INSTRUMENTS

TOM BLISS PLAYS:

Guitar: Martin JC16 GTE

Mandocello aka Cello-Mandolin: David Oddy

Long-necked Dulcimer aka Scullion Dulcimer aka Strummer Hugh Scullion

Mandola Thomas Buchanan

Mandolin Oakwood

Duet Concertina Macann system

Whistles Susato, Shaw, and various others

Piano Accordion Various

TOM NAPPER PLAYS

Tenor Banjo Ibanez Artist 591TB

Octave Mandolin Stephan Sobell

Mandolin Marhsall Dow

Tenor Guitar Andew T Brown

ANORAK CORNER

People are sometimes curious about the names of the instruments, and how they're tuned. There is actually much disagreement on the correct terms for the members of the Mandolin family (itself a type of Lute with a much longer history than the Violin, which evolved from the Fidil - hence 'fiddle') - but this is what we think!

The Mandolin family equates directly with the Violin family: Violin=Mandolin, Viola=Mandola, Violincello=Mandocello and Double Bass=Mandobass (though 99.9% of the instruments called Double Basses are actually Bass Viols - the Viol being a third family charactorised by having the sides meet the neck in a sweep, rather than at right-angles as with the Violin).

MANDOLIN

There is very little dispute about this instrument - originally (and still sometimes) called a Mandolina ('little Mandola'), and occasionally a Mandoline. It is the treble member, and tuned GG DD AA EE.

Marshall Dow (no website), who is based in Scotland, is reputed to have made TN's Mandolin out of some old bits of furniture. TB uses a lovely Oakwood made by Martyn and Eric (sorry, real name Gordon!) in their workshop about a mile from where the Toms live in Leeds. (They also make a 10 string 5-course Mandolin, just to confuse things further)! That's the Dow shown again above because we haven't got round to snapping the Oakwood yet.

MANDOLA

This is the senior and original member of the family (the name is from Mandora, meaning almond-shaped). It covers the alto range and is tuned the same as a Viola: CC GG DD AA.

Thomas Buchanan (based in Cleckheaton, though from Scotland) sells his lovely peg bridge Mandolas as 'Tenor Manolas' and he has his reasons (as do other makers). However, the Mandola is actually the original instrument in the 'Mandolin' family, and as it's still essentially the same instrument it ever was it surely needs no qualifcation now (though it was sometimes called a C Mandola in times past). Furthermore the instrument is clealy in the alto, not tenor range, being tuned a fourth above all the other Tenor instruments.

Within the terms of the voicings of the other related families, however, an Octave Mandolin in low GDAE (specially if it has a short scale - closer to the normal Mandola length) COULD theoretically be called a Tenor Mandola because it IS within the upper tenor range, and is tuned like a Tenor Banjo (or Tenor Guitar), and thus has the same relationship to a Mandola as the Tenor Banjo has to the Banjo proper (which shares the same tuning as the Mandola and the Viola: CDGA) - are you keeping up? We even have a friend, Ian Hill, who does this - and we can't argue with him!

You will also find larger Mandolas strung one octave below the alto range, which some people choose to call Octave Mandolas. But as these are in the exact same pitch as Mandocellos (also known as Cello Mandolins), this extra name must be unnecessary, and unnecessarily confusing!

OCTAVE MANDOLIN

This is one of three common members of the Mandolin family which do not have direct equivalents in the Violin family (though Octave Violins do exist, Tim Phillips makes good ones, and TB is saving up for one) - the other two being the Greek/Irish* Bouzouki (usually strung with octave pairs like a 12-string Guitar), and the Cittern (which often has 10 strings in five courses). *Actually, Louis de Berniere tells me that the bouzouki is actually Turkish not Greek at all - and the word 'bouzouki' means 'mistake' in Turkish!

TN's Octave Mandolin was made by Stephan Sobell in Hexham. OMs should correctly be tuned one octave below a Mandolin or Fiddle: GG DD AA EE. but Tom keeps his top pair tuned down to D - a fairly common tuning for OMs, Bouzoukis, 8-string Citterns.

Some people like to call this instrument an Octave Mandola - which MUST be erroneous, because 'Octave' is a descriptor, and this is clearly one octave below the Mandolin, not below the Mandola.

MANDOCELLO

A Mandocello is officially tuned the same as a Violincello, aka Cello CC GG DD AA, but one octave below a Viola or Mandola (though many people tune them like an octave mandolin or bouzouki: GG DD AA EE or DD.

However, just to be difficult - TB usually tunes his two (he has a Gremlin as well, which has been brilliantly fettled by Mark Challoner into a very nice intrument) in 4ths: ADGC so he can use guitar-like shapes on them. He may be the only person anywhere to do this! (One is sometimes restrung in fifths as a true Mandocello for recording sessions).

David Oddy (no website) is based in Exeter, and is famous for having made ALL of Show of Hands' instruments! He's also largely responsible for the sudden surge in the popularlity of the Mandocello (which Steve Knightley calls a Cello Mandolin) in the UK, having been asked to copy a decrepit instrument found by Paul Downes' brother in a junk shop - which was falling to bits. Paul and Show of hands did the rest. Tom asked him to make him a Mandolin/Mandocello pair, but David was due into hospital and wasn't sure if he'd be returning to making afterwards. He did have a beautiful left-handed Mandocello though, made for an Australian customer who'd never collected. TB is in fact very left-handed, but plays all stringed instruments right-handed through having started so young (what price a left-handed 1/8 size fiddle*)? So David refinished it 'tother way up. It now has dots on both sides of the fretboard, and a hidden extra hole through the top, under the bridge, where the wire from the Ashworth pick-up used to go. The neck is very wide because, David explained, that's how Phil Beer likes 'em.

