In preparation for playing with the 'Pyx at Valley contra, I restrung both my Trinity College TC 250 mandolin [Martin M400- .010 .014 .024w .034w] and TM 275 mandola [John Pearce 2250- .012 .021w .032w .049w] this weekend. The gig went really well, especially noteworthy since I had decided to set aside my usual 5-string banjo and play mandolin, mandola and octave mandolin in order to more closely replicate the way the 'Pyx usually sounds with Jansen's mandolin and octave mando (Jan had a previous booking for the date). I played guitar on a few sets, just because I was more familiar with playing the tunes in guitar tuning rather than 5ths tuning, but mostly I stayed with the mandos. I was once again pleasantly surprised how the bright sound and relatively large frets of the TC 250 make playing at the rapid contra dance tempos for contra dances easy - the notes practically fly out of the instrument. I find the Trinity College line of mandolin-family instruments, while being factory manufactured and inexpensive, to be just about perfect for my playing. The mandolin, while not particularly "Celtic" sounding (and having none of the "Bluegrass" sound so sought after by most players), having an unusual construction of a flat top with X-bracing, a very shallow body and extremely thin neck (it's like a tiny guitar), still proves itself worthy every time I use it. The TC 325 octave mandolin with it's relatively short scale (20-3/8") is just right for my hands, especially when strung with D'Addario J72 Mandola strings [.014 .023w .034w .049w]. However, I'm considering letting the mandola go in favor of a 2nd octave mandolin tuned to either CGDA or DAEB - the mandola sounds okay played acoustically, but I've yet to hear it sound as good thru a PA at a dance gig, and since I seem to only use it for English dances I might let it go for something that mics better and I could use for both ECD and Contra.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Manolin, Mandola, and a FingerPyx gig
In preparation for playing with the 'Pyx at Valley contra, I restrung both my Trinity College TC 250 mandolin [Martin M400- .010 .014 .024w .034w] and TM 275 mandola [John Pearce 2250- .012 .021w .032w .049w] this weekend. The gig went really well, especially noteworthy since I had decided to set aside my usual 5-string banjo and play mandolin, mandola and octave mandolin in order to more closely replicate the way the 'Pyx usually sounds with Jansen's mandolin and octave mando (Jan had a previous booking for the date). I played guitar on a few sets, just because I was more familiar with playing the tunes in guitar tuning rather than 5ths tuning, but mostly I stayed with the mandos. I was once again pleasantly surprised how the bright sound and relatively large frets of the TC 250 make playing at the rapid contra dance tempos for contra dances easy - the notes practically fly out of the instrument. I find the Trinity College line of mandolin-family instruments, while being factory manufactured and inexpensive, to be just about perfect for my playing. The mandolin, while not particularly "Celtic" sounding (and having none of the "Bluegrass" sound so sought after by most players), having an unusual construction of a flat top with X-bracing, a very shallow body and extremely thin neck (it's like a tiny guitar), still proves itself worthy every time I use it. The TC 325 octave mandolin with it's relatively short scale (20-3/8") is just right for my hands, especially when strung with D'Addario J72 Mandola strings [.014 .023w .034w .049w]. However, I'm considering letting the mandola go in favor of a 2nd octave mandolin tuned to either CGDA or DAEB - the mandola sounds okay played acoustically, but I've yet to hear it sound as good thru a PA at a dance gig, and since I seem to only use it for English dances I might let it go for something that mics better and I could use for both ECD and Contra.
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