Mando Mo Strings is a company in Holyoke, MA, the birthplace of American Industry, that has developed a line of affordable musical instruments made with top quality materials and workmanship. These instruments are on par or better than similar brands, such as Eastman, TDK, The Loar and Northfield. The instruments are designed in Holyoke, Massachusetts, assembled in China, and finished/set up in the US.
Here's a post I wrote in 2018. Some of the text is a little dated. If you would like to try any of the instruments, please contact me to set up a time. Due to Covid19, restrictions apply.
Mando Mo Strings is a company in Holyoke, MA, the birthplace of American Industry, that has developed a line of affordable musical instruments made with top quality materials and workmanship. These instruments are on par or better than similar brands, such as Eastman, TDK, The Loar and Northfield. The instruments are designed in Holyoke, Massachusetts, assembled in China, and finished/set up in the US.
Here's a post I wrote in 2018. Some of the text is a little dated. If you would like to try any of the instruments, please contact me to set up a time. Due to Covid19, restrictions apply.
Mando Mo Strings is a company in Holyoke, MA, the birthplace of American Industry, that has developed a line of affordable musical instruments made with top quality materials and workmanship. These instruments are on par or better than similar brands, such as Eastman, TDK, The Loar and Northfield. The instruments are designed in Holyoke, Massachusetts, assembled in China, and finished/set up in the US. Mando Mo Strings offers a 30 year warranty on parts and labor for all products.
Decisions were made to prioritize air-dried tone-wood (instead of the standard Chinese practice of using a kiln to dry the wood), solid or flamed maple, Triple A grade ebony or rosewood fittings, scalloped solid tailpieces, Brekke or MMS's patented solid ebony/bone bridges, adjustable truss rods, a variety of neck widths.
Mando Mo Strings was founded by Al Bielunis. Al is an amateur mandolinist, a guitar player, and a student of mine. I learned about his mandolin company a few years ago when he was just getting started. At the time, I made some suggestions and helped him with a website and Facebook page in exchange for some projects at my house (I love barter, by the way. If you have a skill please let me know. I'm always up for bartering. For example, a lawyer student bartered a house closing in '09 for a couple of months of lessons, a kitchen-design manager bartered a new dishwasher for lessons and an electrician wired my chicken coop in exchange for services). Fast forward to 2018 and I find myself completely engaged in the company. It's really wonderful to be able to offer my experience working with China and importing products with a local company. I find it very satisfactory. In addition, I have the opportunity to play these beautiful instruments!
Al stopped by my studio in the summer of 2018. I recorded this video of his visit:
The Bull Dog
This is the top of the line F5 model mandolin. Al calls it The Bull Dog because of his own pup whom he named the company after: Mo. The mandolin is beautiful to look at with its hand-carved top, scroll and its binding, "tobacco" finish. This model is very popular with the bluegrass group.
The Bull Dog - Bluegrass Mandolin
The Bull Dog has been constructed with a hand-carved solid spruce top, flamed maple back and sides, flamed maple neck, pearl inlay fret markers, pearl inlay Mando Mo Logo, ebony binding, nut width standard 1 1/8" or wide nut version 1 3/16", bone nut, tobacco finish, adjustable bridge, adjustable truss rod. The instrument was hand-carved and constructed with air-dried (3-5 years) tonewood, top tap-tuned to A440 frequency.
Here's a video I made of the Bull Dog
The Tortoise
A few years ago, the company that assembles Mandomo products made a binding suggestion that Al liked: faux tortoiseshell. Now for those of you who don't know, tortoiseshell is illegal here in the United States. I own a tortoiseshell pick that I got back in the 1970s when it was legal. I love it. It's gorgeous to look at and warms up when you hold it in your hand. This tortoiseshell binding is simply lovely. It makes the instrument stand out and look unique. The binding goes around the top AND back, something that most Eastman mandolins do not, for example. This is a bluegrass mandolin, meaning it has the chop, projection and bright sound you'd expect from an F5 mandolin.
The Tortoise - Bluegrass Mandolin
The Tortoise has been constructed with flamed maple back, sides and neck, solid spruce top, Brekke adjustable bridge, high quality Optima strings imported from Germany, Tusq Nut, 18:1 Tuners. Top Tap Tuned to A440 Frequency.
Here's what one of the customers says about it: "The mandolin was everything I asked for. Beautiful maple sides and back. The inlays on the fretboard and headstock and binding were solid and clean. The mandolin is very well made, I had no issues with any of the craftsmanship of the instrument. I am sure you would be pleased with your purchase." ~ Greg Short, Brinkhaven, OH Here's a video I made of the Tortoise:
The Red Fox
This latest F5-style mandolin is gorgeous to look at, and has a beautiful well-rounded tone with a lot of projection. A group of Celtic mandolin players loved the way it sounds recently, suggesting it would make a wonderful addition to any traditional Celtic or Classical ensemble.
