Use This Expressive Mandolin Technique - Slide Lesson And Exercise

Master the essential fiddle tune slide technique with this comprehensive exercise! Learn how to smoothly slide into notes to give your fiddle tunes a more intermediate and advanced sound. This technique is featured heavily in "Cold Frosty Morning" and countless other fiddle tunes.

What You'll Learn:

• Proper slide technique (picking and sliding mechanics)
• Three progressive exercise stages
• When to pick vs. when to slide
• Correct picking directions for smooth execution
• Wrist movement technique (avoid full position shifts)
• Whole note slides (2 frets) and half note slides (1 fret)

The Fiddle Tune Slide Explained:

This technique involves picking a note and sliding your finger to reach a higher fret, changing the pitch smoothly. The slide replaces an upstroke in your alternate picking pattern, creating that characteristic fiddle-style sound.

Key Points: 

• Start 2 frets below target note (or 1 fret for half-note slides)
• Keep thumb in position - only move the hand and fingers

Exercise Breakdown:

Exercise 1: Basic slide to A string (5th to 7th fret). 
Exercise 2: Slides to all open strings (E, A, D,). 
Exercise 3: Cold Frosty Morning opening passage practice.

Tunes Using This Technique:

• Cold Frosty Morning
• Covid Fever
• Jerusalem Ridge
• Farewell to Long Hollow
• Big Sciota
• Cherokee Shuffle
• And many more!

This slide technique transforms beginner-level fiddle tunes into intermediate arrangements with more expressive, professional phrasing.

🎵 Get the Exercise Materials

Join Mandolin Secrets Academy for:

• Detailed sheet music with tab notation
• Picking direction markings
• Play-along and backing tracks
• Progressive exercises at multiple tempos
• Access to all fiddle tune lessons

👉 Sign up at: http://www.mandolinsecrets.com/academy

Timestamps:

• 0:00 - Introduction
• [2:26] - Slide technique demonstration
• [4:00] - Exercise 1: Basic slide (A string)
• [5:10] - Exercise 2: All strings at 80 BPM
• [5:39] - Exercise 2: Slower tempo (50 BPM)
• [6:47] - Exercise 3: Cold Frosty Morning application
• [8:30] - Half step vs whole step slides
• [10:03] - Mixing slide variations

Related Lessons:
Cold Frosty Morning - Melody Tutorial
>> Click Here To Go To Tutorial