Interest in the Italian mandolin has been increasing lately. It is caused not only and not so much by its popularity in the folk music of the Celts, Italians and, oddly enough, Americans, but rather by the universality of the sound produced by the instrument. If earlier unforgettable tremolo could be heard in serenades and symphony or opera orchestras, then over time mandolin harmonies appeared in rock music, Sir Paul McCartney, Doors, Led Zeppelin and many other musicians used them in their work.
Instructions
Step 1
Despite the fact that the mandolin is a stringed plucked instrument, it is played mainly with a pick or plectrum, with fingers - much less often. The structure of this instrument is such that the extracted sound is short and decays quickly, in order to prolong its sound, tremolo is played, i.e. repeat this sound very quickly. However, for the tremolo to work, the player must not only hit the strings correctly and evenly with the plectrum, but also sit correctly during the performance.
Step 2
The fit of the performer should be, first of all, comfortable, he should not feel constrained. Since the body of the mandolin lies on its feet, they must either be laid one on top of the other or be next to each other. With the left hand, the performer holds the mandolin neck so that the neck of the instrument's neck is slightly raised to the left shoulder. All fingers of the left hand, except for the thumb, are rounded and fall on the strings strictly perpendicular to them. The thumb and forefinger of the right hand are holding the plectrum. In this case, the right hand is parallel to the stretched strings.
Step 3
Learning to play the mandolin is easy. There are only 8 ways to extract sound from this instrument: stacatto or stroke, next stroke, chords, tremolo, legato, trill, vibrato and glissandro. A stacatto or stroke is a single plectrum strike on a string "top-down" or "bottom-up" … When playing a stacatto, it is important that the pick does not cling to adjacent strings.
Step 4
The next stroke is performed when a melody is played on one or more strings. Plectrum strikes on different strings alternate and are performed "up and down", while the strikes should be rhythmic. It is also important to be careful not to hit adjacent strings. Do not try to take a high tempo right away, start very slowly and gradually, as your skill grows, increase the tempo.
Step 5
The chords are played the same way as on the guitar, i.e. with the left hand, several strings are clamped at different frets at the same time, and with the right hand, they strike the strings in one direction, i.e. either up or down. Do not forget about the pick, which should be in the right hand, as well as about the "smoothness" with which the blow should be made. In addition, it is important that the fingers of your left hand holding the strings on the mandolin fretboard do not touch adjacent strings, otherwise the chord will sound dull.
Step 6
Tremolo is a fast, multiple repetition of the same note, while the sound is smooth, merging into one. The performer produces a sound with fast, even rhythmic up-and-down plectrum strikes that follow each other. Learning this technique should be started only after mastering the next stroke. And although tremolo is a very fast technique, it is best to start learning at a very slow pace.
Step 7
Legato is achieved by quickly pressing the string at the specified frets. Press down with any finger of your left hand on the string at the given fret, and with your right, strike this string and until the first sound fades out, with the remaining fingers of your left hand you need to press the same string on other given frets, this is how legato is obtained.
Step 8
The rapid repetition of alternating notes is called a trill. With two fingers of the left hand, in alternating movements, you must quickly press the string at the given frets, and hit the string with a plectrum.
Step 9
Performing vibrato and glissando is very similar to playing similar techniques on the guitar. To produce a vibrating sound, it is necessary that the finger of the left hand, pressing the string at a given fret, makes an oscillatory movement along with the string. Another option is to hit with the right hand on the "open", i.e. while the string is not pressed, at the same time shake the neck of the instrument neck with your left hand.
Step 10
Glissando is sliding, i.e. any left-hand finger on the string slides up or down the fretboard to the next fret after the sound has been played.
