Pettine picks & self-teaching

By Marilynn | Published: August 17, 2010

Q: I am 49 years of age and just purchased a mandolin.  I have played the piano and have found the mandolin, or it found me, after much consideration for a new adventure and furthering my range of music. When I purchased my mandolin I purchased your new instruction book “The Complete Mandolinist”.  I have tried to find the Pettine picks but without success. I have tried locally and have searched the internet. Will you please help me find them or the others that you consider and recommend as the best picks for the mandolin?
-JS

A: Hi, & welcome to mandolinworld! The easiest thing for you to do is to buy some 1.0 mm guitar picks & cut them down, as I describe in the book. If you want Pettine picks you can usually find some on Ebay & at Best Music Source, one of the merchants there.
-mm

Q2: Thanks for the info. I will check it out. If I am not able to find someone willing and able, do you recommend me learning from your book on my own? I believe I can, but wonder how likely it is one may develop bad habits without instruction. I have reviewed your book extensively and believe it is clearly written and very learnable. Please tell me your opinion of self instruction with your book.
-JS

A2: Lots of folks do it. I also just taught some students @ AMGuSS & the Summerkeys Camp who come see me every year to make sure they are on the right track & get their year’s assignments 🙂 You might consider attending one of those sessions for some personalized instruction, especially if there isn’t a mandolin teacher in your area.
-mm

Posted August 17th, 2010. Bookmark the permalink. Trackbacks are closed, but you can post a comment.

One Comment

  1. George Puia
    Posted January 21, 2015 at 1:12 am | Permalink

    I’m really enjoying your book. I’ve played guitar for 40 years, and for the last five, I dabbled with bluegrass and Celtic mandolin. About 6 months ago, I started working with your book and fell in love with classical mandolin music. I’d love to find some additional graded exercises to go along with your book. I haven’t found any, so I have been sight reading violin methods from the library. Any recommendations would be very welcome.

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