Yes, they both involve music, being a stringed instrument, and possessing a relatively similar tuning, but that's about all they share. One focuses on classical music, a strict world of technical focus and accuracy of playing. The other can have a wide range of genres, from Irish to early music to bluegrass to folk to old time.
With guitar, I'm focused on improving my tone, playing the beautiful music that I adore so much, and enjoying the sound of the instrument that has drawn me in since I was four years old. It was my first musical love, and one that I will continue to love for the rest of my life, I'm sure.
With mandolin, I'm completely head over heels crazy for the fun new tunes that I've been learning, the excitement of performing and jamming with others (yay, I don't have to be by myself in a practice room for hours on end!), and the laid-back, happy ease of the musicians in this field. This has been a breath of fresh air into my musical endeavors, making me branch out of my comfort zone.
This morning I worked on learning the melodies of "Frosty Morning", "Gal I Left Behind Me", and "Piney Woods" on mandolin. Plus there was quite a bit of time listening to the Fuzzy Mountain String Band on CD!
This afternoon I practiced the first Gymnopedie by Satie (the transcription by Parkening) on classical guitar while sitting outside on the front porch as Harmony played nearby. I also did slow spotwork for tricky spots in other pieces. I'm so stoked to record my CD this summer!
This weekend I performed on mandolin with a local old time band for a dance at my favorite nearby dance club. It was SO much fun. My fingers felt like they were going to fall off after over four hours of playing, but it was totally worth it! Both the dancers and the musicians had a blast.
Next weekend I am performing classical guitar selections for a film festival. Vastly different audience, vastly different music. But I'm looking forward to this event just as much as the performance last night.
Thank goodness I don't have to choose just one instrument. What can I say... I'm just obsessed with music!
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| My instruments to play today :-) |
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| The dance! My view from over the banjo player's shoulder on the stage. |
~ Prompt for March 8th: Obsession
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Participating in Write Alm's March prompts, daily words as guides for writing down what is in my head and heart. Entries might be long, might be short, might be posted here on the blog, or shared on my Instagram account. Do join me and others in sharing our thoughts with these prompts! I love seeing what you write.
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4 comments:
I would love to hear you play. It's funny, my uncle played the mandolin when I was a little girl but I can barely recall the sound of it.
Thanks for sharing and for linking up to the #SHINEbloghop.
Wishing you a lovely weekend.
xoxo
so interesting and well written. as a gal of more than one instrument myself, i totally get what you're saying here. i think a multi-instrumentalist can be looked upon as a bit of an overachiever, especially when one plays many genres. but its really just part of loving music. you can't and won't stop learning. lovely piece here, friend!
You say it so much better than I, Abigail. It ALL is just about loving music! Thanks for your support as a fellow musician! You are so super talented <3
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