Stayin’ Alive: Mandolin TAB

This collection proves that mandolin players need access to the same repertoire that excites guitarists and bassists. Adapting the original guitar voicings for mandolin keeps these arrangements authentic while opening up the iconic riffs and rhythmic figures to a wider ensemble palette. Your mandolinists get to claim their stake in rock and pop canon rather than sitting on the sidelines.

These are songs that belong in the cultural memory of anyone who lived through the '70s and '80s, now alive in the tremolo and chime of the mandolin. The brightness of the instrument cuts through the original arrangements while maintaining the groove and swagger of the rock originals; your mandolin becomes the instrument that catches the listener's ear.

Mandolin players who want to play recognizable rock and pop hits without waiting for arrangements designed specifically for mandolin. This book serves guitarists exploring mandolin as a second instrument, ensemble directors building mixed fretted ensembles, and students seeking engaging material that connects to the music they already love.

• Match the rhythmic precision of the original guitar parts by locking into the recorded accompaniment's groove; mandolin clarity can easily drift from the pocket if you're playing solo without a reference.
• Emphasize the natural brightness of mandolin on the leading melodic lines, but pull back the pick attack on sustained chords to avoid muddying the harmonic texture behind vocals or other instruments.
• Study the original recordings to internalize the phrasing and dynamic contours of each guitar part; mandolin players often compensate for less sustain by shaping phrases more deliberately than guitarists do.

Use this collection as the anchor for a mixed fretted ensemble program, pairing mandolinists with guitarists and bassists on the same charts. You can also program individual songs as mandolin solos in a pops concert or as part of a rock-themed recital, leveraging the immediate recognizability of the material to engage student and family audiences.

• Reading TAB notation fluently
• Executing rock and pop rhythmic figures on mandolin
• Adapting guitar articulation and phrasing to mandolin technique
• Playing in sync with recorded accompaniments
• Understanding groove-oriented ensemble playing