Welcome
Lesson time: (2min 52sec)
Tom Bekeny introduces his beginning bluegrass mandolin course and his advice for new players: train your ear, find a player to emulate, and jam with others.
Course preview
This lesson is part of the course Beginning Mandolin with Tom Bekeny
Watch a preview of the full course below.
Lesson transcript:
Introduction to Beginning Bluegrass Mandolin
Hi, my name is Tom Beckeny, and I'm here on behalf of Music Star Productions to talk to you about beginning bluegrass mandolin.
It's nice to be here, and I want to share a little bit about myself. I've been playing bluegrass for a long time now, since the mid-70s. I've been involved in touring, recording, performing, and playing bluegrass; it's been something I've truly enjoyed.
Four Key Takeaways for Aspiring Mandolin Players
Before we dive into playing the mandolin, there are a few important points I want you to keep in mind, especially for those of you who are looking to get more involved.
1. Develop Your Ear
- Listen Actively: One of the things I've noticed with many students is that they become overly dependent on written music, whether it's standard notation or tablature.
- Slow It Down: When I was learning, I would slow down vinyl records to half speed and lower the pitch by an octave. This gave me the opportunity to learn what the performer was doing. Nowadays, there are plenty of digital gadgets that can help you achieve this.
2. Find a Player to Emulate
- Identify Your Inspiration: It's crucial to find a player whose style excites you and interests you.
- Internalize Their Sound: Try to imprint that style in your mind and get that sound resonating within you.
3. Study Bluegrass History
A friend of mine once said it's vital to do your art history. Bluegrass has been around as a music form for just over 60 years.
- Listen to the Legends: Go back and listen to the first-generation players, like Bill Monroe, the originator of this music. This foundation will significantly enrich your playing.
4. Play with Friends
- Join Jam Sessions: Playing with others helps you develop your musicianship, timing, and understanding of how your instrument fits in with other instruments.
- Learn from Experienced Players: Whenever possible, play with people who are more experienced than you. This can provide a significant boost to your playing.
Embrace these principles, and you're sure to enhance your mandolin skills and enjoy your musical journey!
About the instructor
Tom Bekeny is a mandolinist, fiddler and seasoned mandolin teacher who has performed and taught in the U.S. and abroad for over 40 years - so when he breaks down how to play, you are learning from someone who has spent a lifetime both on stage and in the lesson room. He was the mandolinist in such San Francisco Bay Area bands as Done Gone, Tenbrooks, and an early version of the Grant Street String Band with Laurie Lewis. He has appeared with Peter Rowan, the Rowan Brothers, David Grisman, George Cole, vocalist Lua Hadar, and Jerry Garcia. Tom has played mandolin with the highly acclaimed Kathy Kallick Band for almost 20 years and has held the fiddle spot with California's premiere traditional bluegrass band, High Country, since 1988. He has recorded with many of these groups and was featured in the Summer 2009 issue of Mandolin Magazine. Tom also plays in the wildly popular trad bluegrass "jam" band, Bangers and Grass, alongside west coast bluegrass luminaries Jim Nunally, Steve Pottier, Bill Evans and Chad Manning. Beyond bluegrass, Tom plays jazz mandolin with his trio The Missing Man Quartet (MM4), which plays straight-ahead jazz with original arrangements drawing material from the world of jazz and Great American Songbook standards. He released a solo CD project ("Jazzolin") in 2013, on which he plays mandolin and fiddle backed by drums and bass. read more