SIMON MAYOR - Great Tunes For Mandolin Volumes 1 & 2
Acoustics Records ISBN: 9780952277644/77651
These beautifully produced books live up to their claim of being “an anthology of pieces from the baroque to the present day chosen for their strong and memorable melodies”. One thing that is immediately obvious is the care and skill with which these collections have been put together: clear print, tablature, fingering and phrasing suggestions, none of which obscure the melody itself. It's only when you try them that you become aware of the clever little tweaks which Mayor has made to make the tune sing on the instrument - rather than, as is too often the case, just giving the dots and leaving you to it.
Harmonies are imaginative and the free audio download allows you to play along, or play your harmony against the other part. A warning - although the title is subtitled by the phrase, And How To Play Them, it's not a tutor - for that you should proceed immediately towards the same author's The Mandolin Tutor: Mastering The Mandolin from the same source. A very fine resource which should be immediately snapped up by all mandolin players.
www.acousticsrecords.co.uk
Paul Burgess
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