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| Lucky Dog, circa 1984, at the Reality Kitchen, Gainesville, FL. Click for info. |
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During the first American heyday of the mandolin around 1900, a number of clubs or orchestras called themselves "mandoleers". These were often ensembles which included every conceivable member of the mandolin family. Whatever its origin, the term is reminiscent of "engineer", or maybe "balladeer".
My use of "mandolier" has nothing to do with all that.
Back when I was playing mandola more regularly than now, I naturally wanted a term to describe that specific activity. There are guitarists, drummers, bassists...You get the picture. So I think, "What word is like mandola (something-ola) that is the name of an object which a person might become proficient at operating? Gondola!" That is gon-do′-la, the boat. And what is the gondola operator called? Gondolier! This word doesn't use the French "yā" pronunciation of i-e-r, and it's four syllables, not three. I don't care what Merriam-Webster says; I heard it from Sylvia Poggioli. It was an excellent fit because the mandolin family, like Sylvia, is of Italian descent.
My daughter was born about the same time as I built my first mandola. She is named Milan, after the city in Italy, chosen in large part because of the alluring Milanese mandolin. When it came time to identify my acoustic models, Milan, Mantua, and Verona were selected for the Italian heritage. And a tip o' the hat to my little princess.
My first official use of "Mandolier" was sometime back in the last century. Now my instruments are sold under the Mandolier trade name, as well.
Some mandolin players refer to themselves as mandoliers rather than mandolinists. That's all well and good... But how much better it will be when we all play mandolas, too.
When that day comes, I bet you'll find "mandolier" in the dictionary.
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man-do-li-er (măn′ dō lē′ ər), n. any person engaged in the operation of a mandola. [t. F, t. It.: m. mandoliere, der. mandola, gondolier]
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| It's all just a blurr any more, now ain't it? |
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