rstl99 - Posted - 08/04/2024:  08:03:06

Sorry for the long title but I wasn't sure how to write it succinctly.

I have been playing 6 string guitars, acoustic and electric, for 50 years. Non professionally, only for personal amusement and growth, sometimes fortunate to have compatible players to play with, but more often than not playing by myself, using recordings to improve and add some layers to my playing. Different styles (folk, country, rock, jazz, traditional), picking or fingering, some open tunings to liven things up.

A little over a year ago, my brother gave me a seldom used mandolin, so I spent some months learning the different chord shapes, and enjoying slowly becoming more accustomed to tuning in 5ths, playing mostly tunes in chords, with a bit of noodling and melody playing (hampered by decades of soloing on guitar, and finger memory from that).

From the mandolin, I went to an octave mandolin and enjoyed playing that for a while, more guitar-sized instrument. Then I quickly bought a tenor guitar (wanting to also be able to fingerpick), and my playing interest really took off. Eventually learned to play some Bach from mandolin transcriptions, and that has been extremely satisfying, especially simple sarabandes from the suites for cello. Then taught myself a lot of tunes by ear, folk, some celtic. It's like a whole new universe of playing experience has opened up for me, and it's exciting to explore and learn new abilities.

Recently, I acquired a vintage tenor banjo from the 1920s and am enjoying playing that too.

I still feel like a beginner on the tenor instruments, but it's been a very satisfying experience, like learning a new language (always good to exercise the brain in new ways, to help stave off nasty things like dementia and Alzheimer's in older age...). And my flat picking and finger picking proficiency from decades of guitar playing allows me to play very enjoyable arrangements of known songs with my right hand. And developing some left hand finger and mental memory of chord shapes and positions on the tenor.

After such a long winded introduction, I find myself almost exclusively drawn to pick up and play a tenor instrument (less the mandolin, I prefer a fuller sized instrument of which I now own three), to the almost total exclusion of all my 6 string guitars (I own many very nice guitars).

Is it normal to become so infatuated with tenor playing to almost abandon 6 string guitar playing? I suppose that if I had to play with other people again I could revert to the more commonly played 6 string for various music I/they enjoy, but by myself, I thrive on the challenge and pleasure of "transposing" my repertoire to the tenor side. Jazz will be more complicated, as I had a pretty decent chord knowledge and ability to improvise solos on the guitar, which will be a formidable challenge to transpose onto the 4 string tenor instruments.

Maybe in time I'll become lesser infatuated by the "new girl in my life" (tenor instruments) and go back to the more typical 6 string universe, or at least, develop a more harmonious co-existence with both?

Any insights from your own journey in migrating to 4 string tenor, and striking a balance with your 6 string playing, would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Robert

Culloden - Posted - 08/04/2024:  08:26:05

Whenever you pick up a new instrument you will go through a phase where it takes the place of all other instruments for a while. Don't worry, the new will wear off eventually and you will go back and pick up the older instruments again. Just because you are learning new instruments doesn't mean you've forgotten how to play the old ones.
I play the five-string banjo regularly, but I still get out the fiddle, the guitar, the lap steel, or the Dobro and play them on occasion to do something different. Whenever I would take to a new instrument the same thing would happen to me that you are dealing with now.

rstl99 - Posted - 08/04/2024:  10:08:46

Thanks Mark, I suppose I'm still in the honeymoon phase for the tenor instruments, and with each new one let into the house, another mini honeymoon starts again.

Indeed, I'll never forget the 6 string stuff. But the few times that I have gone back and tried to noodle a solo, my fingers are all confused trying to put 5th tuning note sequences onto a 4th tuning fingerboard LOL.

For now anyway, becoming familiar and enjoying the learning opportunities of the 5th tuning instruments is a nice ride. I would never have bothered learning the nice Bach pieces on guitar (from tabs I mean, I don't read standard notation and am not about to start at my age), but learning them from the nice mandolin tab transcription books of Daniel Sellman has been a life-affirming experience.

Plus I figure that learning something new is always good, at any age.

Regards.

Greg Connor - Posted - 08/07/2024:  06:10:47

Variety is what makes things interesting. I am a long time guitar player too and have branched out into 5 string banjo followed by mandolin, bouzouki, Irish tenor banjo, square necks and am currently playing blues harmonica in a garage band every week. It’s a great life … have fun with it.

mmuussiiccaall - Posted - 08/07/2024:  08:08:12

quote:

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Originally posted by rstl99

Any insights from your own journey in migrating to 4 string tenor, and striking a balance with your 6 string playing, would be appreciated.

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If a player is proficient on just one instrument, technique and theory, it should be possible to move to any similar instrument and bring those skills with them.

Here's a PDF that shows all the chords in any key at any fret location on the fingerboard.

Tenor Chord Theory