Bluegrass Mandolin

This book is chock full of amazing arrangements of tunes, in increasing difficulty. Also some full-length harmonizing arrangements. Fantastic pictures of music greats. Decent instruction that progresses quite quickly. Not for the raw beginner but good for a beginner with some other instrument experience. I come from violin and this will keep me going for a while without being over my head. Standard notation and tab.

This book is the gold-standard for learning mandolin. I was trying to teach myself and getting nowhere (I was trying to play it like a guitar!) He really caters to students of all skill levels, particularly with his song choices and arrangements. They're simple enough that even a beginner can play them slowly, yet more intermediate players will have difficulty playing them fast without practice. Tottle provides tips for potentially troublesome sections in each song, as well as general advice when learning a new skill. They're bluegrass songs, but the skills learned can be cross-applied to whatever genre you wish to play.The songs are presented in both tablature and musical notation. Tottle gives about the most concise, informative primer on reading tab that I've ever read. The tab includes written-in chord changes, so you won't be completely unaware of the notes you're playing if you don't read notation. This book is a great place for learning that, too, as it teaches you how to count the note lengths, which are the same as for notation, and give you the chord names, making it easier to figure the notes.I actually borrowed it from the library, but I intend to purchase it, as I feel it will be a great source to refer back to. Very helpful book, even if you don't want to play bluegrass.

Tottle starts with some musical fundamentals -- general points like reading TAB and musical notation, time signatures, rhythm, etc., as well as mandolin-specific issues like tuning. If you have another instrument under your belt, this makes quick reading and then Tottle immediately starts you on learning simple pieces. Since I already play the guitar, for instance, I opened this book and almost immediately learned my first rag.After you have half a dozen dance numbers under your belt, Tottle breaks out a small chord dictionary and introduces the idea of the structured bluegrass song, with instrumental breaks in between verses. Starting with "The Banks of the Ohio", he then demonstrates how to construct a mandolin break around a song's melody. As he adds numbers, Tottle increases in complexity, and it pretty quickly adds up to an impressive repertoire.Tottle's writing is clear and straightforward. All music is presented in standard notation and in tablature. Occasional charming photographs of mandolin greats add a nice touch.The book I have does not have the CD, but the CD can only add to what is a great instructional book.

My favorite mandolin book. Starts at the very beginning, but keeps going a long way - covers playing up the neck, cross-picking, etc.Good selection of tunes that are fun to play and listen to, not irritating exercises.Thick book with lots of content.

While this title dates back to 1975, it covers every aspect of Bluegrass Mandolin thoroughly and well. Probably not for the absolute beginner, but once you can play a few fiddle tunes, this would be a great way to learn some classic tunes and the elements of Bluegrass Mandolin.

The collection of bluegrass tunes in this book is fantastic! The way Jack Tottle also takes the beginner mandolin player through each section is great too! Nice mandolin book for both beginners and intermediate players!

Highly recommended for beginners. His scope of various styles is wide. Focused on standard notation, not so much tablature. This book should work very well for those trained in classical musical beginnings.

recommended by my guitar teacher

Good mandolin book for beginners, has some parts relating to great bluegrass mandolin players Bill Monroe, Frank Wakefield,Jesse McReynolds, Bobby Osborne and John Duffey. Some decent tunes to learn for those starting out. I got this book for featuring those great pickers and added it to my collection of bluegrass books. The only downside the book arrived with the centre pages detached from the spine and the seller felt I was fortunate that it was a minor fault and had I bought it elsewhere it would cost more etc. What a crap attitude! it arrived well packed, on time and apart from the detached pages was in decent condition the seller then lets himself down with a bad attitude, never even apologised. Its time some sellers were sorted out and removed from amazon. 5 STARS GIVEN ONLY FOR THE BOOK CONTENT.

This is a truly wonderful book. I used it almost 30 years ago (argh!) and now I'm buying a copy for my daughter too. The great thing about Jack Tottle is that his arrangements of fiddle tunes are sufficiently different from the fiddle original to make them stand out from the crowd and sound just a little bit special - even the simple numbers right at the start of the book. No matter what genre of mandolin playing you are looking towards, this is THE book to have near your instrument. Keep on pickin'!

This was recommended to me by my mandolin tutor. It is full of useful tutorials and obviously many traditional pieces, but as a complete novice there are only a couple of tunes I have been able to attempt. Would be very worthwhile for a more experienced player.

Came quickly - great classic book for learning Bluegrass Mandolin

This is both a great method and a heartfelt introduction to the world of bluegrass mandolin. The tunes and techniques are built up progressively whilst simultaneously giving a history of great players and the context of bluegrass music. I'm hooked and glad to call myself a fool for bluegrass mandolin!