The Red Fox - Celtic Mandolin
"I just love the tone of this instrument. I play mostly Celtic music and so I want something with a sweet gentle tone, not a big brassy "barky" sound. " ~ Deb N., South Hadley MA
Each Red Fox comes with: Mahogany back, sides and neck, solid Sitka spruce top, Rosewood fretboard, nickel silver hardware, standard 1 1/8" bone nut (other sizes are available by special order, please ask), adjustable ebony bridge, 13 7/8" scale length, abalone headstock Mando Mo logo, Pearl snow flake dots, white side dot color, natural satin or gloss nitro finish (please ask). The instrument was hand-carved and constructed with air-dried (3-5 years) tonewood, top tap-tuned to A440 frequency.
Here's a video I made about the Red Fox
Other mandolins, guitars and ukuleles:
Mandomo Strings makes a few other styles of mandolins, guitars and ukuleles. I can't list them all here because there are so many.
If you want to try any of the instruments and you're local (Massachusetts), please let me know and we can set up a date/time. I'm always around and happy to share them with you!
Mando Mo Strings is a company in Holyoke, MA, the birthplace of American Industry, that has developed a line of affordable musical instruments made with top quality materials and workmanship. These instruments are on par or better than similar brands, such as Eastman, TDK, The Loar and Northfield. The instruments are designed in Holyoke, Massachusetts, assembled in China, and finished/set up in the US. Mando Mo Strings offers a 30 year warranty on parts and labor for all products.
Decisions were made to prioritize air-dried tone-wood (instead of the standard Chinese practice of using a kiln to dry the wood), solid or flamed maple, Triple A grade ebony or rosewood fittings, scalloped solid tailpieces, Brekke or MMS's patented solid ebony/bone bridges, adjustable truss rods, a variety of neck widths.
Mando Mo Strings was founded by Al Bielunis. Al is an amateur mandolinist, a guitar player, and a student of mine. I learned about his mandolin company a few years ago when he was just getting started. At the time, I made some suggestions and helped him with a website and Facebook page in exchange for some projects at my house (I love barter, by the way. If you have a skill please let me know. I'm always up for bartering. For example, a lawyer student bartered a house closing in '09 for a couple of months of lessons, a kitchen-design manager bartered a new dishwasher for lessons and an electrician wired my chicken coop in exchange for services). Fast forward to 2018 and I find myself completely engaged in the company. It's really wonderful to be able to offer my experience working with China and importing products with a local company. I find it very satisfactory. In addition, I have the opportunity to play these beautiful instruments!
Al stopped by my studio in the summer of 2018. I recorded this video of his visit:
The Bull Dog
This is the top of the line F5 model mandolin. Al calls it The Bull Dog because of his own pup whom he named the company after: Mo. The mandolin is beautiful to look at with its hand-carved top, scroll and its binding, "tobacco" finish. This model is very popular with the bluegrass group.
The Bull Dog - Bluegrass Mandolin
The Bull Dog has been constructed with a hand-carved solid spruce top, flamed maple back and sides, flamed maple neck, pearl inlay fret markers, pearl inlay Mando Mo Logo, ebony binding, nut width standard 1 1/8" or wide nut version 1 3/16", bone nut, tobacco finish, adjustable bridge, adjustable truss rod. The instrument was hand-carved and constructed with air-dried (3-5 years) tonewood, top tap-tuned to A440 frequency.
Here's a video I made of the Bull Dog
The Tortoise
A few years ago, the company that assembles Mandomo products made a binding suggestion that Al liked: faux tortoiseshell. Now for those of you who don't know, tortoiseshell is illegal here in the United States. I own a tortoiseshell pick that I got back in the 1970s when it was legal. I love it. It's gorgeous to look at and warms up when you hold it in your hand. This tortoiseshell binding is simply lovely. It makes the instrument stand out and look unique. The binding goes around the top AND back, something that most Eastman mandolins do not, for example. This is a bluegrass mandolin, meaning it has the chop, projection and bright sound you'd expect from an F5 mandolin.
The Tortoise - Bluegrass Mandolin
The Tortoise has been constructed with flamed maple back, sides and neck, solid spruce top, Brekke adjustable bridge, high quality Optima strings imported from Germany, Tusq Nut, 18:1 Tuners. Top Tap Tuned to A440 Frequency.
