Mandolin question

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 13 Apr 2014 9:02 am

That's a nice-looking mandolin, Jan.

Jan Viljoen · Post by **Jan Viljoen** » 16 Apr 2014 2:10 am

Thanks Alan.

The mando sounds slightly mellower than I would have thought, but the neck is super. One of the best I have tasted, and the heelcap does not hurt me.

I have another one, with a reverse scroll, which is just as good.
We have good luthiers here in South Africa.
Here it is on the right.

Jan Viljoen · Post by **Jan Viljoen** » 30 Apr 2014 11:57 pm

I found this on the web.
The man is Avi Avital and the first mandolin player to receive an Emmy for an individual instrument.

I give his personal web and also a video of how he plays Vivaldi in a chamber orchestra.

He is just brilliant.

http://aviavital.com/biography

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OJ0bsyIryc

Here he talks about his strange mandolin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YAqneN1i8E

Let's pull up our socks!

Glenn Uhler · Post by **Glenn Uhler** » 1 May 2014 9:06 am

Regarding rosewood mandolins, a lot of the Martin A-style mandolins were made in rosewood. The simple curves make rosewood acceptable for use. The tight curves of the F-style mando do not lend themselves to the use of rosewood, because of splitting.

Jan Viljoen · Post by **Jan Viljoen** » 1 May 2014 8:34 pm

I agree Glenn, not all hardwoods are suitable for F mandolins.
Luthiery is an art and science.

As far as I know Stradivarius built only two mandolins of which one is in a London museum.
The frets are movable as they did not have steel frets then.

Darrell Criswell · Post by **Darrell Criswell** » 2 May 2014 6:37 am

I don't know about any Strad mandolin in a London museum, but apparently (according to wikipedia) one is owned by a private collector and the other is in, of all places, a museum in South Dakota. Here is the link to the mandolin in SD:

http://www.usd.edu/smm/PluckedStrings/M ... dolin.html

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 4 May 2014 10:00 am

That's not really a mandoline. It has five courses of gut strings tied at the bridge. They describe it as a mandolino, and it is similar to a Milanese Mandoline, but it's more like a Pandorine.

Jan Viljoen · Post by **Jan Viljoen** » 5 May 2014 11:39 pm

Apologies folks.

In the Wikipedia web, towards the end it mentions the two Stradivarius mandolins.

In the second reference is a nice picture.
Agreed Alan, it is a pandorine perhaps.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_St ... nstruments

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File: ... illion.jpg

Jan Viljoen · Post by **Jan Viljoen** » 19 May 2014 6:21 am

Alan, I found this web about Baroque instruments, also some mandolinos, etc.

http://www.lutesandguitars.co.uk/htm/cat09.htm

Enjoy!

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 19 May 2014 9:08 am

Dankie Jan. Dit was vir my baie interessante.

Jan Viljoen · Post by **Jan Viljoen** » 19 May 2014 10:38 am

Thanks Alan, now you bowled me over.

Where did you learn that?

I play mandolin in a folk music competition on Saturday, will let you know.
Must practice now.

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 21 May 2014 9:16 am

I've always been interested in linguistics, Jan. Like everyone else, I learned French and some Latin at school. My studies of Old English/Anglo-Saxon led me to Dutch, which is the closest living language to Anglo-Saxon. I've studied Dutch/Flemish fairly extensively over the years, and it's a short hop from there to Afrikaans, which is basically a simplified Nederlandse taal with added words from local tribes, etc.

Jan Viljoen · Post by **Jan Viljoen** » 21 May 2014 11:57 am

Thanks Alan, you are a wise old owl (playing mandolin).

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 21 May 2014 2:39 pm

Danke je wel.

Jan Viljoen · Post by **Jan Viljoen** » 24 May 2014 9:18 pm

Our band came second in the Folk competition.

It's only human to think that we should have came first, because I think man for man we were better than the winners. They were so uninspiring and boring with no special moves or instruments.
We had the only double bass with bow and mandolin.

I used the mandolin on the top left with a hot spot. My white strap is made of African Buffalo and no metal clasps in it.
The rules forbid drums, electric bass, 7ths, 9ths and should be played in the original keys, etc.
It is a test for perfection.

But I am not a bad loser. I smile.

Here we play and receive our certificates.

Enjoy Alan.

Jerry Hayes · Post by **Jerry Hayes** » 25 May 2014 8:27 am

Here's my mandolin as it looks today. I've started getting autographs on it awhile back and so far have:

Bobby Osborne
Jesse McReynolds
Roni Stoneman
Bobby G. Rice
Rhonda Vincent
Joe Hoppel (DJ HOF)
Al Bruno (guitarist)

And a few others. I play my mandolin three nights a week as I gig with a band that does a combo of Bluegrass and Classic Country. I've also had a volume and tone knob installed and mounted in the bottom F-hole and go into a Fishman preamp into the 1st channel of my Deluxe Reverb amp....JH in Va.

Jan Viljoen · Post by **Jan Viljoen** » 22 Jun 2014 11:18 pm

Hi Blokes,

I found this nice 12 min video of musicians playing jazz and other stuff on mandolin.

The mandolin is a Hillburn and sounds quite nice. Should be worth investigating.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76AO0ha69kw

(I found a nice pedal steel builder as well, but will put that up in the pedal section)

Go blokes, dont waste time!

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 23 Jun 2014 10:21 am

I once went to a Bill Monroe concert at the University of California, Berkeley. I expected to hear bluegrass but he demonstrated an amazing dexterity in all sorts of musical styles, from classical to jazz. He was a very talented musician.

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