Homespun

John McGann’s Sound Fundamentals: Touch, Tone & Technique for Mandolin

All Levels - Includes PDF File of Music Transcriptions

Musicians who are known for having great tone and technique understand that a thorough command of each individual component allows them to produce a large pallet of tones in the most comfortable and efficient manner. Learn the secrets to improving your own touch, tone and technique from one of the world’s finest mandolinists.

Topics include: Getting comfortable, pick choice and holding the pick; Downstrokes vs alternate picking; free strokes vs rest strokes; cross picking; unlocking the fingerboard; developing speed; and more.

John McGann’s Rhythm Mandolin: From Bluegrass to Celtic to Swing

Rhythm is at the core of making good music and is 90% of what you do when you play with other musicians. This DVD will introduce you to the broad range of rhythmic approaches available to mandolin players from the chop of bluegrass to the textural leave of Celtic music to the joy of swing comping.

Topics include: The basic chop chord and its variants in bluegrass; the “continuum” right hand in progressive bluegrass; partial chords and drones in old-time styles; Celtic “textural” accompaniment using alternate picking and crosspicking for 4/4 and jig rhythms; Texas “sock” style swing backup; traditional swing and modern jazz comping; and more.