On terminology. In Europe, a mandola is an octave mandolin with a scale length of about 24" (that's the length of the vibrating string) usually tuned GDAE. An Irish bouzouki is much the same but the scale length is around 27". In Irish music it is often tuned GDAD. In North America, a mandola usually has a scale length of 16-17" and is known as a tenor mandola in Europe. It is tuned CGDA like a viola. John
This is jamming, man! :D I've been wanting an OM for a couple years, and have been having to make dues with tuning the top four strings of my guitar into OM tuning, hahaha! I really dig your tune here (I can totally hear a darbuka drum with it)! :)
@kokkot82 Thank you! This octave mandolin is a Trinity College model (full model name: Trinity College TM-325 Octave Mandolin). I think they sell for around $500 these days. I got mine for less when I bought it over 3 yrs ago. I would highly recommend it, it's a great buy!
was looking for some informations on the mandola used by the band Eluveitie and found your video, it's excellent ;) we can even feel your enthusiasm just by listening to it, it really brightened my day ^^
i want you to know fred, i come back to this video almost daily. it puts me in a trance. i have become obsessed with world instrumentation, and this song is lullingly beautiful.
For everybody that ask for tabs. I'm to lazy to write tabs for this improvisation and other tunes. You guys just have to learn the tunes the old fashioned way, by ear!
Thanks man! Yes, I'm more than happy with it. It's a Trinity College Octave Mandolin. It comes in around $400 (for the high quality of the instrument, you can't beat it!), that also includes a super nice hard case.
Very beatiful, I can't wait to get an octavemandolin/mandola myself, I own a crappy romanian hora bouzouki which I really feel like replacing. They're kind of hard to find especially the 5-course ones...
No...in Europe(UK) an octave mandolin is called an "octave mandola". Still tuned an octave lower than a "mandolin" GDAE. A mandola is still a mandola in USA or UK ---CGDA (standard tuning)
Phenomenal. How did you tune your octave mandolin for this piece? Is it GDGD? I've already made it my New Year's resolution is to try and learn your fantastic composition. It might take me the whole year ;-)
@pristineex That's interesting. Through out the world "open tunings" have been, and are, widely used in folk music. Even in Swedish folk music the tuning AEAE is also used. They referred to it as an old tuning. It probably migrated from the orient, through Europe, up to Scandinavia. I also know the tuning GDGD is used by old time folk musicians (Appalachian folk) in West Virginia, USA. Isn't that cool! I'm waiting with excitement to hear your progress on the slängpolska!
You know octave mandolin and Mandola are two different things though :|. People often get them confused. But a Mandola is right between Mandolin and Octave Mandolin as far as sound goes. Octave Mandolin's too are sometimes referred to as Bouzoiki's. Which is some type of celtic instrument.
Yeah, the terminology gets hazy depending who you ask and what country you are in. Because I'm from Sweden, I use the term Mandola (correct term: octave mandola) for my octave mandolin. If I would say octave mandolin, most woulden't know what I referred to. That's basically why. Here in the US I always say octave mandolin. Saying Mandola would confuse....Crazy, I know!
Upon reading your description of this I'd be very interested if you could recommend me some Swedish Folk... I've heard a lot of Ukrainian Folk (Mainly music on an instrument called 'Bandura') but not so much Swedish stuff... Thanks! Awesome vid.
An octave mandolin is tuned GDAE like a violin, but a mandola is tuned CGAE, like a viola, hence the name similarities: Mandolin = Violin, Mandola = Viola. Octave mandolins are similar in size to a Mandola however.
your damn good. I wanne learn moandola for myself Ì´m bidding on ebay to get my first one. I habe no experiences on those instruments, can you tell me how long i would need to get some tunes ? or give me some help where ia could learn by instructions ?
Great music. Where did you find resources for this traditional music form? I would love to learn more. We play traditional instruments from Central Asia and have just added a Bouzouki to our line up and hope to add some European sounds to our music too.
Hi Fred! Do you know the name of the tune? Or is it yours? I play mandolin (and I'm thinking about getting an octave mandolin) and I'd like to play this tune myself. Thanks!
@BuddhaLikesCelery i tried it. its difficult to follow all his notes, but the tuning sounds great nonetheless... my vote, go for it! and i haven't tuned back to standard since :)
The tuning is a little different, thus some of the chords are completely backwards. It takes some getting used to, but if you already play the guitar, the rhythm and scaling would come much more easily. Good luck.
The OM is a shorter scale and the strings are usually tuned in unison courses. The Irish bouzouki has a longer scale and the 3rd and 4th courses are often tuned in octaves. Both can be tuned GDAE, but are often tuned GDAD in Irish sessions. The naming of these instruments is not completely standard and you will hear people calling their mandothings octave mandolins, Irish bouzoukis, bouzoukis, citterns, blarges, octophones, octave mandolas, and many other names. Folks will tell you that the length of the neck, whether or not it has octave courses, the number of courses. . .determines the name. There is a Greek instrument called a bouzouki that has a bowl back and 3 or 4 courses and there is an ancient instrument called the cittern which is also very different from the flat backed instruments used in Irish music so I wish we wouldn't use those terms, but I'm afraid that what I wish won't make any difference. Toronto luthier Grit Laskin called all of his mando like instruments "long necked mandolins" regardless of the neck length or number of courses. The guys I play with call mine "Jim's monster mandolin".
