Mel Bay's Complete Mandolin Method/93221 [Spiral-bound]

Mel Bay (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1988 | Series: Complete

With the thoroughness of a book by Mel Bay, this method presents mandolin technique and note-reading in a progressive, step-by-step fashion. Given the diverse applications of this versatile instrument, this method was carefully written to build the musicianship and technique needed to play both classical and contemporary mandolin styles. Music theory concepts and additional playing techniques are introduced as needed. Exercises and tunes are presented in all keys, many in duet format to be played by teacher and student. In notation only.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mel Bay was born on February 25, 1913 in the little Ozark Mountain town of Bunker, Missouri. He bought a Sears Roebuck guitar at the age of 13 and several months later played his first "gig." (He recalled playing until his fingers were raw!) Mel took up the tenor banjo shortly thereafter and continued to play both instruments. During his teenage years Mel played with a wild assortement of bands and characters in rural Missouri. Perhaps no "gig" was as strange as the job he landed with, in Mel's words, "a snake oil salesman." This flamboyant peddler would pull his ostentatious Pierce Arrow automobile, complete with steer horns mounted on the grill, into the center of a small, rural town. Mel would sit on the car and play up a storm on the tenor banjo. After a crowd gathered, the peddler took over and began extolling the merits of his "wonder elixer." In 1933 Mel Bay moved to St. Louis and began his professional career. He played with numerous local and traveling bands. In addition, he landed staff guitar jobs on several radio stations. Mel fronted his own trio (piano, bass, guitar) and played steadily for 25 years! He was equally adept on most fretted instruments and played mandolin, uke, Hawaiian guitar, tenor and plectrum banjo professionally. While Mel was actively pursuing his playing career, he continued to teach as many as 100 students a week. He decided to begin writing instructional materials due to the difficulty encountered by guitarists at playing good sounding chord forms in rhythm sections and due to the poor note reading ability prevalent among guitarists. After the war Mel was asked to write instructional materials on guitar for GI's wanting to learn music under the GI Bill. In 1947 Mel formed his own publishing company and wrote his landmark initial book titled The Orchestral Chord System for Guitar. (This book is still in print under the title Rhythm Guitar Chord System and continues to be one the finest rhythm guitar chord texts available!) His Modern Guitar Method was penned shortly thereafter. For years Mel traveled from town to town talking to guitar teachers and players and showing them his publications. At one time Mel claims to have known virtually every guitar teacher in America on a first name basis! The guitar and Mel Bay books caught on in a big way in the 1950's. Things have continued to grow ever since. Mel used to sell D'Angelico guitars. At any given time he would have 5 or 6 "lying around the house." Mel played professionally on his New Yorker model but his favorite was the initial Mel Bay Model crafted as a gift for him by John D'Angelico. This famous guitar had all of the main features of the New Yorker but was a "cut away" model and had a slightly thinner neck. This instrument has been pictured on the Mel Bay Modern Guitar Method for decades. Someone once calculated that sales of guitar books written by Mel Bay have exceeded 25 million copies. When asked, Mel frequently said that he quit counting long ago. Sales of his Modern Guitar Method have alone surpassed the 7 million mark. It is safe to say that Mel Bay is one of the pivotal figures in the world of guitar music and instruction in this century.

Product Details

• Spiral-bound: 96 pages
• Publisher: Mel Bay Publications, Inc. (June 1, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0871667630
• ISBN-13: 978-0871667632
• Product Dimensions: 11.7 x 8.8 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,372,007 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The perfect beginners book, September 29, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Mel Bay's Complete Mandolin Method/93221 (Spiral-bound)

If you have never picked up a mandolin and would like to learn this unique little instrument then this book is for you. The book is thorough and very clearly written. It begins with explaining how to read music and walks you through the steps to gradually develop this skill. At the same time Mel Bay provides musical examples to develop your technique. By studying from this book in it's entirety the student will aquire both the technique and musical knowledge to learn and play a variety of styles on the mandolin. Highly recommended.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Beginner's Choice, May 1, 2005

By 

D. McDiffett "iteachlit" (Salina, KS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mel Bay's Complete Mandolin Method/93221 (Spiral-bound)

A superb book for beginners who may need the essentials of music--notes, staffs, etc--before even beginning the mandolin. The book overwhelmingly uses melodies for learning, as opposed to chords. In fact, chords basically get only a brief mention at the end of the book. I'm sure this is because the mandolin does often carry the melody, but I was surprised, because Bay's "You Can Teach Yourself Mandolin" video begins with, you guessed it, chords. This book will improve your note reading abilities, as tablature is rarely used. A CD would be very helpful for hearing the pieces.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good introduction to musical notation, but not really mandolin, July 7, 2007

By 

Rachelle Ayala (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mel Bay's Complete Mandolin Method/93221 (Spiral-bound)

This book is good for people who do not know how musical notation. It introduces all of the scales, and key signatures, basic music theory. However there was no description of how to pick, exercises in chords, rhythm. I already play the violin, and basically you could just as well play everything in the on the violin, so this book did not add any "mandolin" knowledge.