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The mandola (US and Canada) or tenor mandola (Europe, Ireland, and UK) is a fretted stringed
String instrument

A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones....
 musical instrument
Musical instrument

A musical instrument is an object constructed or used for the purpose of making music. In principle, anything that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument....
. The mandola has four double courses for a total of eight strings. The instrument is tuned in fifths, to the pitches of the viola
Viola

The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.The casual observer may mistake the viola for the violin because of their similarity in size, closeness in pitch range , and nearly identical playing position....
 (C-G-D-A low-to-high), a fifth lower than a mandolin
Mandolin

A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It is descended from the Mandora, a soprano member of the lute family. It has a body with a teardrop-shaped soundboard, or one which is essentially oval in shape, with a soundhole, or soundholes, of varying shapes which are open and are not decorated with an intricately carved grille lik...
; the courses are tuned in unison rather than in octaves. The scale length of the mandola is typically around 42cm (16.5 inches).






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The mandola (US and Canada) or tenor mandola (Europe, Ireland, and UK) is a fretted stringed
String instrument

A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones....
 musical instrument
Musical instrument

A musical instrument is an object constructed or used for the purpose of making music. In principle, anything that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument....
. The mandola has four double courses for a total of eight strings. The instrument is tuned in fifths, to the pitches of the viola
Viola

The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.The casual observer may mistake the viola for the violin because of their similarity in size, closeness in pitch range , and nearly identical playing position....
 (C-G-D-A low-to-high), a fifth lower than a mandolin
Mandolin

A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It is descended from the Mandora, a soprano member of the lute family. It has a body with a teardrop-shaped soundboard, or one which is essentially oval in shape, with a soundhole, or soundholes, of varying shapes which are open and are not decorated with an intricately carved grille lik...
; the courses are tuned in unison rather than in octaves. The scale length of the mandola is typically around 42cm (16.5 inches). The mandola is typically played with a plectrum
Plectrum

A plectrum is a small flat tool used to pluck or strum a string instrument. For guitars and similar instruments, the plectrum is a separate tool held in the player's hand....
 (pick).

Like the guitar
Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
, the mandola is a poorly sustaining instrument — a note cannot be sustained for an arbitrary time as with the viola
Viola

The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.The casual observer may mistake the viola for the violin because of their similarity in size, closeness in pitch range , and nearly identical playing position....
, although the technique known as tremolo
Tremolo

Tremolo, or tremolando, is a Musical terminology with several meanings:* A regular and repetitive variation in amplitude for the duration of a single note; this is the most common meaning....
 (tremolando), a rapid alternation of the plectrum on a single pair of strings, allows the approximation of a long-sustained note. Also like the guitar
Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
, the mandola can be acoustic and/or electric.

Mandolas are not uncommon in folk music
Folk music

Folk music can have a number of different meanings, including:* Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous with the term "Traditional music", also often including World Music and Roots music; the term "Traditional music" was given its more specific meaning to distinguish it from the other definition...
 and sometimes used in Irish traditional music
Folk music of Ireland

The folk music of Ireland is the generic term for music that has been created in various genres on the entire Ireland, North and South of the Border....
, although far less often, in the latter case, than the octave mandola, Irish bouzouki
Irish bouzouki

The Irish bouzouki is a derivative of the Greece bouzouki.The bouzouki, in the newer tetraxordo Greek version, was introduced into Irish Traditional Music in the late 1960s, by Johnny Moynihan, of the popular folk group Sweeney's Men, and popularised by Andy Irvine and D?nal Lunny in the group Planxty....
, and modern cittern
Cittern

The cittern or cither is a stringed instrument of the guitar family dating from the Renaissance. With its flat back, it was much simpler, and therefore cheaper, to construct than the lute, in addition to which it was easier to play and, being smaller and less delicate, far more portable....
. Some Irish traditional musicians, such as Andy Irvine
Andy Irvine (musician)

Andrew Kennedy 'Andy' Irvine is a folk musician, singer, and songwriter, and a founding member of the popular band Planxty. He is an accomplished player of the mandolin, bouzouki, mandola and Bouzouki....
 restring the tenor mandola so it may be tuned as a mandolin
Mandolin

A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It is descended from the Mandora, a soprano member of the lute family. It has a body with a teardrop-shaped soundboard, or one which is essentially oval in shape, with a soundhole, or soundholes, of varying shapes which are open and are not decorated with an intricately carved grille lik...
, whilst others (Brian McDonagh of Dervish
Dervish (band)

Dervish is a County Sligo based traditional Irish music band formed in 1989. On November 14, 2006, the Irish national broadcaster Radio Telef?s ?ireann announced that Dervish were to perform the Irish entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2007....
 being the best known) use altered tunings such as D-A-E-A.

See Also

In the same family:

  • Mandolin
    Mandolin

    A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It is descended from the Mandora, a soprano member of the lute family. It has a body with a teardrop-shaped soundboard, or one which is essentially oval in shape, with a soundhole, or soundholes, of varying shapes which are open and are not decorated with an intricately carved grille lik...
  • Mando-bass
    Mando-bass

    The mandobass is the musical instrument of the mandolin family with the lowest range. It is tuned EADG ....
  • Octave mandola - Tuned an octave below the mandolin


  • Mandocello
    Mandocello

    The mandocello is a plucked string instrument of the mandolin family. The mandocello is played with a plectrum and is fretted. Mandocello construction is similar to that of the mandolin....
     - Tuned an octave abovethe mandola
  • Irish bouzouki
    Irish bouzouki

    The Irish bouzouki is a derivative of the Greece bouzouki.The bouzouki, in the newer tetraxordo Greek version, was introduced into Irish Traditional Music in the late 1960s, by Johnny Moynihan, of the popular folk group Sweeney's Men, and popularised by Andy Irvine and D?nal Lunny in the group Planxty....


External links

  • (Mandolins and Mandolas)


Further reading

— A comprehensive chord dictionary. — A comprehensive chord dictionary. — A chord book featuring 20 pages of popular chords.