Here's what one of the customers says about it: "The mandolin was everything I asked for. Beautiful maple sides and back. The inlays on the fretboard and headstock and binding were solid and clean. The mandolin is very well made, I had no issues with any of the craftsmanship of the instrument. I am sure you would be pleased with your purchase." ~ Greg Short, Brinkhaven, OH Here's a video I made of the Tortoise:
The Red Fox
This latest F5-style mandolin is gorgeous to look at, and has a beautiful well-rounded tone with a lot of projection. A group of Celtic mandolin players loved the way it sounds recently, suggesting it would make a wonderful addition to any traditional Celtic or Classical ensemble.
The Red Fox - Celtic Mandolin
"I just love the tone of this instrument. I play mostly Celtic music and so I want something with a sweet gentle tone, not a big brassy "barky" sound. " ~ Deb N., South Hadley MA
Each Red Fox comes with: Mahogany back, sides and neck, solid Sitka spruce top, Rosewood fretboard, nickel silver hardware, standard 1 1/8" bone nut (other sizes are available by special order, please ask), adjustable ebony bridge, 13 7/8" scale length, abalone headstock Mando Mo logo, Pearl snow flake dots, white side dot color, natural satin or gloss nitro finish (please ask). The instrument was hand-carved and constructed with air-dried (3-5 years) tonewood, top tap-tuned to A440 frequency.
Here's a video I made about the Red Fox
Other mandolins, guitars and ukuleles:
Mandomo Strings makes a few other styles of mandolins, guitars and ukuleles. I can't list them all here because there are so many.
If you want to try any of the instruments and you're local (Massachusetts), please let me know and we can set up a date/time. I'm always around and happy to share them with you!
The Pizzitola Strummers; Keeping the Mandolin (and other fretted instruments) alive in the jazz era
A November 1941 article in Etude magazine by George C. Krick (“The Future of Fretted Instruments”) declared that interest in the mandolin, banjo, and guitar was alive and well despite the popular belief that those instruments were “dead” and “on their way out.” Krick cited the many urban areas that had instructors of fretted instruments. These instructors included Albert Bellson, Chester W. Gould, and A.E. Patton. He also cited a Holyoke, MA-based teacher and musician, Joseph Pizzitola, who he praised as directing “one of the best mandolin orchestras we have been privileged to hear, and he deserves great credit for keeping the mandolin before the public.”(1)
For the greater part of the 20th century, Pizzitola ran his own music school on the second floor of 81 Suffolk Street in Holyoke, which was above the former Victory Theater. Pizzitola taught mandolin, banjo, guitar, and accordion. He employed other instructors, who included luthier Frank Lucchesi, accordionist Marian Kelly, and bandleader Bob Ezold. Pizzitola was a licensed agent/instructor for Gibson, and he served as president (years unspecified) of the American Guild of Banjoists, Mandolinists, and Guitarists (AGBMG).
Pizzitola formed a professional ensemble of his advanced students and named them the Pizzitola Strummers. The Strummers played concerts in the Pioneer Valley and beyond, including town halls and Masonic lodges. They appeared on Boston’s WBZ radio as far back as 1927 and 1928. Anywhere in the country where the radio signal could be picked up, the Pizzitola Strummers could be heard, as newspapers such as the Detroit Free Press and Reading (PA) Times listed long-distance radio station programming. The Strummers especially played the AGBMG conferences. For two years in a row (1930-31), the banjo-heavy ensemble won first prize for Best Banjo Group. (2)
By the 1940’s, the accordion was incorporated into the ensemble, therefore, they were renamed the Pizzitola Plectro-Accordion Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra continued to perform throughout the Valley and upstate New York. They made their television debut in 1957 on the defunct Springfield Channel 55 with their own bi-weekly program. (3) Pizzitola’s reputation as an accordion instructor superseded that as a stringed instrument instructor, as more accordions joined the orchestra. Interest inPizz stringed instruments resumed in the 1960’s, and Bob Ezold was one of the instructors to go to for guitar, banjo, and mandolin. New Orleans-based musician Spider Murphy, who grew up in Holyoke and later graduated from the Berklee School of Music, studied all three instruments under Pizzitola and Ezold, beginning in 1963 when he was six years old. Spider’s father and three of his aunts took lessons with Pizzitola 40 years earlier. (4)
The Pizzitola Music Studio became incorporated in 1963, and it opened studios in Springfield and Northampton. The incorporated status was dissolved in 1978, sometime after Pizzitola’s death. Ezold, after Pizzitola’s death, kept the strummer tradition going by forming the Valley Strummers. The Strummers are still performing to this day under the direction of Ezold’s son, Bob Jr., and regularly perform at the Holyoke Senior Center.
(1) Krick, George C. “The Future of Fretted Instruments.” Etude, November 1941.
