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I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day- Mandolin

mandolin advanced

In this lesson

Not the most common Christmas melody, but definitely one of the prettiest! On Christmas in 1863 by a heartbroken poet, Henry Longfellow, penned the words after losing his wife & his son near fatally injured in the Civil War. It wasn't until 1872 that the words were set to music. I call it an advanced lesson because of the challenging chord shapes & fingerings.

Discuss this lesson

6 replies Visit the forum โ†’
  1. Hollis Barnett

    Third time coming back to this lesson over two years. It's amazing what shows up when you're ready for it.

  2. Roy Ellender

    โ™ฅ 6

    Count it out loud. Everyone says it and everyone's right.

  3. flatpick_dad

    โ™ฅ 1

    There's a slower jam track under the resources tab on this lesson, worth grabbing.

  4. Ben Clark Instructor

    โ™ฅ 9

    Memorization comes from playing it at a tempo you can think at. If you need the tab, you're playing it faster than you know it.

  5. Bill Threadgill

    โ™ฅ 5

    Try it without the pick for a few passes. Sounds silly but it told me my right hand was doing too much.

  6. Curtis Rhodes

    โ™ฅ 5

    Recording yourself is humbling but it's the fastest fix I've found.

  7. Theresa Nickels

    โ™ฅ 3

    Same here at first. What fixed it for me was practicing that measure by itself for a week, no B part at all.

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