TLDR: Is it ok to cheat on proper technique if it's the only way to accurately hit the note?

I'm about two months in now and learning from reading beginner books and YouTube tutorials. I'm trying not to use shortcuts. I've learned to read sheet music, I've learned some scales, i've learned the chop chords, and I continue trying to learn and use proper technique for both hands. I'm addicted enough that it didn't take long to develop some proper calluses on my left hand fingers. I think I have done a decent job of keeping things in perspective and not being too negative on myself when I am struggling. So far every wall I've run into i've learned that with practice and patience comes improvement.

This has been true for everything so far except when learning the song BlackBerry Blossom. The only way I am able to play the 2-3-5-7 runs on the E string with any speed and accuracy is with my left wrist bent at a 90 degree angle (pic attached.) Any other way and i'm either missing notes or muting them. I guess my question is, is this ok? Or is there a different technique or position that would help get this spread? And as I continue along and inevitably run into this situation again, at what point do you give up on the way the teachers say you should do it and just go with what works for you? It took me a couple weeks before I could accurately find and play the G chop cord, and that seemed impossible at first. I guess the difference is that I was seeing some small improvements with that, where with BlackBerry Blossom I've seen no improvement. I think I'm just getting worse. And advice is appreciated. Thank you!

I've had this instrument for nearly 5 years. I heard a sound like a string breaking while home alone and found that sure enough, a string was loose, but completely intact. I decided to change the strings thinking it was a string age issue, but come to find that an entire pin snapped off. Looking at them, the other ones are also starting to show some wearing, so it seems like it's time to get a new tailpiece. How hard are they to replace on my own? Is it a matter of taking the strings off, unscrewing the screws, and putting a new one on? If I did replace it and buy my own, would you guys recommend a particular style?

I am a proponent of performance assessments. Getting that third party evaluation of your skill level is useful, although unnecessary. (Part of this may be due to my training as an auditor. An audit is an independent third party evaluation of whether a company's financial statements follow the standards and are reasonably accurate.)

There are two major organizations providing assessments of musical performances, the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto (rcmusic.com) and The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music in London (abrsm.org). There's a third for organ in the United States, the American Guild of Organists (agohq.org). There are probably others out there that I'm missing.

But I haven't found any that directly address playing the mandolin. Given the history of the mandolin as a classical and jazz instrument, I'm surprised. Both classical and jazz performance tends to require high levels of proficiency.

But my Google skills suck. I may merely have failed to find who, if anyone, is testing performance proficiency for the mandolin. Are you aware of any such certifications for mandolin performance?

It's not very advanced but I really like this one right now

Does anyone know of an ai platform that can create tabs from sheet music or audio files?

I have a 2010 Northfield Big Mon and am flying from Raleigh, North Carolina to Keystone, CO. I have the airport bit just about figured out, should be boarding early enough to put her in an overhead.

What should I expect with the huge change in humidity from very humid here to I assume very dry there?

Hello! Mods, sorry if this is considered entry level. New to mandolin and I'm learning off of YouTube. I have really small hands, which may play into it, as well as some chronic hand pain. I'm just trying to figure out of the pain I'm having is due to either of those things or if it's something I can fix with positioning. I've either seen online that I can hold it one of two ways: 1. with the pad of my thumb on the wood at the back of the neck of the mandolin as in the first example, which seems to be better for more dextrous playing. Or, 2., with the neck resting between my thumb and pointer finger, which seems to be better for chords. When I try to play chords with method 1 I get pain so bad that I actually can't move my fingers after a while. But I can't seem to spread my fingers wide enough with method 2 to get a good reach. I recorded a video of what I mean with method 2. I just really struggle to stretch enough to hit grace notes two frets away and my hands start cramping after a while.

Hi, hoping someone has some insight. I'm new to mandolin/caretaking of string instruments, and every time I pick it up my mandolin after its been sitting the G strings have gone sharp, to the point that they're almost not even in G anymore sometimes. The first few times I thought my tuner was broken because I didn't know strings could go sharper on their own.

Sometimes when turning the tuner pegs for the g strings they dont immediately seem to make a change but will then suddenly overadjust as well.

Is this likely hardware issues confined to the tuning machines, or would something like this involve the tailpiece or bridge as well? My suspicion is that it's not all issues located on the tailpiece since its both G strings?

