How to play mandolin in open D tuning, also called Dead Man's Tuning or DDAD tuning.
This is the first book in a series that teaches how to play mandolin in alternate tunings. It is perfect for beginners or advanced players who want to learn a different style of playing.
Volume 1: Basics
How to play mandolin in open D tuning, also called Dead Man's Tuning or DDAD tuning.
This is the first book in a series that teaches how to play mandolin in alternate tunings. It is perfect for beginners or advanced players who want to learn a different style of playing.
Topics covered are picking patterns, chords and basic theory, finger style and string technique. Original artwork and diagrams are well done and make the topics easy to understand. Also included are photographs of hand made mandolin's by renowned mandolin builder Larry Hopkins.
The included tablature contains both the standard sheet music as well as tablature in DDAD tuning and ADAD tuning for several of the songs. Many of the songs are duets designed for teachers and students, original songs, folk tunes, Irish melodies and traditional blues, jazz and bluegrass tunes arranged for both Dead Man's Tuning and ADAD tuning. Several of the songs are recorded on Mr. Minnix's CD "Mandolin Studies," which is also available.
This is one of the only books available on the subject of alternate tunings for mandolin.
Excerpt
Hello, my name is Willy Minnix, and I am looking forward to teaching you how to play mandolin. The method that I am teaching you is an alternate method using a cross tuning known as Dead Man’s Tuning or DDAD tuning. I have found that playing in this tuning is a rewarding and fun way to learn the mandolin quickly. It allows me to immerse my students into the exciting world of the mandolin very quickly, and the paybacks are instant as people realize that they too can make music when they initially thought they had no hope of ever playing.
I am a firm believer that music is the language of the soul, and it is my goal and heart’s desire to be able to help give a voice to your soul, so that you can in turn add that voice to the great chorus of voices that have gone on before.
I hope you have a blast learning and playing your mandolin!
God bless,
Willy Minnix
Richmond, IN
2011
Professional Reviews
Comprehensive, clear and fun
I'm still a noob when it comes to playing the mandolin, but I'm exploring. This book was well worth the money and time. Simple, clear, concise, and the tunes are a lot of fun.
Something New to Try,
This book is well written and goes through step-by-step how to play mandolin using Open D, or Dead Man's Tuning. It is written for the beginner, but more advanced mandolin players using standard tuning can learn and have fun with the book. The book begins with general mandolin history and "Dead Mans" tuning history. There are chapers explaining TABs, chords, string technique, and rhythm technique. I found these chapters to be easy to understand and very detailed. This is followed by several songs written in standard notation, with TABs for Dead Mans tuning. The arrangements are fun, easy to play, but not too simple. The book ends with a "Licks and Fills" section. This section has a brief description, followed by standard notation and TABs.
In addition to being well laid out, the design and graphics are fun. The front cover is glossy and looks like and Old West playing card with bullet holes. The inside pages are all black & white; however, they made the edges of the book look worn with fading gray graphics. Some of the watermarks could have had better graphics (they are slightly pixilated). I didn't reduce my star rating for this because I realize it keeps the cost down. Overall, a very good book and I'm excited to use it often.
This is a rare Find
Learn to play a new style that is way cool. both TAB and notation music. lots of great songs to learn with very nice method.
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