Matt Flinner

These courses have concluded.  To view the current list of courses offered, visit the Winter Online Course page.

Welcome to mattflinner.com.  And welcome to the Bluegrass Mandolin 101 online lessons program!

This spring, beginning the week of March 30, the Bluegrass Mandolin 101 program continues with some traditional bluegrass mandolin courses for students of all ability levels.  The Double Stops and Position Playing courses will introduce students to essential techniques in bluegrass playing—addressing fundamentals of technique, learning positions on the fingerboard, playing backup and learning classic standard bluegrass songs along the way.  Two courses are offered in Double Stops and Position Playing: 101 (Beginner to Intermediate) and 102 (Intermediate to Advanced).

We’re also introducing a new Monroe-Style Mandolin course, which will focus on the powerful and unique mandolin style of Bill Monroe.  Students will learn the essentials of bluegrass mandolin from a distinctly “Monroe” perspective, focusing on the blues, rhythmic drive and getting around the neck in various keys while learning some classic Bill Monroe mandolin solos.

101 Curriculum

102 Curriculum

Monroe-Style Curriculum

Here’s a description of the Bluegrass Mandolin 101 online experience that I hope will give you a good idea of what this exciting style of mandolin lessons is all about.

BLUEGRASS MANDOLIN 101 (and 102 and Monroe-Style!)

The Bluegrass Mandolin 101 program is a unique approach to online mandolin lessons that gives students the best of both worlds: access to live lessons as well as recorded mandolin instructional videos.  These courses focus on helping mandolin students get to the next level in their playing and broaden their understanding of the bluegrass, old-time and fiddle tune traditions.

A UNIQUE APPROACH: LIVE INSTRUCTION PLUS INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEOS

Part of what makes Bluegrass Mandolin 101 unique is the fact that students follow a step-by-step program of live lessons over an eight-week course.  The live lessons get a little more challenging each week, and students are encouraged to practice during the week in order to get comfortable with that week’s concepts in order to be more prepared for the next class session.  Students also have unlimited access to several short instructional videos each week (usually about 6 to 8) but are also following a regular schedule which encourages them to actually practice the material regularly during the eight week period.  The archive of short instructional videos plus the video recordings of each class session and practice session give the student plenty of material to work with during the course and on into their future mandolin endeavors!

THIS QUARTER’S COURSES

For Spring Quarter, there will be THREE courses offered:

1. Bluegrass Mandolin 101, which will start at a beginning/intermediate level and progress to a solidly intermediate level.  This course will introduce students to the use of double stops and various positions on the neck, as well as various picking and fingerboard exercises to help develop good mandolin technique.  View the curriculum here.   Register here.

2. Bluegrass Mandolin 102, which will start at an intermediate level and progress to an intermediate/advanced level.  This course will move take double stops and position playing to as well as transposing to various keys, moving toward improvisation, adding more licks, and playing in more challenging keys.  View the curriculum here.  Register here.

3. Monroe Style Mandolin with Matt Flinner.  This is intended for students at an intermediate to advanced level who want to focus more exclusively on the distinct and amazing mandolin style of Bill Monroe.  Students will learn many concepts covered in the 101 and 102 courses, but with a uniquely “Monroe” take on them.  Focus will be on rhythmic drive, the bluesy side of bluegrass, and learning the fretboard in various keys while learning many classic Monroe mandolin solos.  The curriculum for this course can be viewed here.  Register here.

THE SCHEDULE

The live lessons for the Bluegrass Mandolin 101 course take place every Monday night from 8-9 pm Central time from March 30 to June 1, and for the Bluegrass Mandolin 102 course every Tuesday from 8-9 pm Central time from March 31 to June 2.  The Monroe Style Mandolin course will take place every Wednesday night from 8-9 pm central time from April 1 to June 3.  All three courses will also have Saturday practice/review sessions; 101 will be from 9-9:45 am central time, 102 will be from 10-10:45 am central time  and the Monroe Style Mandolin practice sessions will be from 11:15 am-12 pm central time each Saturday from April 4 through June 6 (the weeks of April 27 and May 11 will be off, as the instructor has prior commitments during those weeks.  There will still be eight class sessions and eight practice sessions in each course).

It is NOT imperative that students be able to attend the live mandolin bluegrass sessions.  As all sessions will be recorded, students can revisit the recorded sessions during the week to catch up on that week’s material at their own leisure.  Students attending the live lessons will be able to ask questions on the spot (and get immediate answers and interaction), while those watching the recorded sessions will be able to ask questions via email or on the class forum page.

