Bluegrass is all about being a team player, and no instrument makes that more apparent than the mandolin. As a mandolin player, you’ll act as the rhythmic glue holding the rest of your band together with your tactful and precise strumming. Whether you’re playing some easy mandolin songs or something a little more complex, you’re going to have to familiarize yourself with chop chords to really excel in your playing. 

ArtistWorks mandolin master Mike Marshall breaks down this all-important technique in the video below. 

Mike explains that these mandolin chords are a driving force in bluegrass music. “The mandolin in a bluegrass band functions like a snare drum in a rock n’ roll or a country band,” he states. “It’s often playing rhythm, you spend most of your time playing rhythm in fact, and you have a break maybe once in each song.” Check out Mike’s full lesson in the video below.