If you are just starting out and dobro is your main instrument, watch the pros, watch the videos, and have a few lessons.

My hero is Mike Auldrige. His music and technique are flawless.

hope this helps.

Ron

Edited to add: Mike Auldridge's tone, and taste, are second to no one, ever. He's also a pretty cool guy.

[This message was edited by Stephen Gambrell on 07 December 2006 at 06:43 AM.]

Terry

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Mullen RP D10 /8x5 / Nashville 112 x 2 / American Tele and Fender
Hotrod Deville 2x12's
Thank God for music.

With the heel of my hand on the palm rest, I sort of anchor my pinky a lot of the time on the treble string side of the cover plate.

Terry, may I make a suggestion: keep those dobro questions coming, everyone is happy to help-but you might want to start any additional threads on the subject in the "Steel With No Pedals" section. That's where these questions have their home. You will probably get additional responses there. That would benefit everyone, and it won't get lost in the "Music" section that way.

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Mark

[This message was edited by Mark Eaton on 07 December 2006 at 11:23 AM.]

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Sho~Buds,Fender Steelking,Teles and Fender Twins, Tut Taylor resos, and Twang to the bone!

Ok Larry I'll check it.

On the right hand, like everything else, just "ignoring it" might help develop some bad habits. Maybe best to at least be aware of what works for you and what others are doing there.
For instance, many pedal players move their hand further toward the nut for palm blocking, and get a softer sound, they also frequently play with less attack, probably from being used to the amplified boost from electric lap or pedal guitars. Listen to dobro tracks on "pedal steel" albums and you'll hear the smoother, softer attack.

You don't get the full potential out of these things if you don't really go for it.

That said, of course there is a time and place for "softer" picking.

But when you see these top players in action-Douglas, Ickes, Auldridge, Kohrs, Heffernan-they pick the heck out of thing.

Jimmy Heffernan, in the first day of his two day workshop-spends quite a bit of time emphasizing strong, agressive picking-he points out that the right hand is what it's all about on the dobro.

Rolls are highly syncopated chord structures played one note at a time, in a specific sequence, (sometimes referred to as an arpeggio) often at breakneck tempo. The right hand technique to rolls, especially in a bluegrass context.

In other cases a roll pattern can be very similar to a fingerstyle guitar arrangement - it all depends on the tune and the player. For bluegrass dobro (which is normally G tuning-G-B-D-G-B-D) the ability to play a G roll is probably the single most important roll!!

Chop is similar to mandolin chop and functions in the same way: usually plays the offbeat (one and two and three, etc.

In addition to the above -the real twist in right hand technique is in playing the ornaments and embellishments native to the dobro, namely, the hammer-on's, pull-off's, slides and slurs used to express melodies and licks. In basic terms, the thumb is the lead, while the 1st and 2nd fingers fill out the rest of the notes. The thumb almost always plays pull-offs, and plays on any string, including the 1st string!

I have heard it said that 80% of a players tone on the dobro comes from their right hand. The right hand technique make a huge difference!

Learning to play an instrument is an evolutionary process. It takes years of practice for most of us just to play a simple song extremely well.
There is no single "correct" way to play dobro - there are only starting points
Tablature without right hand fingerings can lead to poor technique/bad habits for beginners
Pay strict attention to the right hand fingerings when learning new tunes. It may even seem counter-intuitive but it will save you a lot of time in the long run.
Its more fun to practice tunes than scales, but scales are like roadmaps that can help save time, especially when you are a beginner
You can cover a lot of ground if you have a grasp of just three basic scales-major, minor and pentatonic scales
A knowledge of basic music theory won't make you play like Jerry Douglas, but it will make you a "quick study" when it comes to deciphering chord progressions and/or improvising solos over tunes that you have never heard before
It is helpful, dare I say - liberating - to develop an understanding of chord progressions in non-key-specific-terms. Have you ever jammed with someone who tried to teach you a new tune..."this tune starts out with a G, then D, back to G," etc, etc, etc? Thinking in non-key-specific terms forces you to view chord progressions in terms of relationships between chords--same example..."the kickoff is a quick I-V-I, watch out for the II chord in the chorus"...
For anyone interested in understanding music theory I highly recommend you pick up a copy of Edly's Music Theory for Practical People. Check out his website... http://www.edly.com
It is critical to practice with some kind of time keeper, metronome or drum machine
Tablature is a great time saver, but nothing can replace the value of learning tunes by ear.
If you are new to the instrument, start by learning children's tunes or simple folk songs in the key of G. Strum an open G chord and sing the melody to a song (start with something you can sing by heart - Home on the range, Over the rainbow, a kids song, etc)-now find the notes! Gradually add chords and embellishments like slides, pull-off's, etc.
Once you can play even moderately well, it is absolutely critical to get out of the house and play with other musicians. Join a band, play at church, go to open-mic nights - do whatever it takes - force yourself if necessary - to put yourself in situations where you learn to play with others.

[This message was edited by Tim Harr on 14 December 2006 at 07:32 PM.]