MANDOBASS

The Toms don't have a Mandobass, but they'd love to own one! They are MASSIVE - tuned like a double bass or bass guitar (which they closely resemble, being fretted) E A D G (single course), but with the distinctive teardop shape. The only person they know who plays one is the wonderful Hilary James. TB uses an Ozark acoustic bass guitar in the studio.

TENOR BANJO

The Tenor Banjo (Ibanez) is not to be confused with the American 5-string banjo*. Please don't ask TN to play that awful vamp from 'Deliverance' - which actually features a guitar and a 5-string. (The original, called "Feuding Banjos," did in fact feature a Tenor and a 5-string - and, after the same intro - a much nicer tune). Here's Napper demonstrating a Deering banjo at Eaglemusic.

*If you do want to learn how to play the 5-string banjo (or any bluegrass instrument come to that) try my chums Pete and Ian's on-line school The Bluegrass College.

GUITAR

TB has tried a number of different makes of Guitar, but the Martin is the only one that can hold its own, fingerstyle, against a good banjo. He bought this one, with Mark Challoner's expert help, from The Music Room in Cleckheaton. Having tried perhaps 150 guitars in shops and workshops all over West Yorkshire, this individual instrument sounded head and shoulders better than any other - including a couple of dozen other Martins.

TB uses standard tuning, top drop, bottom drop, double drop and DADGAD in fairly equal measure, plus a couple of his own devising. He also has Washburn, Eko, Taylor, Ozark, Fender and Takamine guitars of various types (and a nameless Classical), which occasionally get used on recordings.

TENOR GUITAR

TN uses a lovely Tenor Guitar made by Andy Brown in Kendall, which replaced a Baby Taylor with the outer strings removed!

LONG NECKED DULCIMER aka SCULLION DULCIMER aka "STRUMMER"

The Long-necked Dulcimer (Hugh Scullion is based in Scunthorpe) is basically an Appallachian or Mountain Dulcimer, built so that it can be played easily by lute-family players. It has the diatonic frets of the Dulcimer family (i.e. just the major scale, with no semitones), and the same string tunings, but becuase of the way it's made the low string is struck first, as with the Guitar and Mandolin, rather than last, as with a dulcimer. Here's Tom playing it.

SQUEEZEBOXES and KEYBOARDS

The Duet is the rarest of the concertina family. TB has two 39-button Lashenals - one with 6-fold bellows and one with 8, both with wooden ends and bone buttons. Like the anglo it has low notes to the left hand and high notes to the right, but like the english it plays the same note on both the push and pull strokes. So you can theoretically play duets with yourself; but the note layout (Macann system) is fiendishly complex and fast tune-playing is technically impossible (according to TB)!

The piano accordions don't come out much these days because the flat keyboard plays havock with pickin' fingernails, but TB does use them in the studio.

TB is very fond of his Hohner Melodica, and also plays Harmonica and various Keyboards (he was mainly a keyboard player in his rock band days).

And yes, the rumours are true: On The Toms farewell tour, TN supported TB's duet on Mary Prout with some lovely Single Row G Melodeon.

FIDDLE

TB no longer plays fiddle at gigs since he was unable to lift an instrument for 18 months following a shoulder injury - but he does still occasionally use one in the studio. His lovely 5-string fiddle, adaped by Shay Allen to carry an extra low C string, now belongs to the lovely Tania Opland who plays it all the time!

* Tom has been playing the violin on and off since he was three years old - having, like the rest of his family, started on a tiny instrument chosen for his Great Great Aunt by her tutor: Clara Schumann.

FInally - this might amuse. You"ll guess the tune!

THE MANDOLA (BLiss/Davies)

I was walking in the town when it started to rain

And for reasons I’d really rather not explain

I wore a bola - B O L A bola

I was getting pretty wet and I wished I was dry

Out driving in my nice new car, which by

The way’s a Roller - Ra-Ra-Ra-Ra Roller, Ra-Ra-Ra-Ra Roller

So I stepped into a shop and I doffed my hat

There was a lot of funny folky-looking musical tat

N’a beardy fella, an old beardy fella..

And then I saw an instrument I couldn’t quite place

But the folky old bloke with the fluff on his face

Said couldn’t tell ya, I just couldn’t tell ya

With that tear drop body and medium neck

Couldn’t be a hurdy gurdy or a harpaliek

Mandolin? Too big you see?

Bouzouki? Well ‘s’all Greek to me

So I plucked to hear what notes would play

CC GG DD AA

Like a viola, just like a viola

(An Oud? Nerr, Lute? Nah, Saz? Nope - Err. well, it's bally like a balalaika...
Then I seemed to hear a voice - “I’m a GNU!! - oops, sorry wrong song”)!

I’m not a mandocello or cittern you know

Or a bally ukulele or a bloody banjo

No mandobass, not an octave mandolin

How could I be a Tenor when there’s NO SUCH THING!

I’d have thought a folk singer like you would have spotted

I’m only eight-stringer you’ve not yet gotted

A mandola. M m m mandola, m m m mandola

So feeling rash, I paid my dosh,

And off did dash, and down to the sesh,

They were playing The Kesh at a hell of a lick

I took a deep breath and I grabbed a pick

Now I’m not a Dab Hand like Napper you see

But I’m happy in the Blissful company

Of a mandola, M m m mandola, m m my mandola

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