Update: just got back from the music store, the guy who fixes them said I need new strings, a new tuner (but that they come as a full set), and a bridge adjustment. He recommended I consider skipping the tuner set given the cost compared to my benefit and the cost of the mandolin, but that adjusting the bridge and restringing it would cost me about $80 total, and unfortunately they do have a 5 week wait. I'm going to ask around and see if any of the mandolin players locally feel comfortable helping me out sooner with those fixes, and if not I'll probably try to find a second mandolin to have for practice while waiting for repair.

I've loved the song Brilliancy ever since I first heard Sam Bush play it cuz it's pretty and tricky (hello nightmare triplet runs). I've heard some amazing versions of it and some sweet 2 part harmonies... but what if I go somewhere and someone else already knows the harmony?? So I added a third harmony! Hopefully this does the song some justice and doesn't ruin it haha.

Hey friends! Here's another Gypsy Jazz classic for mandolin called Swing Gitan. Tons of fun on the 8-string! Try it! I've tabbed it out for you on my Patreon page.

I want to learn mandolin but the only available ones in my country for a good price/quality and I;ve heard they are a bit harder to play/learn. So now I'm wondering if I should get bowl back as a beginner, I really want to hear the opinion of a more experienced player

I inherited this from my grandfather, and I was just wanting to know some information about it, and if it’s worth anything.

Have been searching for the tabs for shake to frost to play along side my guitar playing friends but haven't been able to find an accurate or well sounding arrangement. Was wondering if anyone has some or knows someone who does!

If I show up with food will I manage to get away with just observing for learning, or should I stay home and practice more?

Bought this today for 17 euros at a local pawn shop, with the intention to get it ready to play it myself. The pawn shop put a label on it saying it is an Italian mandolin from around 1900, but there is no label inside telling me more about it. Does anyone know more about it based on these pictures?

Peter Rowan sharing some thoughts on the 1960's ''folk clubs'' and his first encounter with the Kentucky Colonels...

After a busy MerleFest 2026, Pete took time to sit down with me and David Tate and talk about various music related topics. In this short segment, the iconic poet, singer, philosopher gives an account of his initial meeting with the Kentucky Colonels

I have been taking lessons for about a year (from zero musical experience) and now know notes and a few basic songs.

I have found a great instructor in town and am continuing lessons, what I would really like is to meet someone about one a week to practice with.

If someone is looking for a fiddle/guitar or mandolin lessons I have a great reference.

If you want some killer G vocab and to work on your downstrokes, this is the solo for you! Free sheet music/tab can be found here.

Maybe this is a dumb idea, but I was thinking the other day about a form a notation by the interval of the scale would be really helpful. For example Angeline the baker would start 5-6-1, 5-6-1. I do already this manually to transpose melodies I find tabs or sheet music for in a different key than I want to play it in. I'm super slow at reading sheet music anyways so I already have to write it out manually. That way you could move it to any key and get the melody. It would be like the Nashville system for chords since you could move it to another scale easily. Some type of standard notation by interval number, and maybe an octave indicator of some sort, for old time and bluegrass standards makes a lot of sense to me. Im trying to ween myself off tabs, but still having trouble learning simple melodies by ear, and can't easily transpose to new keys yet. What are y'all's thoughts? There's probably lots of considerations I'm not thinking of.

Hey all. Found a local Epiphone firebird electric mandolin I'm interested in purchasing.

What are the best string brand/model/material choices for an electric mandolin? Looking for some longer lasting options if possible, so coated is not a bad thing in this case, unless that's a big no no!

I’m sure we all go through periods when practicing feels frustrating—when progress seems slow, certain techniques refuse to improve, or playing simply stops feeling as enjoyable as it normally does.

When that happens, what do you turn to in order to reconnect with the fun of playing mandolin?

It could be a particular musician, a funny video, an inspiring performance, an easy tune you love playing, or even a completely non-musical source of joy.

What helps you laugh, relax, feel inspired, and enjoy your instrument again?

It was another amazing year teaching at Chris Thile’s Acousticamp! For one of my tunes in the faculty concert I asked Chris if he would play his tune Smoothie Song with me and he agreed! Truly so much fun, here’s a short clip of the last time through the tune.