Ready to take your mandolin playing beyond chugging chords?

Learn the essential skills for joining jams and tackling new genres

Do you feel like your playing’s got stuck?

If you’re like most musicians, you’ll hit a plateau after playing for a while.

You probably learned the basic chords for some favorite songs. From there you get to grips with more advanced chords and maybe experiment with rhythms a bit.

But, it’s not so obvious where to go from there. You know that there’s plenty more to learn, but what to learn next and how to learn it can feel like a mystery.

It’s completely understandable. Music is a vast topic that can feel overwhelming, so having an experienced guide is highly recommended.

Go beyond the random mix of YouTube lessons

Don’t get me wrong, YouTube is a fantastic resource. I wish it had been around when I started learning all those years ago.

If you learned the basics from free videos, then that’s great.

But YouTube isn’t ideal for more advanced learning. Clicking on the AI’s next suggested video is fine, but you will miss fundamental concepts.

What you need instead is an intentional course, a set path that starts at the basics and helps you put the ideas together.


Introducing Tim’s Mando Lessons


I created this course to help mandolin players like you. It’s for players who can comfortably play but want to level up, or folks starting out who want to nail the basics.

The lessons are all about giving you a deeper understanding of the music and your instrument. You will learn how the chords, melody and rhythm all fit together to build a piece of music and how to think songs through.

With this knowledge, you will be better equipped to play new genres or improvise over songs.

Drawing on both my performance
and pedagogy expertise


Hi,
I’m Tim Connell!


Thank you for checking out my Mando Lessons!

 

I have been playing and teaching Mandolin for over 25 years - it truly is my life’s work.

I have played with Mike Marshall, David Grisman, Eric Skye and many other great musicians.

Mandolin has taken me all over the world, from giant folk festivals here in the US to intimate gigs in Warsaw.

 

As well as playing great gigs, I have always been passionate about teaching.

Having taught many musicians individually, I’m now taking my teaching online. I’m excited to help mandolin lovers from around the world master this fantastic instrument.

I earned a Masters degree in Music Education from the New England Conservatory of Music. So as well as being an experienced musician, I have spent countless hours studying music pedagogy (i.e, approaches to teaching).

That background means that this course isn’t a jumbled collection of song instructions. It draws on all my teaching skills to methodically build up your knowledge and skills.

It’s like going from Ikea assembly
to master carpentry


You’ve reached a point where you actually need to know more about how music functions.

Chunking out some simple chords is like assembling Ikea furniture. You go along with the basic instructions so that with a bit of fiddling and cursing, you get something like what you saw in the store.

Improvising your own chords or melody is more like using carpentry to come up with your own ideas. You need to understand how wood behaves, when to use different joints, how to combine ideas and lots more in order to form your own creations.

“Music theory” might sound like some dry or intimidating topic. But really, it’s a similar challenge of learning how different pieces fit together.

3 core modules:
Rhythm, Melody and Chords


The course will take you through three core areas. You will learn each one step by step, gradually building up knowledge while learning custom pieces to practice the new skills.

Module 1

|

Rhythm

- If you want to play with other people, then you have to become a human metronome. Module one is all playing essential rhythms while getting your right hand good and solid.

Module 2

|

Melody

- You’ll learn how to navigate the fretboard and how to translate written music into fingerings by learning to play simple melodies.

Module 3

|

Chords

- Improvising requires you to know what your options are. You will learn about concepts such as which chords fit in a key, using different arpeggios and how to stop relying on charts.

Hear from happy students



“Tim has been dream mandolin teacher! He is prepared for lessons and keep my son challenged and moving ahead. Love what I hear coming out of my son's mandolin!

Kelly M., Seattle, WA


“A year ago I could read music but could not play a chord or accompany anyone to save my life. Now, I am leading gypsy jazz-jams, improvising and playing chordal backing - and I can't help grin from ear to ear!

Amanda Schrader, Manchester, NH


“As a practicing professional musician, Tim's playing is phenomenal. He also spent many years as school music teacher, so he can actually translate what he is doing into terms that I can understand, and he can explain all the whys.

Steve Tufte, Portland, OR

Click Here for Annual Membership!

 

 

➤ [Note: this course isn’t a shortcut]

If you’re looking for a shortcut to becoming the next Chris Thile in a few weeks, then I’m afraid I can’t help. The truth is it takes time.

But the good news is you will make progress if you’re patient. You won’t become an instant virtuoso, but you will feel your knowledge steadily expanding. The aim is to enjoy the journey, take satisfaction in each skill that you master.

Learn songs in a range of genres.


