2 comments about Mel Bay Flatpickin' the Gospels for Mandolin.

1. Hugh dissapointment. He has written the book in extra large print. So you constantly have to turn the page to play a song. Everytime you play 12 or 24 notes you have to stop and turn the page. I have lots of other mandolin instruction books and they print the songs small enought to fit on one page and no page turning.
   
   Kaufman plays each song twice, a simplified version which is okay follwed by a advanced version where he kind of improvises. But the improvised version is kind of all over the place with way too many notes and rolls and sounds almost nothing like the song it is supposed to be. I took the music to professional player and he said he knew several people who had bought this sheet music and were very disappointed for the same reasons. He also thought the improvised versions were overimprovised.
   
   Last complaint is there is a CD with the book. But each song starts immediately when the CD starts. No counting. So you have no time to get your pick ready or see what the beat will be. All other similiar books I have count out a couple measures before the song starts.
   
   I think this book was a wonderful idea and I love the songs that were chosen for it. Wish it was more user friendly. Each song on one page, no page turning during a song. Need the advanced songs better written and and some meteronome counting on the CD before the song starts. Please someone write such a book. We need need a good "how to play gospel" book that is user friendly.



2. After reading the previous review I almost didn't buy this book, but still did, since I couldn't find any other gospel music book for the mandolin at the time. Glad I did. Altho most of the things said in the previous review are true, it's still a wonderful book. The "easy" versions of each of the pieces are simple to pick out on the mandolin and sound wonderful in their simplicity. Sure, the CD doesn't give you the "countdown" to play along with, but it's still masterfully done. It's great to just listen to even without following along to the music. "Overimprovised" mandolin-picking??? I think not. I wish I could play like that! The tablature is clearly written and not hard to follow. I wasn't disappointed!!

No comments about Mel Bay Mandolin Technique Studies.

No comments about Mel Bay Kaufman's Favorite 50 Celtic Reels for Mandolin, Tunes A-L.

3 comments about The Hal Leonard Mandolin Method Book: Only for Beginners Music and Tablature.

1. Rich Delgrosso is an author of the book Mandolin Method and it teaches you mandolin and it said in the book about Mr. Delgrosso and it said Rich and Maureen have recorded two albums.



2. Great book with detailed but simple info on parts of the instrument, tuning, and the little tidbits that a beginner needs to know. It also explains scales, down-up picking, chords, how to read tabs, and progresses through harder songs.
   
   Lacking is an audio CD with examples of the runs and tunes that are in the book. That would make it a 10 instead of a 9.



3. I've found this book excellent in both beginning to play mandolin & also for learning to read music notation. When I was learning to play guitar a few years ago I could never find a book that explained reading notation in a way that was simple enough for someone learning by themselves to use so I always just read tab but this book puts it all so simply and is paced so well that you don't get overwealmed (which can be very offputting). It gives a good short guide to buying a mandolin and the different styles of instrument, guide to tuning and correct handling of the mandolin. I also recommend using this book in conjunction with the Hal Leonard Mandolin Scale Finder the two books together have taken my understanding of mandolin & music theory to a level I really didn't think I would get to in such a short period of time.

1 comments about Christmas Carols for Mandolin.

1. I bought a few of the Christmas Music for Mandolin books here at amazon. This is the only one that I felt was very helpful. The others mainly provide the melody line and chords, which I can get from a bazillion other Christmas collection books. This one provided some very nice arrangements for the mandolin, using double stops, tremelos, etc. I played one of the arrangements in church this morning and they loved it.

2 comments about Kenny Hall's Music Book: Old Time Music: Fiddle & Mandolin.

1. It is sad that this book is out of print. Kenny Hall should be declared a national treasure. This book it a collection of the tunes he learned over many years. What an awesome collection!



2. I don't have this book but we used to jam with Kenny back in the early 70's and did a workshop with him at Sweet's Mill. Kenny is the most amazing mandolin/fiddle player I have ever heard. I have his original record and some recent CD releases of him with the Sweet's Mill String Band and some with him on it. Someone needs to reprint this book. I want to buy it!

1 comments about Jazz Mandolin.

