This week went by in a blur. I am continually dismayed by the little amount of free time I have. I am hoping that this will change some when the little one moves out of our bedroom and into her own crib and room.
I didn’t really have the opportunity to have any formal practice sessions this week, but I did get in some playing and tinkering here and there. On the mandolin I feel that I made some progress in nailing down the fingering and positioning that goes into the Monroe style sound. In this regard, I feel that I have been giving too much attention to playing in an open/first position. I am finding that the Monroe sound comes quite naturally when you play in a closed position. This is easy to do and sounds great when playing in the key of A. In this key, I keep the first finger on the A note located on the 3rd string, 7th fret, and go from there. However, I have found that playing in the same manner in G, with the first finger rooted on the G at the 3rd string, 5th fret, I don’t get the sound I want. This is probably why Monroe play in the key of A so much of the time.
I put some new strings on the mandolin last night while watching the debate – Sam Bush Gibson strings. I have been VERY happy with the J75’s – they turn my mandolin into a monster. Several people have commented on how loud the mandolin is and how great it sounds. But, I have not tried the Sam Bush strings yet, and I got them in a trade, so on they went.
On the guitar I have been progressing really well. I’ve got John Hurt’s “Spike Driver Blues” down pretty well and I am ready to move on the “Hot Time in the Old Town Tonight.”
I am really itching to get into some 12-string guitar tunes. A great 12-string blog is The 12 String Guitarist – playing the 12 string looks like a lot of fun. I think I am going to try tackling some Beatles songs, like “Here Comes the Sun”…there is a good video of that being played on the blog.
On that same note, I really want to get my new Stella 12 string ready to go. I have been putting this off because I want to buy some special very heavy strings and they are hard to find.
Filed under: Music & Mandolin Meditations, My Journal, Practice Session Notes , 12 string, Monroe, new strings, progress
