is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
I currently play mandolin, mostly irish and contra dance music. I was playng a mandola in a store today, and i really liked the sound, and the length of the scale alot. The guy selling it is looking to get rid of it for a good price. There are a lot of blugrass players in my area, so he does fine selling fiddles, mandolins, and banjos, but nobody around here plays mandola. I am considering purchasing it, but there's that whole issue of it's range not being meant for the music I play. I know that tenor banjo is tuned the same way, exept when in the hands of an Irish player, and I was wondering if anyone out there has done the same with a mandola, and what experience they might have to offer. I'm assuming I'd have to use a different gauge string.
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
Since you are in the States (like me) when you say mandola, you mean the viola equivalent and not an Octave mandolin. Your instrument has a scale length between, say, 15" and 17" (380-430mm) which is kind of an inbetweener as far as the GDAE tuning goes. The instrument sounds best with CGDA tuning but at the upper end you can (possibly) tune it to fiddle or OM tuning depending on what strings you use.
If you want a fiddle tuning, you'd have to use light gauge strings (34-09 - just a guess) or if you wanted to go to the octave below, maybe as high as 52-16 (a wild guess). Either way the instrument would not have the sound or mojo it has right now. Your best bet would to be to play it in the CGDA tuning (Gerry O'Connor plays his banjo in that tuning) or find a slighty longer scale instrument.
I play a mandola and really enjoy it. I have become a much better mandolin player as a result of learning closed positions <G>
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
There's been lots of previous discussion on this; you've got a lot of options. The "european" mandola has a scale only a little longer than a mandolin, it would require a specific set of strings for that length instrument, and would be tuned like a viola, CGda, as opposed to GDae for the mandolin. The "tenor" mandola is tuned the same as the european, but has a longer scale, similar to a short-scale tenor banjo. The octave mandola ( as it is called ) is tuned an octave below the mandolin, and has a longer scale than the tenor.
Just to confuse the issue, if you put ordinairy mandolin strings on a "european" mandola, you can tune it DAeb, ie only a fourth below the mandolin.
The best course would be a serious discussion with one of the "folkie" shops like Hobgoblin, or an experienced luthier. Alternatively the Cittern network had a whole series of postings recently on the subject of appropriate string guages for different tunings and scale lengths.
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
There's been lots of previous discussion on this; you've got a lot of options. The "european" mandola has a scale only a little longer than a mandolin, it would require a specific set of strings for that length instrument, and would be tuned like a viola, CGda, as opposed to GDae for the mandolin. The "tenor" mandola is tuned the same as the european, but has a longer scale, similar to a short-scale tenor banjo. The octave mandola ( as it is called ) is tuned an octave below the mandolin, and has a longer scale than the tenor.
Just to confuse the issue, if you put ordinairy mandolin strings on a "european" mandola, you can tune it DAeb, ie only a fourth below the mandolin.
The best course would be a serious discussion with one of the "folkie" shops like Hobgoblin, or an experienced luthier. Alternatively the Cittern network had a whole series of postings recently on the subject of appropriate string guages for different tunings and scale lengths.
I see someone else has got there first with moost of the useful information, but I'll leave you to winnow out the wheat from the chaff.
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
tune it one full step up from the normal mandola tuning. that would be DAEB (or DAEA). the DAE strings would essentially be an octave lower than the DAE on a mandolin. you dont have the low C, B, A or G notes that some fiddle tunes use. but for those tunes you can often play the whole thing up an octave.
right now I play a 5 course cittern that I have tuned GDAEa and really like it a lot.
is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
I currently play mandolin, mostly irish and contra dance music. I was playng a mandola in a store today, and i really liked the sound, and the length of the scale alot. The guy selling it is looking to get rid of it for a good price. There are a lot of blugrass players in my area, so he does fine selling fiddles, mandolins, and banjos, but nobody around here plays mandola. I am considering purchasing it, but there's that whole issue of it's range not being meant for the music I play. I know that tenor banjo is tuned the same way, exept when in the hands of an Irish player, and I was wondering if anyone out there has done the same with a mandola, and what experience they might have to offer. I'm assuming I'd have to use a different gauge string.