Once you have mastered the core modules you can enjoy learning songs from a variety of genres, including:

▶ Jazz

Bluegrass

▶ Classic Rock

▶ Klezmer

▶ Brazilian Choro

▶ Irish Traditional

▶ Chord Melody

▶ Octave Mandolin

You’ll start by hearing a demo of the song. You will then learn any new techniques or theory required, which you’ll use to learn a simplified then more complex way to play each song.

Get personal feedback on your playing


Learning from videos is great, but I know there will be times where a concept’s not quite clicking or you can’t get your fingers around a sequence.

But at Tim's Mando Lessons you will never be left alone scratching your head. As a member, you will get

▶ A complimentary 15min Welcome 1-1 Session (Zoom)

▶ A seat at the bi-weekly live Q&A

▶ Quick answers to questions on the Community wall

1-to-1 welcome lesson to get you started


I will give you direct feedback on your playing, answer any questions and give you manageable goals and a clear roadmap for your mandolin practice.

Live Q&A on Zoom

We have a bi-weekly live Q&A time on Zoom and all members are welcome to join.

It is a chance to ask questions, get clarification on areas you’re unsure of, and to make sure everyone is optimizing their experience with the lessons.

Community board


It has been so satisfying to foster a community of keen students.

Our community board is where people ask and answer questions throughout the week. Members can post up requests which will be answered by other students or myself.

If your friends or partner are tired of hearing you talk about mandolin, then this is a perfect place to share your enthusiasm with people who will appreciate it.

What you’ll get (a summary)


▶ Unlimited access to 26 courses and songbooks
A guided approach, taking you through learning mandolin one step at a time.

▶ 3 fundamental modules
The three fundamentals that serve as the basis for learning any new song.

▶ 7 genre modules
Expand your playing into new areas with lessons on genre-specific songs.

▶ Free welcome 1-to-1 lesson
A 15-minute lesson to get to know each other and help you start this journey.

▶ Bi-weekly live Q&A
A bi-weekly session for you to ask questions or get feedback.

▶ Community board
Post up any questions to get help from me or your fellow students.

▶ Printed materials 
Every course comes with a lot of printed materials, PDFs to be downloaded and printed. Hundreds and hundreds of transcriptions of songs, mandolin chord diagrams and mandolin tablature.

One Year Membership at Tim's Mando Lessons

$397

One Annual Payment

✔️ 365 Access to all Lesson Videos

✔️ 365 Access to all Sheet Music

✔️ Access to Live Q&A with Instructors

✔️Quick Answers to Your Questions 

✔️ Complimentary 1-to-1 Welcome Lesson

Become a Member Now

100% satisfaction guarantee!

If you decide that membership at Tim's Mando Lessons is not for you, just email me within 30 days of purchase and I guarantee you I will refund 100% of your money, no questions asked.

Frequently Asked Questions


Teach Your Mando to Sing!


At Tim’s Mando Lessons, we’ll teach your mandolin how to sing! You’ll learn right hand phrasing directly from me on the videos.

And are you familiar with these expressive techniques?

⦿ Tremolo

⦿ Vibrato

⦿ Double-Stops

⦿ Palm Muting

⦿ Slides

⦿ Harmonics

Maybe not, but chances are you love hearing them used by your favorite mandolin players! I’ve made detailed video lessons for each of these techniques so you can add spice to your playing.

"I've always wanted to learn to read music,
but keep putting it off."


⚫ Are you addicted to mandolin tablature (TABS)?

⚫ Have you always wanted to learn to read standard notation?

⚫ Do you still not know all of the note names on your mandolin?

⚫ Is a lack of music theory and notation knowledge slowing your progress?

Reading music notation is an essential tool to fully understand music. Mandolin “tablature” (or “TAB”) has enabled many mandolin students to learn a lot of songs, but without necessarily understanding music itself.

My method features dedicated sight-reading video lessons divided into two areas: rhythm and melody.

Each melody lesson will introduce only a few new notes at a time. This means you’ll be able to digest each new skill and be ready for the next one. You will quickly learn to translate notes on the staff to your mandolin.

The specialized rhythm lesson videos help you internalize the new rhythms - by playing each new rhythm along with me! You'll learn songs from standard music notation right away. You'll learn about music theory in every lesson. And you'll finally end your addiction to mandolin tablature!

Tim's Mando Lessons offers you
CONFIDENCE


I know it can be hard to decide what to actually do when you sit down to practice. Sometimes this even stops us from starting. Often we end up just playing through songs we know from top to bottom, moving on without actually improving.

Every lesson offers the student a clear to-do list for the week.

⚫ Lesson Video with Tim

⚫ Printable PDF Sheet music and tablature

⚫ Right Hand Technique Focus

⚫ Music Theory Focus

⚫ “Practice-Along with Tim" Video

⚫ Makes knowing what to practice a breeze!

Become a Member Today!


And prepare to see vast improvements in your playing and enjoyment of the mandolin!

Click Here for Annual Membership