Mandolin Family Page

The Mandolin family starts with the mandolin, whose strings correspond with those of the violin or fiddle, tuned in Fifths GDAE. Traditionally the mandolin was a bowl backed instrument with pairs of strings tuned in unison in order to make the instrument louder when played in an orchestral setting.

Next is the (Tenor) mandola, which is larger and tuned a fifth lower CGDA, the same as a viola, the intervals between the strings are also fifths, which means for practical purposes that tunes learned on the mandolin can be played on the mandola, but will sound a fifth lower - tunes in D, G or A on the mandolin will be transposed into the key of G,C and D.

After the Tenor Mandola is the Octave Mandola or Octave Mandolin. Generally speaking, the Octave Mandola is the name usually given to the instrument in the UK, and Octave Mandolin in the US. Though a disctinction can be made between the two in that the Octave Mandola tends to have a shorter scale length than the Octave Mandolin.

From the Octave Mandola/Mandolin is the Irish Bouzouki, which has no fixed tuning, though is often tuned the same as the Octave Mandola with octave pairs on the bass courses (like a 12 string guitar). The Octave Mandola is a very verstile instrument - short enough for easy reach for melody playing, and long enough to be useful for playing chords.

The Mandocello is tuned the same as the Cello.

The Cittern is an old English instrument that has seen a revival and scale lengths vary between makers. Some Citterns can be thought of as based on a 10 string Octave Mandola with a High extra course , while other can be closer to a 10 string Irish Bouzouki with a low extra course. In these cases, scale length will determine what tunings will work best.

As a rough guide, the sort of scale lengths that you may come across can be broken down into a comparison chart

Mandolin	325-350 mm	8 Strings, 4 unison courses	G-D-A-E (violin)
Tenor Mandola	475-500 mm	8 Strings, 4 unison courses	C-G-D-A (Viola)
Octave Mandola or Octave Mandolin	various, 520-580mm	8 Strings, 4 unison courses	G-D-A-E (octave below violin, unison pairs in lower courses)
Mandocello	660 mm	8 Strings, 4 unison courses	C-G-D-A (Octave below mandola)
Cittern	various 500-650 mm	10 Strings, 5 unison courses	G-D-G-D-G, D-A-D-A-D, G-D-A-E-A shorter scales often based on Octave Mandola with extra couse of High G or A, Longer scales based on Irish Bouzouki with extra course of Low D
Bouzouki	600-660mm	8 Strings, 4 unison or 2 octave bass, 2 unison treble courses	G-D-A-E(as oct Mandola, though lower courses often octave pairs) , G-D-A-D , A-D-A-E, C-F-A D (1 tone lower than top 4 of a guitar) [Greek tuning]

There are no hard and fast rules, but the above table may help when choosing what sort of instrument you require. There are many possibilities for bouzouki / cittern / octave mandolin tunings - and whilst Fifths is often the easiest for melody playing, fifths and fourths can be more useful for Modal chord work which often gives Celtic and Traditional music its distinctive sound.

Blue Moon '3120' Budget Mandolin

Basic Budget Mandolin, complete with gig bag. Individual tuning machines.

Made in China. Ideal for the absolute beginner

Lorenzo LM1
Budget Mandolin

Teardrop A5 style , with f Holes. Basic Mandolin in Orangeburst

Blue Moon 3121

Flatback Mandolin

Maroonburst finish, A4 model, pressed arched top oval soundhole, scratchplate

Ozark 2001

Romanian Mandolin

Ask for our outfit with a good quality padded bag worth £15(TKL or similar) , and a couple of sharfkin picks thrown in too

Ozark 2250 'Army Navy Special'

A fantastic sub £100 mandolin.
despite it;'s unusual appearance, this model has a surprising tone and excellent playability.

solid spruce top and gig bag

Ashbury MA-120 Mandolin

Teardrop shaped mandolin in gloss sunburst, with 'F' Holes and a scratch plate

Teardrop shaped 'A' Model mandolin. Gloss finish, round sound hole

£135.00
OUT OF STOCK

Teardrop A-style shaped mandolin, in Red-Yellow Sunburst, with oval soundhole and extended fretboard

£145.00 out of stock

Teardrop shaped mandolin in gloss tobacco sunburst, with 'F' Holes and a scratch plate.
comes with Padded Bag

Ozark 2077 Electro-acoustic Mandolin

Teardrop shaped electro-acoustic mandolin in gloss sunburst,

The pickup is a piezo type, fitted in the floating bridge.

Tone and Volume controls

with Padded Bag

Ozark 2071S Mandolin

Solid Top Teardrop shaped mandolin in gloss sunburst, with 'F' Holes and a scratch plate. Gold colored Machine heads and tailpiece

with Padded Bag

£160.00
OUT OF STOCK

All Solid Teardrop shaped mandolin in gloss sunburst,
with 'F' Holes and a scratch plate. Gold coloured Machine heads and tailpiece

with Padded Bag

Gianinni GBSM1 Mandolin

Cedar top. comes with padded bag

Teardrop shaped mandolin flat top in natural finish

£250 OUT OF STOCK

Double cutaway Teardrop shaped mandolin in gloss sunburst,
Oval,bound soundhole

Ozark 2255

F5-Style Carved Scroll Bluegrass Mandolin with oblong case
Sunburst Finish, f-holes

Ozark 2255N

F5-Style Carved Scroll Bluegrass Mandolin with case
Natural Finish, f-holes

Ozark 2256

F4-Style Carved Scroll Bluegrass Mandolin with Oblong case
Oval soundhole, brown finish with flamed maple back and sides.

£395

Eastman 805 Mandolin

A-Style with f-holes with double asymmetrical points, in Classic natural finish.

The 800 series is similar to the 600 series but with the following upgrades: Gold or nickel plated hardware, highly flamed maple, back and sides, 3-ply binding on the headstock and body, as well as side binding. Available in our Classic or Sunburst finish.

£ 699
(includes Plush oblong case)

Gremlin Budget Mandola

£59.00

currently out of stock

Ozark Romanian Mandola

same specs as the Ozark 2001 model

£85
currently out of stock

Countryman
Octave Mandola

tuned GDAE
a budget alternative to the Ozark 2242, similar in appearance to the Ozark model

£199

Ozark

2242 Octave Mandola

Solid Spruce Top, Maple back and sides.

Tuned GDAE

An excellent value Octave mandola with a great tone.

£285

Fylde
Touchstone
Octave Mandola
Spruce top, Sapele (mahogany) back and sides
£825

Guitars	Violins	Mandolin Family	Whistles	Chanters	Ocarinas	Harmonicas
Bodhrans	Banjos	Childrens	Ukuleles	Reeds		2nd Hand

	Budget Bouzouki Made in Romania, this budget instrument is constructed from solid wood throughout. This is an excellent value-for-money entry level bouzouki, and we set each one these up to take strings suitable for GDAE / GDAD tuning. (the factory fitted strings are 'Greek tuning') £119.00
Ozark 2243 Bouzouki £295
Ozark F-style bouzouki £450 with hard case and pickup
Fylde Touchstone Bouzouki £875

Mandolins

We offer a huge selection of mandolins, and most of the mandolins shown on this page are available from stock at all times.

Mandolas

Octave Mandolas

Citterns

Bouzoukis

Miscellanous Stringed Instruments