from this kind of defect and you want an instrument to play, it is usually more expensive to repair than the instrument is worth. Find another one. On the other hand, if the instrument belonged to a relative and you are keeping it as an heirloom, this does not matter!
Instruments - maintenance & repair
Dear Mandolin Webmaster,
I own my grandfather's mandolin inlaid with ivory and the back of the instrument is fat like a belly. It is a dark wood. It is in good condition but needs to be restrung, the wood reconditioned and inlay replaced. How would I go about finding a reputable repair expert?
Douglas
Hi Douglas,
Check your Yellow Pages for Luthiers (violin repair persons) or perhaps Guitar Repair. You can also search the Internet. Depending on where you are in the country, there should be a selection of folks near you who can do what you want. You are best advised to take the instrument to your selected repair person. Don't just send a photo, since the repair person can give you a better quote by handling the instrument, thus the recommendation to find someone local to you.
The cost will be dependent on the damages to be rectified of course, but also your plans for the instrument. That is, many bowl-back or Neapolitan mandolins were sold in the US in the years between 1890 and 1930 (guessing at the age of your instrument). Some of these were of poor construction and can no longer be played (the necks in many of these were inadequately braced against the tension of the strings and have "pulled out" of them, raising the "action" (the height of the strings over the fretboard) too high to play correctly. If yours is such an instrument and you wish to play a mandolin, a reputable luthier will advise against spending very much money, versus purchasing another instrument. On the other hand, since it's a valuable keepsake of your grandfather, you may elect to have the cosmetic damage repaired so the instrument displays well.
Or, you could be lucky and have inherited a better quality instrument. Again, the luthier will be prepared to advise you. The make and model is often found on a paper tag inside the instrument (look through the soundhole with a good flashlight.) It may have become illegible with time, but that will help in assessing what you have. Alternatively, look for any writing or printing inside the body of the instrument, or name on the headstock (where the tuning pegs are.) Any info you find can be researched on-line (with Google or another search engine) and more can be learned.
Mandocello - Buying
I am looking into starting a mandolin quartet in England with a few friends, not too seriously but to add to our musical knowledge (we all study music for A-Level). Do you know anywhere where I can find a relatively cheap (but playable) mandocello?
Nathan
Hello Nathan,
Mandocellos (celli?) are not so easy to come by. Best bet is US eBay. (I've priced instruments in England and Europe, and they are maybe 15-25% more expensive than in the US.) That said, take a look at PALM GUITARS in Amsterdam (a great field trip!). Also, Germany has a rich mandolin culture and you can maybe find a decent bowl-back mandocello (liuto) for a good price. Google MANDOLIN and BERLIN or FRANKFURT.
By mail, sight unseen, I would look for the OVATION model MC868. Should be available used for under $1,000. Likewise, in the GIBSONs, you want a K-1. Patient searching on eBay will turn up other makes, too. Generally, avoid the SOARSY (Portuguese, I think). They make one or two that are acceptable, but you must try them first. WEBERs are great, but probably too expensive for what you want.
In the US, there are several sources, if you need one NOW. Google ELDERLY INSTRUMENTS or JOHN BERNUNZIO or GRUHN's GUITARS or GRYPHON INSTRUMENTS or MANDOLIN BROTHERS. For the cost difference, shipping may be worth it, assuming you can't turn up something acceptable soon enough in Europe. Expect to pay between $750 and $1,000 for a decent instrument.