# Posted on February 16th 2006 by trimthevelvet
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
Since you are in the States (like me) when you say mandola, you mean the viola equivalent and not an Octave mandolin. Your instrument has a scale length between, say, 15" and 17" (380-430mm) which is kind of an inbetweener as far as the GDAE tuning goes. The instrument sounds best with CGDA tuning but at the upper end you can (possibly) tune it to fiddle or OM tuning depending on what strings you use.
If you want a fiddle tuning, you'd have to use light gauge strings (34-09 - just a guess) or if you wanted to go to the octave below, maybe as high as 52-16 (a wild guess). Either way the instrument would not have the sound or mojo it has right now. Your best bet would to be to play it in the CGDA tuning (Gerry O'Connor plays his banjo in that tuning) or find a slighty longer scale instrument.
I play a mandola and really enjoy it. I have become a much better mandolin player as a result of learning closed positions <G>
Mike Keyes
http://www.banjosessions.com/feb06/sessions.html
# Posted on February 16th 2006 by mikeyes
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
There's been lots of previous discussion on this; you've got a lot of options. The "european" mandola has a scale only a little longer than a mandolin, it would require a specific set of strings for that length instrument, and would be tuned like a viola, CGda, as opposed to GDae for the mandolin. The "tenor" mandola is tuned the same as the european, but has a longer scale, similar to a short-scale tenor banjo. The octave mandola ( as it is called ) is tuned an octave below the mandolin, and has a longer scale than the tenor.
Just to confuse the issue, if you put ordinairy mandolin strings on a "european" mandola, you can tune it DAeb, ie only a fourth below the mandolin.
The best course would be a serious discussion with one of the "folkie" shops like Hobgoblin, or an experienced luthier. Alternatively the Cittern network had a whole series of postings recently on the subject of appropriate string guages for different tunings and scale lengths.
# Posted on February 16th 2006 by Guernsey Pete
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
There's been lots of previous discussion on this; you've got a lot of options. The "european" mandola has a scale only a little longer than a mandolin, it would require a specific set of strings for that length instrument, and would be tuned like a viola, CGda, as opposed to GDae for the mandolin. The "tenor" mandola is tuned the same as the european, but has a longer scale, similar to a short-scale tenor banjo. The octave mandola ( as it is called ) is tuned an octave below the mandolin, and has a longer scale than the tenor.
Just to confuse the issue, if you put ordinairy mandolin strings on a "european" mandola, you can tune it DAeb, ie only a fourth below the mandolin.
The best course would be a serious discussion with one of the "folkie" shops like Hobgoblin, or an experienced luthier. Alternatively the Cittern network had a whole series of postings recently on the subject of appropriate string guages for different tunings and scale lengths.
I see someone else has got there first with moost of the useful information, but I'll leave you to winnow out the wheat from the chaff.
# Posted on February 16th 2006 by Guernsey Pete
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
How did I post twice ? must be the slippy thumbs syndrome.
# Posted on February 16th 2006 by Guernsey Pete
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
tune it one full step up from the normal mandola tuning. that would be DAEB (or DAEA). the DAE strings would essentially be an octave lower than the DAE on a mandolin. you dont have the low C, B, A or G notes that some fiddle tunes use. but for those tunes you can often play the whole thing up an octave.
right now I play a 5 course cittern that I have tuned GDAEa and really like it a lot.
# Posted on February 16th 2006 by RumRebellion
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
damn. two people replyed with posts twice as long as mine while i was typing up mine....
# Posted on February 16th 2006 by RumRebellion
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
You can still put your happorth in, Rummie.
# Posted on February 16th 2006 by Guernsey Pete
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
You can leave your mandola in CGDA tuning and capo it on the second fret. That will also give you the DAEB as RumReb. suggests
# Posted on February 16th 2006 by McMandolin
Re: is it feasable to tune a mandola like irish tenor banjo?
Yes it is.
# Posted on February 20th 2006 by lysaghtm