1. What I expected in ordering this package was a fairly substantial book along with the CDs. What you actually get is six CDs, and a rather thin book with a few scales, chords, and some riffs. The CDs themselves have a lot of Andy Staman talking, and a fair amount of him playing, and illustrating points. Unlike a real lesson, of course, you don't get to see Statman playing, and while that's a drawback, it's assumed that anyone buying this packaged already has the basics down and knows how to hold a mandolin.
   
   On the first track, Statman explains what the course is about, the preperation the student needs (it's assumed you've completed one of the earlier bluegrass courses from Homespun), and the general stylistic direction, whcih is to say blues a la Ralph Stanley. This isn't quite what I was expecting- I was looking more for a Jethro Burns/Tiny Moore jazz instruction- but it eventually does touch on that.
   
   The narration tends to be rather meandering, and gives the impression that Statman isn't speaking from a script, but is speaking off the top of his head from a few notes. Some people can get away with that, but for a set retailing for fifty bucks you do expect something a little more polished- or at least more organized.
   
   And that takes up to my main criticism, which is that this isn't so much an organized plan of study as it is a collection of scales, riffs, chords and ideas that the listener is expected to use. It's not so much a collection of lessons as it is a seminar with Statman. The skilled player will find a number of useful things to expand his or her playing, but the beginner will find it difficult to place any of this in a useful context. The better the player, the more use this will be. Of course, the better the player, the more of this material they'll have picked up on their own.
   
   Is it worth it? Well, around here, a half-hour music lesson from a good teacher costs about half of what this book/CD package costs. So for the price of two personalized lessons, you get six useful lessons, and that's not too bad a deal.

2 comments about Bluegrass Mandolin Solos That Every Parking Lot Picker Should Know.

1. All books by Steve Kaufman are good. Thks book can really help beginners. Steve's arrangments are pretty simple, you will like it.



2. In my opinion these lessons accomplish their goal awesomely. You are given very clear guide lines on how to get up to a level of proficiency required for jamming; and not looking like a total green horn newbie. You are given a set list, concrete examples, and potential problem areas are highlighted. I really appreciate Steve's straightforward, no nonsense, clear approach to pickin'. The arrangements are excellent. As someone who has been in a persistently-low-intermediate-state for the last few years of mando pickin' I am hoping that the good advice given in these CDs will get me to the next level. They seem to be working!!!! With luck and perseverance I should soon feel uninhibited enough to get initiated in a parking lot somewhere. Ahem.

No comments about Mel Bay Mandolin Sampler.

2 comments about Mel Bay's Great Mandolin Picking Tunes.

1. Self-taught Texan musician Joe Carr is well known in bluegrass circles as a former member of the Country Gazette, a recording artist, and an instructor at South Plains College in Levelland, Texas. He performs, records and has even co-authored a book with fellow South Plains faculty member, banjo-player Alan Munde. This book of 30 fiddle tunes, arranged for mandolin by Carr, is another great instructional resource from Mel Bay Publications to help players increase their repertoire. Tablature is included along with standard notation. With each tune on the CD spanning about a minute, the disc runs a total of 29 minutes. While many of these same tunes are found in other collections too, Carr does offer a diverse variety of material from Celtic to Old-Timey, and Texas to Bluegrass. Even a person who has played mandolin for decades will find a few new tunes to learn. Joe Carr's original "Big Black Dog" has a distinct new-timey Lone Star flavor. I'm also going to learn Britches Full of Stitches, Congress Reel, Daley's Reel, Georgia Boys, Pigtown Fling, Rose of Avonmore, Smith's Reel, Taters in Sandyland, Prettiest Girl in the County, and Tripping Up Stairs. His new arrangements of old favorites like "Red Wing" are also fun little diversions. All 30 tunes are played at slower tempo with minimal guitar or no accompaniment. One can never have enough fiddle tunes and melodies under their belt. This book and CD will help you add a few more inches to your waistline. (Joe Ross, staff writer, Bluegrass Now)



2. I got a mandolin with no idea how to play it and now I can wow people with my wide repertoire.
   
   I must tell you that it certainly did not hurt that I knew how to play guitar and knew how to read tablature before I got this book. But anyone having any playing experience and a knowledge of tabs will have no problem mastering these great sounding songs.. especially with the CD that comes along with it.
   
   Most books out there force you to wait through really simple exercises before getting to actual playing. If you know the basics, skip the rest and get these tunes.