Mandolin’s are used in various musical genres, like classical, bluegrass, and folk music. The melody it produces is soothing and beautiful to the ears. If you are interested in playing the mandolin, it is not a difficult task, and with some practice, can be mastered easily. Familiarize yourself with this instrument, and simply learn to play the common chords with notes to create music of your choice.

 

Here is a simple guide on playing the mandolin if you are a beginner:

 

  1. Hold the mandolin correctly. This is done by placing the mandolin in your lap, and keeping the neck pointing upwards and diagonal to your left hand side. Do not press the instrument to your chest, and keep your forearm connected to your dominant or right hand. This hand should be horizontal and bent from the elbow.

 

  1. The left hand will fret the chords, and the right will pluck the strings when you play. The left hand’s fingers will press the frets downwards at the neck of the mandolin for every chord. The thumb should be at the top of the mandolin’s neck, and the fingers have to come up from it from the bottom. Keep the pick between your thumb and first finger of the right hand. Keep the pick’s point facing outwards.

 

  1. Tune the mandolin from low to high. An electric tuner will help in giving accurate tuning results.

 

  1. Learn about the chords and the notes of a mandolin. The chords are a combination of the musical notes, while the notes are musical tones played with these chords. Chords are easy to control with the right hand, and notes are controlled with the left.

 

  1. To play the mandolin, first, rest the fingers on its chords. Right before the pick strikes the string, depress these strings at the fret, and when the pick leaves, release the strings. The timing of the press-and-release is important and varies for different tunes. This will take some practice, but will be learnt easily.

 

  1. The G-chord of the mandolin is the key to the instrument. To master its skill, place the index finger at the top fret of the string closest to your palm. Place the middle finger on the second string, the ring finger on the fourth string, and pinky on the sixth string in the similar manner.

 

  1. The C-chop chord is another major chord. For this, you will place the index finger at the top fret on the string closest to your hand, middle finger on the third fret but second furthest from your hand. Next, place the ring finger on the fourth fret second closest to your hand, and pinky on the sixth fret furthest from your hand.

 

  1. The third major chord is the D-Chop chord. For this, place the index finger in the second fret furthest from your hand, the middle finger on the third fret second closest to your hand, the ring finger on the fifth fret furthest from your hand, and the pinky should not be on the mandolin.

 

  1. Play tunes by trying to copy sounds you can listen to or with the help of a stave to read music.