VIDEOS, WRITTEN MATERIALS AND RECOMMENDED LISTENING

Students have access to video recordings of all of the class sessions and practice sessions as well (generally by the following morning, or, in the case of the Saturday practice sessions, later that afternoon).  In addition, shorter practice videos of the material are immediately available for viewing after each class session, along with PDFs of the all of the material in standard notation and tablature.  All of these videos (about eight or so per week) are available to view as many times as the student would like.  Students can also download all materials (including videos and PDFs) to keep as long as they wish.

Students will also be given a list of recommended recordings for each week’s tunes.  A variety of mp3 recordings will be suggested in the hope that students will broaden their musical horizons and get a better idea of how the tunes are played by the masters!

HOW INTERACTIVE IS THE COURSE?

All live sessions are interactive; students can ask questions and/or demonstrate tunes or exercises via live microphone or telephone, or via a chat window (most students opt for this approach).  The instructor is able to immediately respond and demonstrate the answers for the whole class.  Another form of interaction comes via mp3 recordings; students can record mp3s on their own time of themselves playing the material (or anything else they want to send in) and send it to the instructor for feedback, which is also recorded in mp3 form and sent back to the student.  Students can post their mp3s on the class site (and likely get encouraging feedback from other students in addition to the instructor) or email them privately to the instructor.

HOW MUCH DO I NEED TO PRACTICE?

That is completely up to the student.  While, say, 30 minutes per day might be a good recommendation for practice time, students can make whatever they choose of this course based on their own schedule and aspirations.  Practicing week to week (say, 30 minutes per day) will help students keep up with the week’s lessons and concepts, but the instructor knows that people have busy lives!  This is why all instructional material is archived and available for download so that students can learn on their own time after the course has finished as well as during the eight weeks of classes.  However, one advantage to the eight-week scheduled course is that by practicing at least somewhat regularly, students are more able to be prepared for the following week’s lessons and therefore take full advantage of the live and recorded mix of lesson material.

Students can decide whether to practice along with the class session or with the shorter individual videos (or both), depending on what they want to focus on for that week.  Material is given each week that is targeted toward various ability levels; a song is given which is playable for beginning to intermediate players (or intermediate to advanced in the 102 class), and various concepts relating to that song are also given to educate and challenge players at beginning, intermediate and even advanced levels.  The student essentially decides how much they want to take on for the week (and the course) based on their ability level and how much practice time they have.  Any material they were unable to get to during the week and want to revisit later will be available in the archived videos and PDFs.  The instructor will also give students a recommended list of priorities each week to help students take the best advantage of their practice time.

THE CLASS WEBPAGE

This is the virtual gathering place for Bluegrass Mandolin 101 and 102 as well as the Monroe Style Mandolin courses, where students can view the instructional videos, view and/or download all written materials, listen to mp3s of Matt playing the tunes, get listening recommendations, ask questions, submit their own mp3s for feedback and generate forum discussions.  It’s a great place to drop by any time and explore, learn and discuss.

REGISTRATION FEE

The fee for each eight-week course is $200.  This gives you access to all live online lessons and practice sessions as well as access to all recorded videos, written materials and mp3s (which are yours to keep).  Students opting to take more than one course at a time will receive a 10% discount for two courses or a 20% discount for three ($360 for two classes or $480 for three).  Email [email protected] for info on receiving the discounted rate.

Here are a few quotes from some past students about their experiences in Bluegrass Mandolin 101:

“I’ve practiced more in two weeks than I have in months!   Really enjoying how it’s going.”—Donna O.

“I have to say that making everything available online is a great convenience for me. Being able to stop and return to a more challenging exercise or a newer phrase is great for learning. I also really appreciate your availability to answer questions offline. This is a great course, and I feel as though I’m improving daily because of it.”—Joe C.

“The level was perfect. Mentally I understand many things that have opened up the fingerboard a lot; now I need some quality time to get it under my hands. I found things challenging without feeling out of reach.”—Stan M.

“I’m really enjoying the course. The first time I’ve actually practiced an instrument in my 60 years!”—Skip H.

To visit the registration pages, click one of these links:

Bluegrass Mandolin 101 Registration

Bluegrass Mandolin 102 Registration

Monroe-Style Mandolin Registration

You can always ask questions about the courses via email ([email protected]), and I’ll get back to you as quickly as possible.  I hope to see you this spring!

All the best,
Matt