Lessons

Short and ordered. Start at the top; each lesson builds on the last.

• 1. How to play mandolin: a beginner's roadmap

  What to learn, in what order, from opening the case to your first fiddle tune.

• 2. Tuning your mandolin (without the frustration)

  What G–D–A–E means, how to use a clip-on tuner, and why your mandolin goes out of tune.

• 3. Your first three chords: G, C, and D

  The two-finger chord shapes that unlock hundreds of songs, and how to practice switching between them.