Lesson 3b Mandola Basics: Fretting Exercises

by Mickey Cochran

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We will now start our focus on the fretting hand...we are trying to establish a solid foundation before we start learning our first tune.

Notes on Mandola Fingering: Mandola is quite a bit different than standard mandolin. The scale length of the neck is longer and demands a stretch of the fingers.

Fretting Exercises

Make sure you're in a comfortable position to both flatpick and finger the neck simultaneously. We have established the importance of keeping rhythm with methodical down and upstrokes matching your tapping foot. We will now utilize the same exercise but incorporate our first C scale.

Finger Positions for the fretting hand:

2nd Fret: Index Finger
3rd Fret: Middle Finger
4th Fret: Middle Finger
5th Fret: Ring Finger

Practice the above exercises until you are completely comfortable with fretting and picking simultaneously without hesitating between beats. Remember, these exercises are considered accomplished only if you're keeping an even tempo without losing a beat.

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